Top 500 Greatest Hip-hop And Rap Songs Vol 2 -m...

The early 2000s saw rap go mobile and underground become mainstream via DatPiff.

298. “Grindin’” – The Clipse (2002)
The Neptunes’ minimalist drum pattern – just rim shots, a creaking noise, and a synth pulse – changed beatmaking forever. Pusha T and Malice’s coke-rap poetry is ice-cold.

285. “Still Fly” – Big Tymers
Guilty pleasure? No. Perfectly engineered summer anthem. Mannie Fresh’s production is gaudy genius.

272. “I’m a Hustla” – Cassidy
The acapella hook, the furious flow over a “Hustlin’” remix. Mixtape Cassidy was a different beast. Top 500 GREATEST Hip-Hop and Rap Songs VOL 2 -m...

261. “Kick, Push” – Lupe Fiasco (2006)
Skateboarding as metaphor for life’s pursuit of freedom. One of the most graceful debut singles in rap history.

249. “A Milli” – Lil Wayne (2008)
Wayne’s vocal gymnastics over a beat with no bass kick (just a clap, a sample, and a sub-bass rumble). Re-invented what a “beat” could be.

238. “Dear Mama 2” (fan title) – Actually, original “Dear Mama” – 2Pac (1995)
Vol. 2 honors it at #12. But we want to highlight “Brenda’s Got a Baby” (1991) at #240 as Pac’s underrated social commentary. The early 2000s saw rap go mobile and

225. “XO Tour Llif3” – Lil Uzi Vert (2017)
Emo-trap’s peak. The open verse (“I don’t really care if you cry”) became a generation’s lament.

210. “Savage Remix” – Megan Thee Stallion feat. Beyoncé
A cultural reset. Meg’s confident bars + Beyoncé’s Houston homage = the perfect TikTok-to-Grammy pipeline.

201. “Mathematics” – Mos Def (1999)
“The true math is the law of average / The total of people divided by the square acre.” Still the most intellectually dense political rap song of its era. The problem with most "Greatest Hits" compilations is

The problem with most "Greatest Hits" compilations is that they tend to recycle the same 50 songs. Everyone agrees that N.W.A. changed the world and that Nas painted the perfect picture of Queensbridge. But Volume 2 serves a different purpose: it contextualizes the giants by showing you their peers.

Where Volume 1 might feature Dr. Dre’s "Nuthin’ but a 'G' Thang," Volume 2 is likely to pull the curtain back on the G-Funk era’s deeper cuts—perhaps DJ Quik’s "Tonite" or Warren G’s "Regulate." These aren't just songs; they are atmospheric time capsules. In Volume 2, the goal isn't just to highlight the songs that changed the industry, but the songs that changed the culture from the ground up.

We mentioned it at #19, but after re-evaluation, Vol. 2 corrects: it’s #8. Why? Because those opening lines (“Rappers, I monkey flip ’em with the funky rhythm”) are the most confident opening bars in history. Premier’s beat is a rain-soaked film noir.