Two of the best albums of 2012 also just happened to feature some of the most influential hip-hop artists of our generation. Frank Ocean and Kendrick Lamar released phenomenal albums in the past year, making it one of the best years for hip-hop and music itself. Ocean brings a smooth and electro-funk style to hip-hop that isn’t seen as much in other hip-hop albums especially of this year, Lamar brings a fresh to voicemail machines and ghetto rap. Both albums have a lot to offer with their influence on artists to come and what they bring to the table for their listeners.
Gangsta rap, West Coast hip-hop and non-traditional are all words that can be used to describe Lamar’s style. Although he has always been known for his creative style and way of being able to turn his interpretation of gangsta rap into almost a subgenre of what he is actually doing, he still seems to amaze us with his music. Good Kid, M.A.A.D. City is the perfect follow up to his breakout album Section.80. The album follows the life of Lamar telling a story with short clips in between the songs. Some of these feature his mom yelling at him over an answering machine and others are simply just his friends and him talking about what most normal teenagers do. This flows perfectly with the albums other name, “Short Film by Kendrick Lamar,” because it basically is a short film or the story of his early life. The album not only has an amazing story to it, but the beats and lyrics are perfect for the eerie ambiance of the album. Right from the start with the Good Kid, M.A.A.D. City prayer you know the album is going to be great. I would have to say this is my favorite one of the year at least.
Channel Orange by Frank Ocean is also a near-perfect album. It starts out with the track “Start” and right from the get-go takes you on a lyrical and musical ride. Frank Ocean exhibits a free-flowing form of lyrical genius throughout it. He sings about things that are real and his style is fantastic while doing so. At some points the album has an almost electronic feel to it and then at other points it has an old school R&B feel making his style diverse and different than what most rappers of our time time. That is one thing that especially for me makes Channel Orange one of my favorite albums of the year. His diverse R&B style is so smooth and bumpin’ at the same time that it makes me want to continue listening for a long time.
All in all, these albums are great and very alike in the way they both take their specific styles and diversify them. Both of these artists take their trade and know how to turn it into something special. I know that I could listen to both of these albums back to back for a long time and each time get something different out of them. I am glad that these artists continue to perfect their trade and I can’t wait for them to continue to make great music for fangirls like me.
