Why Lil Baby Might Be A Top 5 Rapper Right Now
Ok, put the burner on and the pot out of the cupboard: it’s time to stir up some controversy.
For what seems like almost five years now, the top five of rap have barely changed. When discussing the best artists out, the conversation revolves around some of the same people: Drake, Kendrick Lamar, J. Cole, and Big Sean. Whoever has the fifth spot depends on who is talking and at what time. Some people considered it to be Chance the Rapper after the release of the critically acclaimed Coloring Book. Others considered it to be Logic in the lead up to Everybody.
I need you to look at Lil Baby.
To understand why Lil Baby is arguably in the running for a top-five position in the Hip-Hop game today, you have to look at the competition, his skill, and accolades.
In terms of competition, Lil Baby is in a very good situation. People like Drake, Kendrick and J. Cole, and Big Sean don’t need to release music to be relevant, therefore, they release whenever they feel like it. This opens up a field for him. As well, within his contemporaries, he has had an impressive run without much controversy. This is the opposite of people such as North Carolina native, DaBaby. What’s killing a lot of the up-and-coming stars is the amount of hate or vitriol around them: something that Lil Baby doesn’t have on his back.
In addition to being universally loved, Lil Baby has proven that his musical ability is only on the up and up. He continues to improve and to work with different sounds. The biggest proof of this could be the fact that he appeared with Drake in the 2017 cut, “Yes Indeed”. Everyone back then, claimed that Drake sonned the young Atlanta, Georgia rapper. Yet, three years later, “Wants and Needs” led to critics debating if Lil Baby had a better verse than Drizzy on his own track. While I won’t add my personal opinion in that hot button discussion, I will say that “I lost a Ferrari, Las Vegas, Nevada / I woke up the following' day and went harder” is a bar. He’s getting better and better with every track and project.
The final element is the acknowledgment and the accolades. We are currently seeing Lil Baby pop in the charts. “The Bigger Picture”, a song that was previously featured on the Rap Clash, earned the number four spot in the Billboard Hot 100. BET, AMA, and the BBMA have all nominated him for awards. While he hasn’t won many, the point is that his name is getting out there and that it is his skill, not his controversies, that brought him to this point of his career. Most 26-year-olds would coast, or chill with the same people that he did when he had started his career: not Lil Baby. Jones has made sure to distance himself from the trap that made him and became a superstar in the process, seen by the world.
Therefore, as we await another project by the Atlanta rapper, I beg you all to consider putting Lil Baby in your top five rappers in the game today. We have to consider that guys like Drake, Kendrick, and co. aren’t all in the game like they used to be: they’re part of the all-time greats. The slots are open, and Lil Baby is playing to win.