#1 - Jay Z

#1

Jay Z

While Jay Z has had an unusual amount of success in the world of Hip Hop, one can only listen to his work and wonder why. It seemed that after Biggie was killed in 1997, there was a void in New York that would have to be filled by a new "King of New York". With Jay Z in the right place at the right time, he became widely accepted as the new "best rapper alive". This notion was mostly perpetuated by New York media around the turn of the century and the belief became widespread due to the repetition of the notion.

Jay Z is a mediocre MC with a whiny, nasally voice that consistently raps about the cocaine trade no matter how far removed from the hood he is. His subject matter is very limited and his fame and public celebrity persona have eclipsed his actual catalog of musical work. More people talk about Jay Z in reference to his relationship with Beyonce than they do about his actual music.

The only people that subscribe to the thought that Jay Z is the best rapper alive are people that are from Brooklyn, New York or the type of people that get their world news from sites like Bossip and channels like BET.

Jay Z is #1 on this due to the amount of his success in contrast with him being overrated and undeserving of the title of "best rapper alive".