15 Essential ’90s Hip-Hop Records Everyone Should Own
Hip-hop in the 1990s had no shortage of legendary groups and larger-than-life figures that produced groundbreaking records.
By Ron Hart
Hip-hop in the 1990s had no shortage of legendary groups and larger-than-life figures: Wu-Tang, A Tribe Called Quest, Public Enemy, UGK, Tupac, Biggie, Dre, and Nas, to name a few.
At the time, there were three primary factions in U.S. hip hop: the East Coast, the West Coast, and the American South. Fans often stuck to their distinctive regions, referencing trusted sources like Ralph McDaniels’ Video Music Box and publications like The Source and Rap Pages to decipher what to get next.
In 2024, fans and artists of the genre still rank dozens of records from this time as some of the best around in the same way rock fans do with the 1960s and 1970s. Given the recency, many of the surviving artists from the 1990s are still releasing records and dropping guest verses as if no time has passed at all.
Hip-hop has always been about pushing boundaries. While some elder heads debate the legitimacy of newer styles like cloud and mumble rap, there’s no doubt that these young artists have taken the progressive attitude of their predecessors and continued pushing in new directions. Meanwhile, current stars like Kendrick Lamar, J. Cole, Freddie Gibbs, and Earl Sweatshirt, who have moved the genre forward with instrumental choices and dynamic lyricism, openly owe much to the trailblazing efforts of their forebearers.
Either way, rapping today would sound and feel alien if it weren’t for the 15 trailblazing records listed below.
Public Enemy
Fear of a Black Planet (1990)
Released after group member Professor Griff made anti-Semitic comments, Public Enemy distanced themselves from him and the media frenzy by releasing the best album of their careers. Against the backdrop of the Bomb Squad‘s layered wall of sound, band leader Chuck D eviscerated the critics on the strength of tracks like “Welcome to the Terrordome,” “Burn Hollywood Burn,” and “Revolutionary Generation” that proclaimed Black Lives Matter three decades before it became a mass movement. And as good as subsequent works like Apocalypse ‘91 and the He Got Game soundtrack were, they never quite followed up the power of their finest hour.
De La Soul
De La Soul Is Dead (1991)
Skits are as commonplace as the songs themselves on the modern-day hip-hop album. And you have De La Soul to thank for that. For their second album with producer and lifelong friend DJ Prince Paul, the Long Island trio killed the day-glo hippie image of their debut 3 Feet High and Rising with a darker, more cynical set of songs framed in a read-along storybook revolving around three bullies who steal a copy of their first album from another kid who found it in the trash and proceed to dunk on it between tracks.
As for the tunes themselves, De La Soul is Dead is a brilliant display of skills from Posdnuos, the sorely missed Trugoy the Dove, and DJ Maseo, as they trawl such weighty subjects as drug addiction (“My Brother’s A Basehead”), sexual abuse (“Millie Pulled a Pistol on Santa”), and music industry politics. But they also have serious fun as well on the disco inferno “A Rollerskating Jam Named ‘Saturdays’” and their mash-up masterpiece “Keepin’ the Faith,” securing Dead’s place as one of the greatest albums to get five mics in The Source.
A Tribe Called Quest
The Low End Theory (1991)
Jazz has always been one of the essential elements of breakbeat science since DJs began mining old Impulse! and Blue Note vinyl for grooves. But A Tribe Called Quest took the relationship between the two genres to a new level of organic symbiosis by sampling jazz and embodying its spirit.
There’s a swing to songs like “Buggin’ Out,” “Vibes and Stuff,” and “Check the Rhime,” where Q-Tip and Phife Dawg trade verses like Miles Davis and John Coltrane exchanged notes. It wasn’t enough to sample the likes of Jimmy McGriff, Art Blakey, Cannonball Adderley, and Grant Green. They took it to a new plateau by bringing in iconic double bassist Ron Carter to sit in with them on “Verses from the Abstract,” pioneering the collaboration between jazz musicians and rappers that continues to this day through the works of Robert Glasper, Makaya McCraven, Madlib, Derrick Hodge, Karriem Riggins, and countless others in the 21st Century.
Dr. Dre
The Chronic (1992)
Seeing Snoop Dogg‘s manifestation into a beloved figure of American pop culture in the last decade or so has been a beautiful exercise in the transformative wonder of the human spirit. But hip-hop fans will remember him as the smooth-rapping gunslinger who broke out on Dr. Dre’s solo debut.
The Chronic ushered in the G-Funk era by combining the hard-hitting street tales of Dre’s N.W.A. days with peerless production beholden to the sounds of Parliament–Funkadelic, Zapp, and Rick James. Buoyed by such hit singles as “Dre Day,” “Let Me Ride,” and “Nuthin’ But A ‘G’ Thang,” The Chronic remains an emblematic staple of its period that earned its place in the National Recording Registry.
Wu-Tang Clan
Enter The Wu-Tang: 36 Chambers (1993)
Just when the West Coast asserted its dominance in the wake of The Chronic‘s commercial success, up from the shadows of Staten Island, New York, emerged the Wu-Tang Clan, an octet of distinctively characterized MCs who brought New York back to prominence with their tiger style hip-hop. The debut, Enter the Wu-Tang: 36 Chambers, came at you like a beatdown, but the weapons utilized were Kung-Fu film samples, comic book references, and gritty tales of life growing up in the Park Hill section of their borough.
Soundtracked by the dusty minimalism of the group’s de-facto leader RZA’s beat science, Wu’s strength came from the camaraderie and strength of its members. The fine line between humor and horror exists in the interplay of Rza, the GZA, Ghostface Killah, Raekwon, Inspectah Deck, Masta Killa, Method Man, U-God, and the late, great Ol’ Dirty Bastard. Nothing has ever sounded like 36 Chambers since its release in late 1993.
Nas
Illmatic (1994)
It shouldn’t come as a surprise that Nasir Jones arrived one month after the birth of hip-hop in 1973. Since he emerged from the Queensbridge projects 35 years ago as a teen protege of Main Source, the 51-year-old rapper embodies the soul of rap music in everything he does. But with Illmatic, he cemented his place in the genre’s bedrock right out of the gate. When it comes to the greatest debut albums of all time, Illmatic indisputably deserves a seat at the table.
At a tight ten songs, with beats by such essential producers as Large Professor, DJ Premier, and Pete Rock, Nas expressed himself with a wisdom beyond his 20 years on Earth at the time. Even 30 years after its release, Illmatic sounds as fresh as the day it dropped.
The Notorious B.I.G.
Ready To Die (1994)
As if the emergence of Illmatic wasn’t enough to define 1994 as a crucial year in hip-hop, Brooklyn’s the Notorious B.I.G. delivered his momentous debut five months later. With Ready to Die, Biggie planted the flag in the ground for many rap fans, signaling New York’s cultural dominance in the coastal battle. Where Nas was the game’s Bill Withers, Biggie Smalls was Barry White.
Biggie was a larger-than-life ladies’ man who was just as quick to cheerily reminisce about his youth (“Juicy”) as he was to delve into his darkest, most macabre fantasies (“Suicidal Thoughts”) flanked by production that existed at the intersection of rap and R&B. The misogyny peppering the record hasn’t aged well. But warts and all, Ready to Die — the only B.I.G. full-length album Christopher Wallace would see released in his lifetime — remains a touchstone of hip-hop music at its most cinematic.
2Pac
Me Against The World (1995)
Released while he was in prison, Tupac’s third album was also his most real, baring his poetic soul as deftly as he flexes his lyrical muscles on what many fans consider to be his best work. Me Against the World is Pac moving beyond the gangsta lifestyle to proclaim love for his mother (“Dear Mama”), question senseless violence (“So Many Tears”), and contemplate fidelity (“Temptations”). Meanwhile, when Pac does get R-rated, he utilizes alliteration to express himself as he does on “Definition of a Thug N***a.” Listening to such modern aces as J. Cole, Freddie Gibbs, and Conway the Machine, it’s not hard to find the influence of Me Against the World in today’s rap landscape.
UGK
Ridin’ Dirty (1996)
Though conspired in the house that DJ Screw built, UGK’s third album represented a more refined strain of Houston hip-hop that built on soul samples and rugged, thoughtful wordplay. Released when the duo of Bun B and Pimp C were still a regional act, Ridin’ Dirty was the album your favorite rapper was listening to in 1996. Despite their label, Jive Records, giving the LP virtually no promotional push, Ridin’ Dirty would sell over 850,000 copies and counting, foreshadowing the success Southern hip-hop would enjoy in the years to come.
And though it wouldn’t be until Jay-Z featured them on “Big Pimpin’” three years later that the duo would finally get the national shine they deserved, their career was cut short sadly when Pimp C passed away on December 4, 2007. Yet the silver lining here is how the legend of UGK has grown in the years since his death. The spirit of his work with Bun B continues to serve as a beacon of influence for young hip-hop hopefuls with street knowledge to convey, and an Isley Brothers song in their heart.
Jay-Z
Reasonable Doubt (196)
Before becoming an actual billionaire, Jay-Z possessed the mind of one on his seminal debut LP Reasonable Doubt, often considered his greatest work to this day. He translated that business sense into a pitch-perfect rhyme cadence that’s simultaneously boastful and reflective, conveying that Miracle Mile lifestyle with references to such luxe materials as Lexus cars, Cristal champagne, and Grey Poupon mustard.
At the same time, Jay told stories from his life growing up in the Marcy Houses project and selling crack to get by. As the rights to its ownership remain in flux over a long-standing beef between Jigga and his former business partner Damon “Dame” Dash, fans can only hope this album falls into the rightful hands of its creator so listeners can appreciate it for generations to come.
DJ Shadow
Endtroducing….. (1996)
By the mid-90s, instrumental hip-hop had begun to find its legs, thanks to pioneering imprints Ninja Tune and Mo Wax. But it wasn’t until DJ Shadow dropped his auspicious debut Endtroducing….. that the largely rap-less subgenre of trip-hop placed the person behind the rig at the forefront.
Utilizing nothing more than an Akai MPC60 sampler, a Technics SL-1200 turntable, and an Alesis ADAT tape recorder, Josh Davis constructed the illbient Pet Sounds by sampling vinyl he bought at Rare Records in Sacramento, CA (immortalized on the cover) beyond recognition. It took a while for the album to catch on in the States (as opposed to the U.K., where Shadow was the man). But when it finally caught fire, Endtroducing….. would set off a veritable revolution of instrumental hip-hop that gave way to everyone from Madlib to Diplo to DJ Mustard.
Lauryn Hill
The Miseducation Of Lauryn Hill (1998)
From Biz Markie to P.M. Dawn to Queen Latifah, the singing rapper was nothing new when Lauryn Hill broke out with the Fugees in the mid ’90s. But with her fiery prose and rich, soulful alto, Ms. Hill took that game to the 3D level on her solo debut, The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill.
Some say this hip-hop album is a misnomer because there’s more singing than rapping. The same could be said about rappers like Rod Wave and A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie today, yet they are still considered hip-hop. Revisit songs like “Doo Wop (That Thing),” “Every Ghetto, Every City,” and “Everything is Everything,” and recognize, 26 years later, how seamless her hybrid theory was.
OutKast
Aquemini (1998)
On their third album, Big Boi and André 3000 went Afro Zodiac on the funkiest and most eclectic work of their truncated career together, Aquemini. Shades of André’s future flute-topia echo in this earthy blend of programmed beats and live session musicians. Production-wise, Aquemini incorporates elements of backwoods gospel, deep blues, and psychedelic guitar rock into the Atlanta duo’s evolutionary ascension in the late ‘90s.
The player and poet’s yin and yang achieved perfect symmetry on songs like the George Clinton-assisted “Synthesizer,” hit single “Rosa Parks,” and the heady title track. Meanwhile, other elements of Aquemini oscillate between pure microphone magic (“The Return of the ‘G” and “Skew It On The Bar-B,” featuring Raekwon) and acid-dipped, Funkadelic-blessed journeys into realms hip-hop had never experienced until then (“SpottieeOttieDopealicious,” “Chonkyfire”). Over a quarter-century later, you can still hear the spirit of this album in the circuitry of modern trap music as acts like Future and Travis Scott continue their mission of bringing hip-hop into the stratosphere of our inner minds.
MF DOOM
Operation: Doomsday (1999)
Six years following the passing of his brother and partner in KMD, Subroc, the late Daniel Dumile returned to the mic under the guise of a hip-hop supervillain named MF DOOM. Recorded in about three weeks with an Akai MPC2000 borrowed from New York City underground luminary DJ Bobbito, who first released it on his Fondle ‘Em Records label, Operation: Doomsday remains the artist’s quintessential mission statement.
It’s a lo-fi hip-hop utopia from a brain addled with local New York City area television and radio — a technicolor tapestry woven with samples of everything from Steely Dan (“Gas Drawls”) to Scooby-Doo (“Hey!”) to the Beatles (“Tick, Tick…”) to Sade (“Doomsday”), interspersed with snippets from the 1964 Godzilla film Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster and 1967’s “Fantastic Four” cartoon. There isn’t another album from the 1990s that hits Gen Z and Gen Alpha like Operation: Doomsday.
Mos Def
Black On Both Sides (1999)
He may have been introduced to the rest of the world as one half of Black Star with Talib Kweli, but the man reborn Yasiin Bey truly broke out when he dropped his solo debut on October 12, 1999. And 25 years later, Black on Both Sides still feels fresh, as the artist formerly known as Mos Def strikes a balance between old-school playfulness and deep Afrocentrism to craft a work that’s both enjoyable and informative.
“Mos’ solo debut cast him as a restless B-boy citizen of the world,” wrote Charles Aaron in SPIN about the LP in 2009, “transmitting live from Planet Brooklyn, invoking Islam, and musing on hip-hop’s role in our 21st-century diaspora.” Whether he’s mixing it up with such esteemed producers as DJ Premier (“Mathematics”), Diamond D (“Hip Hop”) and Psycho Les of The Beatnuts (“Rock N Roll”) or extolling his knack for musicianship and songcraft on the likes of “Umi Says” and the Weldon Irvine-aided “Climb” with unsung soul singer Vinia Mojica, Bey closed out the 20th century by ushering his art into a bold new era of creativity that now finds his 18-year-old daughter, Laila!, following in her dad’s creative footsteps.
More Essential ’90s Hip-Hop Records
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DoggystyleSnoop Dogg2018Hip-Hop, Gangsta, G-FunkVinyl, Album, Reissue, Remastered, Brown and Mint Splatter
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Liquid SwordsThe Genius / GZA2015Hardcore Hip-Hop, Boom Bap, Gangsta2 x Vinyl, LP, Album, Reissue
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Bizarre Ride II The PharcydeThe Pharcyde1992Hip Hop, Boom Bap, Jazzy Hip-HopVinyl, Yellow Translucent, Blue Translucent
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