It’s once again en vouge to make lists of top rappers. This is a past time as old as pen and paper. People making lists of their favorite things, and in this case favorite MCs. However, I think the sudden resurgence of “Best MCs” lists in the past few months started after Jermaine Dupri‘s indictment of rappers, particularly female rappers, post-1995.
In fact, as recent as last week, Korean rapper San E cashed in on the trend in preparation for his latest release. I found his list to be, shall we say… a bit lacking in certain areas.
Instead of brooding about it, however, I decided to respond in kind. I’ve challenged myself to create my own list. But instead of doing a Top 10, I decided to stretch my knowledge of the hip hop I actually listen to and make a Top 20. Celebrating the past 20 years of hip hop from South Korea.
When thinking about my list I had to ask myself: What exactly makes an MC Top 20? Cultural impact? Lyricism? Delivery? To be honest, it’s a bit of all that and something indefinable. Something unique to all fans of the genre.
This list is a culmination of what I’ve experienced with hip hop since I was about seven or eight years old. Some of these artists might not even be my absolute favorites, but their impressions and overall impact on the entire industry in Korea (not just hip hop) is undeniable. Favoritism aside, they all in some way have undeniable skill (if you’ve taken the time to actually listen).
First things first…
Rules:
To keep the list to a minimum of 20, I only have one rule:
The artist can be mixed-heritage (e.g. Korean-American), but they must either primarily rap in Korean (e.g. Yoonmirae) or have released work fully in Korean (e.g. Dumbfoundead).
All right, that seems good enough. The list is in ascending order, so without further ado, I give you my Top 20 Rappers (to Ring in 2020)!
Honorable Mentions
I want to make something clear. Creating this was utterly painful. Save my Top 4, this is a list in constant flux. I could’ve made it two times over. When it was all said and done, I had a grand total of 40 artists off rip I had to navigate to get my current Top 20. (If I’d stretched a little further in my memory, this could’ve easily been a Top 50.) These Honorable Mentions are just a few that I decided I really wanted to, well, mention. But they certainly don’t represent the only artists that I cried over to compile the final list.
Gu is 9
I came across this gentleman utterly by accident. (Instagram is certainly good for some things.) His pen is just nasty. He has the sort of technique that should make most rappers from this generation afraid to step to the mic. An MC to watch out for, for sure!
XXX/Punchnello
To be honest, these were probably the hardest to omit from my Top 20. I have such a soft spot for the young men of XXX that I nearly wept when I couldn’t put them on the list. Kim Ximya‘s delivery and vicious lyricism grows more impressive the more music he releases. FRNK‘s production is just sickening. As a rap group, they’re certainly the most unique from Korea based on soundscapes alone.
The same with my ‘Nello. His album “at 5:43am” did a number on me last year. I couldn’t believe that much musical awareness came from a young man I’d only just heard rap. Add to that his ever-increasing prowess as a powerhouse MC…? Yeah, these two omissions physically hurt.
X’Girlz
To be honest, I had to go back in the annals of time for this one. X’Girlz was the very first legitimate female hip hop I heard from Korea. Surprising, I know. You’d think it would be Queen T, right? The fact that these were two women with some bass in their voices who could actually spit blew me away! For my money, one of the first true examples of female-fronted hip hop to come from the country.
The Top 20
20. Jessi
Love her or hate her, Jessi has undeniable swag. More than that, homegirl knows her stuff. She represents the kind of ferocious attitude that comes from years of trying to build up self-confidence. She owns every part of who she is. Fearless, unapologetic, and multitalented. As a graduate of the legendary Uptown collective, Jessi certainly has a spot in Korea’s hip-hop history. Never mind that whenever she features on a track she enters another tier. One of the few female artists who truly don’t give two f***s about what you think about her.
19. Jay Park
To be perfectly honest, Jay isn’t exactly one of my favorite rappers. His work doesn’t always connect with me. Obviously there are moments of utter brilliance (see any time he goes on a radio show and blesses us with a freestyle). But by and large he just doesn’t do it for me. However, this man’s mind for music, his ear for talent, his work ethic, and his dedication to giving artists a voice is astounding. His actual impact on Korean music and culture is undeniable. He’s done so much to push Korean music outside of Asia, and has done so with resounding success. For that alone, he had to be on this list. He has skill, of course. The fact that it doesn’t always connect with me is a moot point given everything he’s done and continues to do for music from South Korea.
18. Cheetah
This is another artist whose work (particularly her older work) speaks for itself. Cheetah has a growl as thick as the desert cat of her namesake. Her’s is certainly a story of triumph over almost insurmountable obstacles. However, what puts her on this list is undeniably her pen. When she’s serious, I mean when she really has something to say, she can eviscerate almost any MC out there. Test her. Mama passes every time. She ain’t new to this, y’all.
17. Dynamic Duo
There are some groups and artists you just have to pay homage to. I think it’s safe to say Dynamic Duo has morphed the hip-hop game in Korea, given it a different kind of breadth. When they first came out, they were part of an elite class of artists who lived and breathed the craft. At the height of their popularity in 2006, they created Amoeba Culture. The rest, as they say…
Honestly, coming to them as late as I did, I still marvel at how revolutionary they were. The notion of making music and paying your respects to a craft that even in its home of origin gets disrespected is bold. I can’t do anything but thank them for their love of the culture and their dedication to bringing honest-to-goodness R&B and hip hop to the Korean masses.
16. Epik High
Whatever your thoughts on their hip-hop relevance, there’s no denying just how influential Epik High is. Tablo, Mithra Jin and Tukutz as a unit have inspired so many younger artists to open themselves up and fearlessly tread where so few dare.
I first actively started listening to them probably in 2013. They’re a group that even far removed from Korea everyone sort of just knows about. At work, bored, I think to myself, “I should listen to Epik High for real.” I work through their discography, but the first album that really gets my attention is “[e].” That damn album was a punch in the gut. In 2014, “Shoebox” dropped. I was forever theirs from that moment on. Intelligence, wit, undeniable love of hip hop and all of its many evolutions. You can’t do much better than that for hip-hop legends.
15. LooFla
Okay… so I kind of cheated with this one. I wanted both Loopy and nafla on my Top 20. But I couldn’t do it without fudging a bit and adding them as their unit. To be honest, the parts are bigger than the sum.
nafla has a power in his delivery, lyricism, and stage presence that’s bigger than him. When he’s in full swing of his talent, his small stature has the silhouette of a giant. Loopy… LoopyLoopyLoopy. What can I say? I have a soft spot for Cali dudes with foul mouths and a middle finger in every word. His delivery sets me on pins and needles, and his flow is just tyrannical when you let ‘im loose.
All things added up, nafla and Loopy bring an authenticity to contemporary hip hop in Korea that the country is only now slowly starting to recognize. I praise them for their desire to stick to who they are and what they know.
14. Verbal Jint
There’s just something about Verbal‘s delivery that gets me every time. He pretty much revolutionized rhythm and wordplay in Korean hip hop. Taking it from throwing English and Korean words together because they seemed to fit (regardless of meaning) to thinking about how words actually worked in concert. That’s a poetry convention. Attention to detail, every aspect of words and phrases to give a song layers of meaning. Respect to the man who helped usher in the era of the legitimate MC.
13. Los
Where do I even start with Los? If you want to find a Korean rapper who knows what the hell he’s talking about… Los. Of all the rappers coming from Korea (or who rap mostly exclusively in Korean), Los is without a doubt the closest to the reality that defines hip hop. He lands so high on my Top 20 because there isn’t anyone in the game from Korea right now who seems to know the harshest sides of the youth that created the culture. He’s gully, hood, rough. A Cali boy who wears his battle scars like badges of honor. There’s nothing disingenuous about this man. That ghetto grit is his life. There are plenty of amazing rappers from Korea. Los just hits a little differently for me.
12. Flowsik
Flow is another artist that even outside Korean circles people just know. Never mind Flowsik lives up to his namesake. That. Damn. Voice! His tone is the type of stuff babies are made of. Okay, yeah, that seems superficial. But you have to understand exactly what hip hop is to grasp why just the way your voice resonates makes a statement. Combine that with lyricism that slices like a hammer. I had no choice but to give him a spot on my Top 20!
11. Dumbfoundead (a.k.a. DUMMY)
Of course, as far as rappers close to the authenticity of hip hop, you can’t get much closer than Dumbfoundead. LA born and bred, Dummy cut his teeth on the battle rap scene. Counted among some of the legends of the early Grind Time and KOTD battles, Dummy is one of the most critically successful to ever make the transition. He’s an artist that has always sort of been in the background of my life. He’s like a timepiece. A constant who, whether I’m actively listening or not, is always there. His wordplay, the way he weaves narratives into every single song. Dummy is an absolute legend of the game.
10. Yeyo
As with Honorable Mention X’Girlz, I had to go way back in my memory. Back to my earliest days of seeking out legitimate hip hop from South Korea. When I came across Yeyo, I was looking for more music from rapper Tymee. Yeyo shows up, and…. All I can say is I was not prepared. She’s only released one album (that I know of). Damn did that thing make an impression. As far as I can tell she’s the first female rapper from Korea who used sex explicitly to make her point. (When I say explicit, the second track on her album was just a man having an orgasm. Yeah…)
Not that we’re making comparisons, but she was South Korea’s answer to the likes of Lil’ Kim and Foxy Brown. A fearless chick with a dirty mind and the brass ovaries to force you to deal with her. Homie had to be in my Top 20. I’m a sucker for a girl with a big, filthy mouth. Especially when she can shake up the establishment. Given she only released one album, she must have had all of South Korea shook.
(If anyone knows where she is, please clue me in. I miss this woman!)
9. BewhY
I only have to say one word: GOTTASADAE!
Okay, I suppose I can say a little more. BewhY is a master of weaving complex narratives into his work. Each of his releases is extravagant, self-indulgent. You’re forced to invest your entire psyche into his lyricism just to find each connective thread. It’s a marvel how he constructs an album. A master class of the literary and the cinematic.
8. Mon Navy & Jazzy Moon
Mon Navy & Jazzy Moon is one of the more obscure of the additions to the Top 20. Their 2018 album “Ego” was a true expression of the elegance of hip hop. Not extravagence and excess. I’m talking about the class, the heart, the sophistication of thought and construction. They take hip hop back to the earliest days of A Tribe Called Quest. That kind of melodic, emotional, brooding hip hop that made me fall in love with the genre in the first place.
7. Nucksal
From the moment I first listened to this man he’s had a permanent place in my heart. Nucksal has such a ferocious delivery. His cadence is enough to make true fans of the genre just laugh. Makes cute people ugly with the sheer force of the stank face. “The God of Small Things” was one of the most impressive pieces of music to come out of Korea in 2016. That tone threw me the first time I heard it. I’m in love with his sharp tongue. His rapier wit and smart mouth. A great smile that’s all business when it gets behind a mic. A steady hand holding a golden pen.
6. Bizzy
Getting down to the nitty gritty of my Top 20, things become a bit more complicated. Bizzy is a legend that needs no introduction. His growl, his cadence, everything about the way he constructs a rhyme. He’s got precision your favorites just can’t compete with. Everything he does has this jagged edge to it. Something that sticks to you, pulsates in your mind long after the last word.
5. YOX
Year. Of. The Ox! These dudes are just…! YOX is seriously next-level lyricism, wordplay, delivery. In fact, them not being in the top spots of my Top 20 is a matter of timing. But there’s absolutely no denying how damn powerful JL and Lyricks are. I don’t know where to start. First time I heard “Stampede,” I just sat there in awe. Then I rewound it several more times. Before I came back up for air, I’d listened to the song for 15 minutes straight. The song just wouldn’t get off me for the next couple days. They leave me utterly speechless every single time they release something. But who needs words? They’ve got ’em all!
4. JJANGYOU
I have been in love with this man since he and DJ DOL formed the acid trip of a hip-hop duo ILLAP. When DOL enlisted, we got the elegance that was WAVISABIROOM, with Jflow and Arwwae. JJANGYOU had been dropping music between group projects. But when he released KOKI7, he propelled himself to one of Korea’s most brilliant rappers in my eyes. His penchant for the loud and ruthless. That fearlessness. His willingness to cut himself open and explore the hardest aspects of his life. That damn mouth! From the moment I heard ILLAP’s theme song, I knew I was his forever.
3. SLEEQ
SLEEQ is one of the most important rappers in Korea. Fight me! She’s an unapologetic feminist with a tough mouth. If you don’t understand why that’s such an important distinction, pay attention. All one has to do is listen to the language surrounding the mere notion of feminism. Her stance is absolutely radical. The truth is, however, to be a woman in a largely patriarchal society is to live an existence of radicalism. Beyond that… GIRL CAN SPIT LIKE NOBODY’S BUSINESS! She’s all fire. Got a snarl and bite that should have MCs lurking in the shadows quaking. From the moment I heard the “Colossus” album, I knew she was about to shape my criteria for great hip hop from the peninsula forever.
2. Tiger JK
Come on, now. Are you really surprised about this one? It goes without saying that the two MCs that top my list are the King and Queen of hip hop from South Korea.
My brother’s a b-boy. As part of the culture, whether you know anything about Korea or not, you know Drunken Tiger. The indisputable Godfather of K-hip hop, Tiger JK needs no introduction. No grandiose statements about his greatness. His is a legacy that speaks for itself. When his name enters the conversation, the only thing you can do is nod your head in reverence. I’m humbled that he’s blessed us with his gift for over 20 years. Been doing the thing as long as I’ve been a fan of the genre, really. What else is there to say?
1. Yoonmirae
Baby T. Yoonmirae. Jordan’s Mom. JK’s Better Half. No matter what you call her, you better recognize her as one thing: Queen. Again, there are no words when it comes to Tasha. The first time I heard her my heart damn near stopped. This was what they were doing in Korea? How’d I miss that?! Though she wasn’t my first (deliberate) run-in with the genre, she was obviously the person who had the greatest impact. It goes without saying a huge part of that is the fact that she’s mixed-heritage: Black and Korean. Though many will roll their eyes and claim that doesn’t matter, with all due respect, they probably don’t live in this skin. And if they do, they probably have forgotten the feeling of being isolated in a world that doesn’t seem made for you.
I’d been writing about Korean music for about a year and a half before I actually found Tasha. When I did, a crater I didn’t realize had been forming for months suddenly filled up. What a revelation she was. Still is! Her spirit, her lyricism, her honesty, fearlessness, authenticity, beauty. Everything about this woman screams royalty. Every MC, male or female, knew she was undisputed. At one point anyone with any merit in Korea’s hip-hop scene flocked to her as the guiding light of the genre. There aren’t enough superlatives to lavish on to this woman. So I just have to simply say thank you.
And that’s my list. As I mentioned before, this could have easily been a list of 50! My Top 20 was an arduous and oftentimes heartbreaking task. But ultimately this was a celebration of 20 years of honest-to-God hip hop from a country that still has to struggle to find legitimacy in the genre. All I can do is hope for 20 more years of exploration, experimentation, nuance. Most of all, just good, ol’-fashioned BARS! Who’s on your list? Let me know! Here’s to new horizons in 2020!
