2013 was a huge year for urban music and an exciting one at that. With the likes of Eminem, Drake and Kendrick Lamar all going platinum with the efforts of ‘MMLP2’, ‘Nothing Was The Same’ and ‘Good Kid, M.AA.D City’ respectively, what is next for the music genre? This is our top 10 artists to look out for in 2014:
10. ScHoolboy Q
We’d hoped to get our hands on Q’s major label debut album ‘Oxymoron’ last year but for various reasons it wasn’t possible. Now after a long wait, Q is very happy with his work labeling it his ‘best work yet’ back in August. Release is in sight with the date set to be 25th of February and it will feature a collective of A-list artists with the likes of Kendrick Lamar and Snoop among many more set to make appearances.
9. Wale
Wale’s ‘The Gifted’ was a banger of an album in 2013. Now the Nigerian-American is set to storm 2014 with his new album entitled: ‘The Album About Nothing’ which is a follow up from his 2008 mixtape ‘The Mixtape About Nothing’ which received rave reviews. If that isn’t enough, J Cole will be producing half of the album! look out for this one.
8. Dr Dre
I refuse to give up on ‘Detox’ and hope it is only a matter of time before it is released. It’s been in the making since 2001 and was dubbed to be the 48year old’s last album. The release of this is arguably one on the most anticipated music releases of all time. Is 2014 the year Dre?
7. Jay-Z & Kanye West
Hopefully, this is the year we see the release of ‘Watch The Throne 2’ which easily has the potential to be the biggest album of 2014 if the first ‘Watch The Thorne’ is anything to go by! (Certified platinum in 2012). There is all kinds of rumors surrounding the pair and this new project although nothing has been confirmed as of yet.
6. Pusha T
Pusha T made his first effort in 2013 with his debut album ‘My Name Is My Name’ which sadly got mixed reviews; although Pusha was lyrically strong, questions were raised over the production quality. However, his new project ‘King Push’ is set to take him where he wanted to go in 2013 with production now handed over to Neptunes. The debut album was somewhat of a small hick-up for Pusha but he will undoubtedly bounce back stronger with ‘King Push’.
5. Nas
2014 presents the 20th anniversary of the classic album ‘Illmatic’ which was the debut album of now hip hop veteran, Nas. The 40year old New Yorker, is keeping his cards close to his chest about his 2014 activity but we sense something big is heading our way.
4. Lupe Fiasco
Lupe Fiasco is due to release his fifth studio album ‘Testuo & Youth’ following a quiet 2013 on the album front which has only increased the hype surrounding the launch. This will be the 31 year old lyricist’s last album under label Atlantic Records where their strained relationship has been made no secret in the media. Nonetheless, Fiasco is a great professional and his fifth album installment will be one to listen to this year.
3. Rick Ross
After keeping us waiting for what seemed like a lifetime, Rick Ross finally announced that his album ‘Mastermind’ will drop on the 4th March this year. It is set to be huge with the track ‘The Devil Is A Lie’ standing out as a big hit on the album already! Take a look below!
2. Joey Bada$$
It was very difficult to leave Joey Bada$$ marginally shy of our top spot. Much anticipation surrounds this artist which makes it hard to believe that is only 19 years old! The success of his first two mixtapes: ‘1999’ and ‘Summer Knights’ have had the world of hip hop talking since his first release in 2012. Now he is set for the big stage and is due to release his debut album ‘B4 AD A$$’ early this year. Keep an eye out for this, it has all the ingredients to be massive!
1. Kendrick Lamar
2014 is a big year for Kendrick; he has set the bar high with his 2012 release, ‘Good Kid, M.AA.D City’ (platinum album in late 2013) which has placed him with elite of hip hop. This combined with his verse in B.I.G Sean’s ‘Control’ has generated high levels of expectation this year. The challenge he now faces is being able to stay at the top with a solid album release which will hush any questions over his ability. He is definitely up for this challenge and we are confident he can have another successful year this 2014.
