LL COOL J: Bad

As the title suggests, by the time Bigger And Deffer dropped LL's image alone was large enough to fill an album and its cover. Here LL, in his LL uniform (naturally), was perched on the hood of his car, leaning up against a fence, and not doing much of anything in particular. The non-statement was its own statement: rappers were larger-than-life characters.

Jay-Z: The Blueprint 3

Now this is some high-class stuff right here. I think it says a lot about the artist that Jay has become at this point in his career. To me, it says to the world that Jay-Z is hip-hop, and his music will always transcend whatever trend is hot at the moment.

Hip-hop has become more and more digital sounding as it has grown up, from tracks driven solely by synth lines to auto-tune and so forth. To me, the imagery of this cover, with the collection of classic organic instruments, does a lot to help Jay-Z stand as a true musician in the classic sense. It's just a really thought provoking picture, especially in today's digital landscape.

 

 

 

 

 

The Pharcyde - "Bizarre Ride II"

The cover shot of a Fat Albert-ized Pharcyde roller coasting their way into a funhouse makes perfect sense, as the L.A.-based quartet introduced listeners to an uproarious vision of earthy hip-hop informed by P-Funk silliness and an everybody-on-the-mic street-corner atmosphere that highlights the incredible rapping skills of each member. With multiple voices freestyling over hilarious story-songs like "Oh Shit," "Soul Flower," the dozens contest "Ya Mama," and even a half-serious driving-while-black critique named "Officer," Bizarre Ride II the Pharcyde proved Daisy Age philosophy akin to De La Soul and A Tribe Called Quest wasn't purely an East Coast phenomenon. Skits and interludes with live backing (usually just drums and piano) only enhance the freeform nature of the proceedings, and the group even succeeds when not reliant on humor, as proved by the excellent heartbreak tale "Passing Me By." The production, by J-Sw!ft and the group, is easily some of the tightest and most inventive of any hip-hop record of the era. Though Bizarre Ride II the Pharcyde could have used a few more musical hooks to draw in listeners before they begin to appreciate the amazing rapping and gifted productions, the lack of compromise reveals far greater rewards down the line.

The Roots - "Things Fall Apart"

Things Fall Apart is the fourth studio album by American hip hop band The Roots, released February 23, 1999 on Geffen Records. Upon its release, the album was widely regarded as the group's most fully realized work. Critics praised it for its sobering themes, sonic quality, and fluid, cohesive sequencing, with Rolling Stone calling it a "top-flight record" and lead MC Black Thought a "lyricist's lyricist with a hard, earnest voice that doesn't flow like water but bobs and weaves with less-predictable rhythms". For a limited time period, Things Fall Apart was made available with a choice of five different front covers. One such cover displays a photograph taken during a riot in the Civil Rights Movement era. In the stark black and white photo, riot police are seen chasing two black teenagers on the streets of Bedford-Stuyvesant. In 2005, this cover was included in the book, The Greatest Album Covers Of All Time by Barry Miles, Grant Scott & Johnny Morgan, and published by Collins & Brown.

Camp Lo - "Uptown Saturday Night"

Often, hip hop aligns itself with the great tradition of black popular music that preceded them. And in many cases, the artist inspiring the cover also provided the rapper’s samples. (Ex: Redman, and producer Erick Sermon, have made a living off of P-Funk samples, so extending the privilege to album art isn’t a stretch.) In this case, Camp Lo jacked Marvin Gaye for his album cover and also their fashion steez – right from the jam going on in the sleeve. Above all, though, Camp Lo is giving credit where it is due – even if today’s audience doesn’t see the connection.

The Genius/GZA - "Liquid Swords"

Chessmaster Bobby Fischer once said, “Chess is like war on a board”—a metaphor that’s perfectly illustrated on the cover of GZA’s second solo album, Liquid Swords. Depicting a bloody samurai fight on a giant chessboard, the cover art came from the imagination of The Genius, an enthusiast of the game, and was brought to life by African American comic book artist Denys Cowan. Visceral and well crafted, the sharp graphics mirrored the album’s lyrical and thematic content –exactly what a great cover should do.

ODB - "Return To The 36 Chambers" - The Dirty Version

Whether you like his music or not, it would be ignorant to dismiss the creativity that has arisen from the late Ol' Dirty Bastard. One prominent, yet somewhat subtle approach to the introduction of this creative expression was the design of his first solo album cover. One of the reasons that this cover art was so important is that, unlike other linear art (aka, the content of the little booklet that accompanies the album), everyone saw the true, underground, Hip-Hop spirit and lifestyle of one of the most groundbreaking artists of our lifetime. EVERYONE saw it on the outside cover design. In other words, this front cover has been and will be seen about a million times online, in stores, and on people’s iPods all over the world. Has this cover art been fully appreciated? One of the "craziest" rappers to ever grace the stage, "Big Baby Jesus" was notorious for his larger-than-life persona, his unprecedented flow (In fact, the “Bastard” in his name comes from fellow Wu-Tang Clan member Method Man, who asserted that “There was no father to his style”), and his odd, yet charming presence. Never was this more evident than on his this album, released in 1995, where the cover was a Welfare card for ODB. In place of personal information, the card informs us of the name of the album (along with his birth date, and his name). The cover is still regarded today as one of the funniest in Hip-Hop history.

Kanye West - "Graduation"

There is no bigger lie on Graduation than when Kanye West claims he doesn't “try hard,” as he does on the single “Can't Tell Me Nothing.” West tries extremely hard at everything he does. And unlike his hip-hop and rock peers -- most of whom want Grammys and good reviews as much as he does -- he's unafraid to tell you.

This attitude is clearly expressed in his trademark artistic expression that graces all of his albums. Always interesting, Kanye West commissioned renowned Japanese pop artist Takashi Murakami to create the cover of his third LP, Graduation. Like Andy Warhol did for the Rolling Stones before him, Murakami stayed true to Kanye’s fetishes (teddy bears, the ’80s, school culture) while injecting his own trademark style of candy colored explosions and vibrant anime into the piece. The result? A mix of hip-hop and high art that proved rap music had come a long way since the days of No Limit album covers.

As a lyricist, West may never possess the pure skills of his mentor Jay-Z, but he has grown into so much more than what all fans have expected. From his performances to his videos to his now famous "semi-mullit/shag" haircut, West is pushing the envelope of entertainment in 2009. Hip Hop needs his spazzed-out, neurotic creativity more now than ever.

Public Enemy - "Fear Of A Black Planet"

If you're a young buck who only knows Public Enemy from Flavor Flav's embarrassing reality shows, you're about to get a hip-hop history lesson. Long Island's favorite sons Flavor and Chuck D, along with the beatmaking masterminds known as the Bomb Squad, changed the face of the game in the late-80s with a series of aggressive, politically conscious albums that aimed to tear corrupt America down, one brick at a time. Their masterwork, Fear Of A Black Planet, is widely regarded as one of the greatest rap albums of all time, boasting hits like the immortal "Fight The Power" and "911 Is A Joke". The cover, executed by artist B.E. Johnson, pays homage to Star Wars with an iconic image of a black moon, emblazoned with Public Enemy's trademark logo, moving to eclipse the Earth. What may have seemed like science fiction has now become science fact hip-hop rules the radio waves.

Beastie Boys - "Licensed To Ill"

Three New York whiteboys (aka - The Beastie Boys) have gone through a lot of changes in their career, fromsnotty young punks to Tibet-loving elder statesmen. Although pretty much every one of their discs is required listening, from a cover design perspective there is only one true champion: their 1986 debut album, Licensed To Ill. Reviewed by Rolling Stone with the headline "Three Idiots Create A Masterpiece," the record's cover perfectly illustrated the culture clash within. The front of the album shows a sleek, lovingly rendered tail section of a Boeing 737 jet liner, a marvel of modern engineering precision. But turn the album over and you'll see the airplane has crashed head-on into the side of a mountain. Reminiscent of a "Mad Magazine" fold-in, the conceptual joke helped establish the Beasties as rap's preeminent pranksters. Licensed To Ill established the Beastie's and the East Coast as Hip Hop's home. This cover art will live forever.

"Midnight Marauders" was a critical and commercial success, especially the hit single "Award Tour", Electric Relaxationthough its jazz rap fusion and intellectual songwriting were subdued in comparison with the previous record, The Low End Theory, leading to some criticism. The album still contains important themes, like the use of the word n****r, but does not lose its spirituality.

The listener is guided through the program by a robotic voiced woman played by Laurel Dann. As this voice tells the listener at the end of "Award Tour", the meaning of the album's title derives from a figure that "seven times out of ten, we listen to our music at night", hence the "Midnight", and that the word maraud means to loot, and A Tribe Called Quest are "maraud[ing] for ears".

It is one of three A Tribe Called Quest albums on The Source's 100 Best Rap Albums. It is also one of three A Tribe Called Quest albums to be certified platinum by theRIAA.

The only video for this album that is fully displayed in full color is "Oh My God". The song "Electric Relaxation.

A Tribe Called Quest elected to summon fellow hip-hoppers whose work as artists and actions as human beings they respected, and photographed headshots of each for arrangement on the album's cover and liner-notes insert. And like The Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, it serves as a time capsule of the era; a who's who of hip hop circa 1993.

According to ego trip's Book of Rap Lists, there are a reported 71 different hip hop luminaries and radio DJ's who adorned Midnight Marauders. The cover was issued in three different color schemes- red, black, & green (with black being the rarest). The complete list of artists are as follows:

• Afrika Bambaataa

• AMG

• Ant Banks

• Awesome Two

• Beastie Boys (Mike D, Adrock, MCA)

• Black Moon

• Busta Rhymes

• Casual

• Chi Ali

• Chuck D

• Cold Crush Brothers (Almighty KG, Charlie Chase, Easy AD, Grandmaster Caz, DJ Tony Tone)

• Daddy-O (of Stetsasonic)

• Dallas Austin

• Del Tha Funkee Homosapien

• Diamond D

• Doug E. Fresh

• De La Soul (Posdunos, Dave & Mase)

• DJ Jazzy Joyce

• Kool DJ Red Alert

• DJ Ron G

• DJ Silver D

• Dr. Dre

• Grandmaster Flash

• Heavy D

• Ice-T

• Jazzy Jay

• Jungle Brothers (Afrika Baby Bam, Mike G)

• DJ Kid Capri

• Kool Moe Dee

• Large Professor

• Lords of the Underground

• MC Lyte

• MC Serch

• Neek The Exotic

• Organized Konfusion

• The Pharcyde (Fat Lip, Imani, Romye, Slim Kid Tre')

• Prime Minister Pete Nice

• Rashad Smith

• Rock Steady Crew (Crazy Legs, Mr. Wiggles, Pee Wee Dance, Ruel)

• Sean Combs

• Skeff Anselm

• Souls of Mischief

• Special Ed

• Sweet Tee

• Too Short

• Whodini (Grandmaster Dee)

• Zulu Nation Supreme Council (Zulu King Muhammad, Unknown)