Best Scraps 2018.
Declaring my favourite song of the year isn’t usually this easy but what Saba did on ‘PROM / KING’ is some of the best song-writing I’ve ever heard. On an album shrouded in grief, this is the climax where Saba tells the story of how a particular prom night brought him and his distant cousin closer, and follows the friendship that bloomed after that night. Saba manages to tell a story that’s grand in scope but captures moments and people in such intimate detail. It never goes the obvious route and never leans on cliches.
Me and cuz stay down the street, living different lives
Every day he on the bus, me, I get a ride
I gave him 30 on the porch, he never went inside
He tells me, “Thank you,” then he walked back home with a smile
He tryna hide it but I see his dimple
I’m thinkin’, “Damn, that transaction was simple”
The beat starts slow with a suitably gloomy piano riff but builds in intensity and switches up altogether to stay jazzy and interesting for the full seven minutes. The song is clearly melancholic, yet his cousin’s death is left implicit even at the climax of the song, which captures the shock and panic one feels right after and right before learning of a friend’s death.
Saba is such a well-rounded rapper. He’s a masterful storyteller and clever lyricist who comfortably switches between rappity-rapping and more melodic rapping, always with a dope flow either way. He’s also a passionate vocal performer who always has good beats, many of which are self-produced. To top it all off, he’s one of the best live performers out. This song is one of the best rap songs ever made and Care For Me was the best rap album of 2018.
Other people also made songs. Valee squeaked and whispered his way to domination, Earl dropped his opus, and Jayaire Woods wailed emotionally and it sounded great. Gunna & Lil Baby invented the guitar and Sahbabii achieved musical nirvana. BbyMutha & the City Girls bulldozed the patriarchy and made the rubble pay their rent. Don Toliver swallowed Travis Scott whole. The General Kevin Gates appeared to have also eaten someone upon getting out of prison but what had grown even greater was his Rank. Phonte released one of the best grown-man rap albums ever. West-Coast titan – and one of the most talented rappers alive – Drakeo The Ruler spent most of the year in a jail cell, where he remains to this day fighting a murder charge for which he was already acquitted, all because vindictive prosecutors and detectives are trying to use racist gang enhancement laws and music videos & lyrics as evidence to put him away for life. Hip-hop has a tragically unique number of these stories annually.
RIP Jimmy Wopo, co-creator of one of the pre-eminent bangers of our time.
So without further yap-yap, here come the scrap-scraps:
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- Saba – PROM/KING
- Valee & Jeremih – Womp Womp
- Don Toliver – CAN’T SAY ft. Travis Scott
- Earl Sweatshirt – The Mint ft. Navy Blue
- Kevin Gates – Change Lanes
- Bbymutha – Genesis/Triangles
- Gunna & Lil Baby – Drip Too Hard
- Jayaire Woods – Feel
- El Hitta – Aww Yea
- Mozzy – Do It For Dooterz
- City Girls – Period (We Live)
- Sahbabii – Tall
- The Alchemist & Earl Sweatshirt – E. Coli
- Drakeo The Ruler – Musty Freestyle
- Lor Choc – Speechless (Hurt So Bad)
- Phonte – Cry No More
- Jay Critch – Smutty (Intro)
- Young Thug – Icey
- Z Money – Bitcoin
- Gunna – Sold Out Dates ft. Lil Baby
- Huskii – Body The Booth
- Smino – Klink
- Sada Baby & Drego – Bloxk Party
- Roc Marciano – Saks Fifth
- Polo G – Finer Things
- YNW Melly – Mama Cry
- Kodak Black – Transgression
- Que Almighty – Plucker
- Playboi Carti – R.I.P.
- Sauce Walka – Family
- Flipp Dinero – Leave Me Alone
- Maxo Kream – Roaches
- Starlito – Crying in the Car
- BlocBoy JB – Look Alive ft. Drake
- Swae Lee – Offshore ft. Young Thug
- CalBoy – Envy Me
- Saint Jhn – I Heard You Got Too Litt Last Night
- Bhad Bhabie – Affiliated ft. Asian Doll
- Noname – Part Of Me
- Tierra Whack – Hungry Hippo
- Blueface – Dead Locs Pt 2
- Anderson .Paak – Bubblin
- Wiki – Elixir
- Meek Mill – Championships
- Lil Keed – Nameless
- The Alchemist & Conway – Mac 10 Wounds
- Matt Ox – Jetlag ft. Chief Keef
- Azaelia Banks – Anna Wintour
- Stan Lane – Want Some More ft. Lor Choc & Kodie Shane
- Tokyo Jetz – No Problem
- 03 Greedo & Mozzy – Free Greedo
- DJ Taye – Trippin’
- J.I.D. – 151 Rum
- Armand Hammer – Root Farm
- Sylvan LaCue – Best Me
- Black Milk – Laugh Now Cry Later
- Grim Dave – Grim
- Avantdale Bowling Club – F(r)iends
- Sheck Wes – Mo Bamba
- Future – Georgia ft. Young Thug
- Freddie Gibbs – Death Row ft. 03 Greedo
- Rich Homie Quan – Reflecting
- Killa Kherk Cobain – Kush Groove
- Triple One – Tarlo
- Cuban Doll – Bankrupt
- Benny The Butcher – any song off Tana Talk 3
- G Herbo – Who Run It (Remix) ft. Lil Uzi Vert
- 70th Street Carlos – Wake Me Up
- Metro Boomin – Don’t Come Out The House ft. 21 Savage
- Kur – No Shine ft. PnB Rock
- Rae Sremmurd – Powerglide
- Jay Rock – King’s Dead ft. Kendrick Lamar & Future
- Roddy Rich – Die Young
- Mavi – One Foot
- Drake – Nice For What
- Latasha – Glo Up
- Lil Berete – Time Flies
- Tyga – Taste ft. Offset
- Chance The Rapper – The Man Who Has Everything
- DaBoii – Today
- Payroll Giovanni & Cardo – BLYUG Outro
- Lil Durk – Neighbourhood Hero
- Rico Nasty – Countin Up
- SOB X RBE – Carpoolin’
- Hoodrich Pablo Juan – Money
- NBA Youngboy – Drawing Symbols
- Pusha T – The Story of Adidon
- Lil Uzi Vert – New Patek
- Chief Keef – Black Proud
- Aminé – DR WHOEVER
- DaBaby – Up The Street
- Rico Pressley – Betty Boop ft. Swae Lee
- P-Lo – Same Squad
- Peezy – Letter 2 Soda
- Milo – mythbuilding exercise no. 9
- Woemane – Whole Lot ft. Kur
- Vince Staples – Feels Like Summer
- Joey Purp – March 12th
- Cardi B – I Like It ft. J Balvin & Bad Bunny
- Shoreline Mafia – Bands
The best albums were:
The best EPs were:
