The Best Hip-Hop Song & Albums: 1998

It’s time to get cover 1998. Let’s get this out there now and move on: Lauryn Hill’s The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill is by all means one of the most important, influential, inspirational and critically acclaimed albums of all time. Hell, the album won five Grammys, so that says it all. But I’m not including it on my Best Albums list. Truthfully, I struggle to define the album as hip-hop. It has hip-hop elements. But it also has R&B, soul, reggae and gospel tones to it, so what category does it belong? In all fairness, it shouldn’t be described in a single category because that would sell the album short.

So I’m not including it on the Best Albums list (although you will see a song on the Best Songs list). For argument’s sake, it still wouldn’t have finished as the No. 1 album of 1998 because there’s another classic there that is one of my absolute favorites of all time. But ‘nuff respect due to L-Boogie for her solo classic.

Now, let’s get down to business.

Best Songs

20. “John Blaze” – Fat Joe feat. Nas, Big Punisher, Jadakiss & Raekwon
Every verse on this track is nasty. Nas takes the cake, but Pun is a close second. The beat is dope and this is what Don Cartagena should’ve sounded like from start to finish. I also have to give a shout out to “Crack Attack” which I debated putting on this list over “John Blaze,” but I went with this track because of the insane lyrics from some of hip-hop’s finest.

19. “Slang Editorial” – Cappadonna
“I came to the fork in the road and went straight/Right out the crack valves to the Golden Gate/See the silver spoon in my mouth, it had cake.” The beat, courtesy of True Master, is on some old throwback Wu shit. Cappadonna surprised me with his debut album and the lead single was a true indication of what would be found on the rest of The Pillage.

18. “Second Round Knockout” – Canibus
So LL Cool J pissed off Canibus by rewriting his final verse on “4,3,2,1” and maybe taking a pot shot at ‘Bis. Canibus’ response? This diss track that ripped LL apart. Some think LL won the battle with “Ripper Strikes Back,” but those people got it wrong. LL had some nice lines, but most of them were him flipping the lyrics to “Second Round Knockout,” which was cool a few times, but after a while it lacks originality. “Now watch me rip the tat from your arm/Kick you in the groin/Stick you for your Vanguard award/In front of your mom/Your first, second and third born/Make your wife get on the horn/Call Minister Farrakhan.” That’s some dope shit right there.

17. “Still Standing Strong” – Cocoa Brovaz
No longer Smif-N-Wessun, thanks to a lawsuit, Tek and Steele released their follow-up to Dah Shinin’ under their new alias. While Cocoa Brovaz didn’t have the same ring as Smif-N-Wessun, this track proved that it was nothing more than a name change. No, The Rude Awakening wasn’t on the classic level of Dah Shinin’, but it still had plenty of highlights including “Still Standing Strong.”

16. “Tru Master” – Pete Rock feat. Kurupt & Inspectah Deck
The beat on this one is ridiculous. Not surprising since it’s Pete Rock. Deck is the standout here. Dude sounds as good over a Pete Rock beat as he does over RZA beats. Kurupt of course holds his own and the Chocolate Boy Wonder rounds out the track nicely.

15. “They Don’t Dance No Mo’” – Goodie Mob
The video for this track is tremendous. Goodie Mob followed up 1995’s Soul Food in fine fashion with 1998’s Still Standing. The beat has a lot of bounce to it and regardless of the song’s title, you have to dance or at least move a little when it comes on.

14. “Doo-Wop (That Thing)” – Lauryn Hill
L-Boogie’s debut single was truly original and was a terrific showcase of just how talented Lauryn was. Ms. Hill flexes her vocal chops on this track, but also shows off her MC skills which Fugees fans were accustomed to. It’s a great pop song, while remaining true to hip-hop. Hard to balance the two, but Lauryn did it to perfection on this song.

13. “The Militia” – Gang Starr feat. Big Shug & Freddie Foxxx
Did someone say hip-hop? Because here it is. Premo delivers as per usual, Shug gets the track off and running, Guru takes it up another notch and then Bumpy Knuckles devours it. I was gonna quote Freddie Foxxx’s verse, but after listening to it again, I’d pretty much have the write out the whole verse because it’s just that dope.

12. “Shut ‘Em Down” – Onyx feat. DMX
There was no bigger name in 1998 than DMX. Two solo albums and appearances on just about every album that dropped but this was a perfect match. If anyone was going to match X’s energy, Onyx could. The beat is sick and DMX and Sticky close out the track with back-to-back dope verses. The remix, featuring Big Pun and Noreaga, is tremendous as well mostly due to Sticky’s verse which is bananas.

11. “Travellin’ Man” – DJ Honda feat. Mos Def
Mos Def was starting to hit his stride in ’98 as he would team with Talib Kweli for the Black Star album, as well as make cameos on a handful of albums the best of which came on DJ Honda’s h II. Using a Peter, Paul & Mary song of all things, Mos flips the “I’m leaving on a jet plane” concept as he gives the perspective of life as an MC. Incredibly dope song.

10. “What U See Is What U Get” – Xzibit
Brilliant track from Xzibit. Great production, excellent lyrics and certainly one of my favorite Xzibit songs. But I can honestly say the video took this song to a whole other level for me. Xzibit walks from his home to the market and back, all the while rapping during some crazy shit including a police chase, looting, a concert, a Flavor Flav cameo, a stop at the liquor store, a car on fire, a Red Light district, an appearance by the Alkaholiks and a domestic dispute all over the course of 4 minutes. If you haven’t seen this video, YouTube it right now.

9. “Ghetto Fabulous” – Ras Kass feat. Dr. Dre & Mack 10
If you remember the tango scene from Dr. Dre’s video for “Been There, Done That” then the beat on this song will sound familiar. Dre joins Ras Kass, who absolutely slays it with memorable lines like, “Every day of my life is off the ringer/That’s guaranteed like a fist fight on Jerry Springer.” Of course this song will always score bonus points with me for Ras’ line on the third verse, “L.A. n-ggas got crazy game/Like John Elway got a Super Bowl ring.” As a Broncos fan, there was nothing more exciting than Elway and the boys winning their first ring.

8. “Twinz (Deep Cover ’98)” – Big Punisher feat. Fat Joe
It’s not going to top Dre and Snoop’s original, but Pun's first verse had the “Oh Shit” factor when it first dropped and went on to be the most quoted verse of his career. “Dead in the middle of little Italy/Little did we know that we riddled/Two middle men/Who didn’t do diddley.” Seriously? That’s ridiculous. And no, it doesn’t translate in written word. You have to hear Pun spit it to understand how sick it is.

7. “Find A Way” – A Tribe Called Quest
The final hit single from Tribe which probably skews my ranking a little. But not much. A really dope song regardless of what it meant in the grand scheme of Tribe’s career. The song is vintage Tribe and Q-Tip’s “Now why you wanna go and do that love, huh?” is a timeless line. This song reeks of feel good vibe and is a definite head nodder.

6. “Hard Knock Life” – Jay-Z
My favorite song from Jay’s third album is “A Week Ago,” featuring Too Short. And I was going to put that on this list, but I decided to go with the track that turned Hov into a superstar. Not for the commercial success of the track, but because I absolutely couldn’t get enough of it when it first came out. Although I’ve heard it over 1,000,000 times and because of that grew a little tired of it, the choice to rock over an Annie sample was original and even risky and Jay-Z pulled it off masterfully.

5. “He Got Game” – Public Enemy
I love this song, I love the sample, I loved the Spike Lee movie this was from and I love Public Enemy. Is it the best work of P.E.’s career? Not even close. But to hear a P.E. record in 1998 was a wonderful trip down memory lane for me as they are the group mostly responsible for making me a hip-hop fan. Nice to see Stephen Stills lend his vocals for the track and the gospel choir just tops it off. Great to see Flavor Flav dancing again too.

4. “Definition” – Black Star
Mos Def and Talib Kweli put together their superb Black Star album in 1998 and this was the lead single. So many great tracks on the album, including the remix to this joint, but nothing tops this one right here. Mos sets the tone with his vocals, but Talib has my favorite line with “Brooklyn, New York City/Where they paint murals of Biggie…” Great production from Hi-Tek on this one. The video for this track was also dope as Mos and Talib drive around in a van with Hi-Tek and picked up various guests throughout including Pharoahe Monch and dead prez. “1, 2, 3/Mos Def and Talib Kweli”

3. “Rosa Parks” – Outkast
Again, a great video to accompany this single. Why don’t videos matter anymore? Anyway, back to the song itself. Outkast went from playas, to aliens and then came on some futuristic funk shit in 1998. This song didn’t sound like anything else out there, which shouldn’t come as a surprise with Outkast at the helm. Andre 3000 spits a classic with his verse. And the harmonica for the break? So fresh. If this doesn’t make you move, then there’s something wrong with you.

2. “Handle UR Bizness” – M.O.P.
And now for some music that makes me want to punch someone in the face. The electric guitars, the screaming and the in your face rawness from Billy Danze and Lil’ Fame, this is some hip-hop heavy metal. Danze spits, “Is this hip-hop?/ Hell no this is war/I’ve been trying to tell you that since ‘How About Some Hardcore?’” If you don’t like M.O.P. you deserve to get punched in the face.

1. “Ruff Ryders Anthem” – DMX
As I said earlier, 1998 was DMX’s year. Dude was everywhere. “Get At Me Dog” was the perfect first single for DMX, but this was the true anthem (maybe pun intended?) from the album. Probably my favorite Swizz Beatz beat and definitely my favorite DMX song and he’s had a lot of great tracks as you’ll see in the coming years. “Stop/Drop/Shut ‘em down, open up shop/Ohh/Noo/That’s how Ruff Ryders roll.”

Best Albums

10. Still Standing – Goodie Mob
Goodie Mob follows their excellent debut album (Soul Food) in fine fashion. Organized Noize brings some of their vintage sound for the production and Cee-Lo, Big Gip, T-Mo and Khujo show why they’re among the Dirty South’s finest. Highlights include “Black Ice” featuring Outkast, “They Don’t Dance No Mo,” the title track and soulful and heartfelt “Beautiful Skin.”

9. The Pillage – Cappadonna
One of only two Wu solo albums in 1998, which seemed odd given the amount of music the Wu was responsible for from 1993-1997. RZA shares production duties with True Master, Goldfingaz, Allah Mathematics and 4th Disciple, all who hold their own in representing the Wu sound. Guest spots include U-God, Method Man, Raekwon and Ghostface. It’s no Liquid Swordz or Cuban Linx, but still a very solid solo effort from Cappadonna.

8. E.L.E. (Extinction Level Event) – Busta Rhymes
Album No. 3 from Busta, coming in as many years. A star-studded production team including Nottz, Swizz Beatz, Rockwilder, DJ Scratch, Diamond D and guests ranging from the Flipmode Squad and Mystikal to Janet Jackson and Ozzy Osbourne. An all-star lineup for sure, but Busta has never been one to be outdone as he brings a ton of energy and so many different styles. “Tear da Roof Off,” “Gimme Some More,” “Iz They Wildin Wit Us & Getting’ Rowdy Wit Us?” and “This Means War!!” are the standouts.

7. 40 Dayz & 40 Nightz – Xzibit
Xzibit’s career started with three tremendous albums, this being the middle child. The Golden State Warriors reunite for “3 Card Molly,” Defari stops by for “Handle Your Business,” Method Man and Jayo Felony make appearances for “Pussy Pop” and the ‘Liks and King Tee join X for “Let It Rain.” A true West Coast hip-hop album, with an underground feel. West Coast underground has always been terrific and Xzibit didn’t disappoint on this one.

6. Tical 2000: Judgement Day – Method Man
I loved this album when it came out. I gave it a 4.5 out of 5 on my former website (The Kryptonic Plague). While I wouldn’t carry that rating over now, I can still remember how geeked I was over this album when it dropped. Still a lot of great songs on here, however, 28 tracks is a bit long and Meth could’ve trimmed some of the fat. This is certainly the 2nd best solo album of Meth’s career, but it’s not on the same level as Tical.

5. Black Star – Black Star
Terrific album. Real hip-hop in every sense of the word. Pardon the wrestling reference, but here we go: Mos Def and Talib Kweli were like a young tag-team, getting some seasoning and tearing up the tag division before venturing into solo careers. Luckily Mos and Talib didn’t end up like the Rockers. Poor Marty Jannety. Oh yeah, back to the album. So many great tracks including the aforementioned “Definition” and it’s remix (“RE: DEFinition”), as well as “Brown Skin Lady,” “Hater Players,” “Respiration” and “Thieves in the Night.”

4. Capital Punishment – Big Punisher
Big Pun’s debut is his finest effort and unfortunately we didn’t get much of a catalog to choose from. Not that Capital Punishment isn’t excellent, because it is, but I would’ve loved to see where his career would’ve gone. A lot of terrific guest spots on here, my favorite being Black Thought on “Super Lyrical” (also featured a great Ivan Drago sample). “Still Not A Player” was a huge song in 1998 and one of the songs that reminds me high school, so that holds sentimental value to me. Lyrically Pun shines on “Dream Shatterer,” “You Ain’t A Killer,” “Twinz” (see above), and “Tres Leches” which also features Prodigy and Inspectah Deck paying homage to Rakim. R.I.P. Big Punisher.

3. Moment of Truth – Gang Starr
My favorite Gang Starr album. This one had so many great songs and some of DJ Premier’s finest beats. All Gang Starr albums are excellent simply because an album full of Premo beats would be enough to satisfy any hip-hop fan. Hell, I could rhyme over those beats and still put out an acceptable album. But no one sounded better over Preemo beats than Guru and this was the pinnacle of their career. At a time when DMX, Canibus, Cam’ron, Noreaga and Big Pun were dominating the hip-hop headlines, Gang Starr came with their first album since 1994 and showed why they were legends.

2. It’s Dark and Hell Is Hot – DMX
A great year for DMX and I’ve said repeatedly that he owned 1998, but one other classic dropped that year leaving Darkman X to settle for the No. 2 spot. This album played all summer long in ’98 and was the soundtrack to every house party and BBQ I attended at the time. There’s not a throwaway track on the whole disc (except for the skits) and DMX has never sounded better. Right from the start of the album (“Dog, that’s my mans and them”) X grabbed you and never let go, keeping the energy off the charts over 19 tracks.

1. Aquemini – Outkast
An absolute gem. There’s nothing more to say. I loved Southernplayalisticadillacmusik, and I really liked ATLiens, but Outkast surpassed both with their third disc. I discussed the unique sound of “Rosa Parks” above, but that was not the lone standout. In fact, there are no flaws to be found on the entire album. “Skew It On The Bar-B” featuring Raekwon, the title track, “Synthesizer” featuring George Clinton, “Da Art of Storytellin’ (Part 2)” and “Chonkyfire” are my favorites, but I’m not kidding when I say there’s no flaws on the album. And there’s nothing else in or around 1998 that sounds anything like Aquemini. A true classic in every sense of the word.

There’s 1998. The year had more significance to me because of the events in my life in ’98. Overall, it was a step up from 1997, but still not the magnificent year 1996 was for hip-hop music. Still, 1998 truly launched the careers of DMX, Big Pun and Black Star and brought new music from three of the greatest groups in hip-hop history courtesy of Public Enemy, Gang Starr and Outkast.

Huge debut album coming in 1999, the return of a legend and 4, count ‘em FOUR, classic albums! Big year coming up next.