99 articles
Hard Core (Lil' Kim album)
Hard Core is Lil' Kim's debut studio album, released November 12, 1996 on Undeas/Big Beat/Atlantic, executive-produced by Sean Combs and The Notorious B.I.G.; it debuted at No. 11 on the Billboard 200, went double platinum, and is known as the Female Rap Bible.
Harlem's Finest: Return of the King
Harlem's Finest: Return of the King is Big L's 2025 posthumous compilation on Mass Appeal (Legend Has It series): 16 tracks, 39:45, rebuilt from radio freestyles and old verses, with Nas, Jay-Z, Method Man, and Mac Miller.
Hello Nasty
Hello Nasty is the Beastie Boys' fifth studio album, released July 14, 1998 on Capitol/Grand Royal; 22 tracks, nearly 682,000 first-week US sales, and 1999 Grammys for Best Alternative Music Performance and "Intergalactic."
Hot Sauce Committee Part Two
Hot Sauce Committee Part Two is the eighth and final Beastie Boys studio album, released May 3, 2011 on Capitol Records; planned as part of a two-part project delayed by Adam Yauch's cancer, it became the band's final record.
I Am... (Nas album)
I Am... is Nas's third studio album, released April 6, 1999 on Columbia Records. Originally the double album I Am... The Autobiography, it was cut to one disc after leaks, debuted at number 1 on the Billboard 200, and went double platinum.
Ill Communication
Ill Communication is the Beastie Boys' fourth studio album (1994, Grand Royal), co-produced with Mario Caldato Jr., featuring Sabotage, Sure Shot, Root Down, and Get It Together; their second US number-one album.
Illmatic
Illmatic (1994) is Nas's debut album on Columbia Records: ten tracks, 39 minutes, Queensbridge narratives, beats by DJ Premier, Q-Tip, Pete Rock, Large Professor, and L.E.S.; a slow-selling debut that became a five-mic landmark of hip-hop.
In My Lifetime, Vol. 1
In My Lifetime, Vol. 1, Jay-Z's second studio album (November 4, 1997, Roc-A-Fella/Def Jam), blends Bad Boy pop production with street rap after the Notorious B.I.G.'s death; RIAA platinum, featuring The City Is Mine and Sunshine.
Infinite (Mobb Deep album)
Infinite is Mobb Deep's ninth and final album, released October 10, 2025 on Mass Appeal; assembled by Havoc and the Alchemist from unreleased Prodigy verses after his 2017 death.
Iron Flag
Iron Flag is Wu-Tang Clan's fourth studio album, released December 18, 2001 on Loud/Columbia; a 55:21 East Coast hardcore rap set produced mainly by RZA, with Ol' Dirty Bastard absent, Metascore 69, and RIAA Gold certification.
It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back
It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back is Public Enemy's second album, released June 28, 1988 on Def Jam; Bomb Squad production from hundreds of samples and Chuck D's political lyrics made it a landmark political rap record.
It Was Written
It Was Written is Nas's second studio album, released July 2, 1996 on Columbia. Also known as the Nas Escobar album, it debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, went triple platinum, and features "If I Ruled the World" with Lauryn Hill.
Jesus Is King
Jesus Is King is Kanye West's ninth studio album, released October 25, 2019 on Def Jam: a 27-minute, 11-track gospel-rap record with the Sunday Service Choir. It debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 and won the 2021 Grammy for Best Contemporary Christian Music Album.
Kamikaze (Eminem album)
Kamikaze (KAMIKAZƎ) is Eminem's tenth studio album, a surprise release on August 31, 2018 via Aftermath/Shady/Interscope, responding to Revival's poor reception; 13 tracks, No. 1 in 103 markets, Metacritic 62/100.
King Push – Darkest Before Dawn: The Prelude
King Push – Darkest Before Dawn: The Prelude is Pusha T's second studio album, released December 18, 2015 on G.O.O.D. Music/Def Jam; a 10-track, 33-minute prelude to the planned King Push album, scoring 85 on Metacritic.
King's Disease
King's Disease is a 2020 Nas album produced by Hit-Boy and released on Mass Appeal; it won the 2021 Grammy for Best Rap Album and launched a Hit-Boy-produced album series including King's Disease II and III.
Kingdom Come (Jay-Z album)
Kingdom Come is Jay-Z's 2006 comeback album on Roc-A-Fella/Def Jam, his first since The Black Album and retirement. Released November 21, 2006, produced by Just Blaze, Dr. Dre, and Kanye West, it scored 67 on Metacritic and is widely called his weakest album.
KOD (album)
KOD is J. Cole's fifth studio album, released April 20, 2018 on Dreamville/Roc Nation/Interscope; a 12-track addiction-themed concept album whose acronym means Kids on Drugs, King Overdosed, and Kill Our Demons, debuting at number one on the Billboard 200.
Let God Sort Em Out
Let God Sort Em Out is the fourth studio album by Virginia Beach rap duo Clipse (Pusha T and Malice), released July 11, 2025 via Roc Nation Distribution. Fully produced by Pharrell Williams in Paris, it features Kendrick Lamar, Nas, and Tyler, The Creator.
Licensed to Ill
Licensed to Ill is the Beastie Boys' 1986 debut album on Def Jam/Columbia, produced by Rick Rubin; the first rap album to top the Billboard 200 and the first hip-hop album certified Diamond.
Life Is Good (Nas album)
Life Is Good is Nas's tenth studio album, released July 17, 2012 on Def Jam; produced mainly by No I.D. and Salaam Remi, it covers his divorce from Kelis and fatherhood, scored 81 on Metacritic.
Liquid Swords
Liquid Swords is the second solo studio album by Wu-Tang Clan member GZA, released in 1995, produced by RZA, and widely called one of the greatest hip hop albums.
Long. Live. ASAP
Long. Live. ASAP (LONG.LIVE.A$AP) is A$AP Rocky's debut studio album, released January 15, 2013 on Polo Grounds/RCA after his $3 million deal; it debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and earned Pitchfork Best New Album.
Magna Carta Holy Grail
Magna Carta Holy Grail (Magna Carta... Holy Grail) is Jay-Z's twelfth solo studio album, released July 4, 2013 free to one million Samsung Galaxy users and July 8 at retail; it sold 528,000 first-week US copies, won a Grammy for 'Holy Grail', and was RIAA double Platinum.
Muddy Waters Too
Muddy Waters Too is Redman's studio album, released December 24, 2024 on Gilla House/Riveting Music. The 32-track, 81-minute sequel to his 1996 album Muddy Waters features Method Man, Snoop Dogg, and a New Jersey posse cut.
Music to Be Murdered By
Music to Be Murdered By (MTBMB) is Eminem's eleventh studio album, a surprise release on January 17, 2020 via Shady/Aftermath/Interscope, titled after Alfred Hitchcock's 1958 compilation, with the song Darkness about the Las Vegas shooting and a Side B deluxe in December 2020.
Nasir (album)
NASIR is Nas's eleventh studio album, released June 15, 2018; a seven-track, 26-minute set produced entirely by Kanye West as the fourth release of the 2018 Wyoming sessions, earning a Metacritic score of 58.
Nastradamus
Nastradamus: Nas's fourth studio album, released November 23, 1999 on Columbia (CK 63930), rushed out after I Am... session leaks; produced by L.E.S., DJ Premier, Timbaland, Dame Grease; singles "Nastradamus" and "You Owe Me."
No Way Out (Puff Daddy album)
No Way Out (Puff Daddy album), aka No Way Out, is Puff Daddy & the Family's 1997 debut on Bad Boy; a Billboard 200 No. 1, 7× Platinum, Grammy Best Rap Album winner featuring Biggie tributes and hit singles.
Once Upon a Time in Shaolin
Once Upon a Time in Shaolin: Wu-Tang Clan's one-copy 31-track double album, sold to Shkreli for $2M in 2015, forfeited in 2018, bought by PleasrDAO for $4M in 2021, embargoed until 2103.