The Best 90’s Rap Albums That Still Hold Up

As my kids have grown older, I've loved teaching them about the music I love. I'm not sure if they enjoy learning about it, but they do a good job of pretending anyway.

I love music; it is as much a part of my being as breathing. I like most anything, as long as it's good. And since I was a teenager in the early 90's, that's where a lot of my music taste is stuck.

I still think the best albums come from that decade. Albums have declined in importance over the years, which makes sense; we buy and listen to music in so many different ways today, so the old styles were sure to fade.

But there is magic in listening to an album. A good album is like a novel of connected short stories. It's a collection on a theme or a snapshot of a time. The best ones have album tracks that are as strong as the singles and demand to be listened to from first to last track.

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The early to mid-1990s were the golden age of rap albums, as far as I'm concerned. That's when the art matured. The songs became more complex, both musically and lyrically. They told stories. In lots of ways, they picked up the punk mantle and carried it through the decade.

As I was putting on my master-class on the best 90's rap albums for my kids, I made a list of the best ones that still hold up.

Skee Lo - I Wish

In March 1995, LA-based rapper Skee Lo blew up with his song "I Wish." The song crossed over and was everywhere. That summer, he released his debut album of the same name. Follow-up singles didn't quite reach "I Wish" levels, but the entire album is great.

Skee has a lot going on this album; his rhymes are solid, and he's a good storyteller. Musically, it has a fantastic California funk sound. There's cool bragging ("Superman"), inspiration and warnings that are not corny ("Never Crossed My Mind", "Top of the Stairs"), hanging out songs ("Crenshaw"), and the super fun ("The Burger Song").

Digital Underground - Sex Packets

This is the album that gave the world "The Humpty Dance." But it has so much more. That song was actually the second single from the album after "Doowutchyalike."

From first to last, this album showcased Shock G's P-Funk-influenced fun sound. There are straight-up great rap songs like "The Way We Swing"  and silly, but still solid, songs like "Underwater Rimes." The only weak point comes with the title song and its odd sex hallucination dream thing, but it does lead into "Packet Man," an awesome conversation song between Shock and Humpty.

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KRS-One - Return of the Boom Bap

Boogie Down Productions leader KRS-One dropped this solo project in 1993. After the dense BDP album Edutainment, KRS hooked up with some rising producers and made a rough, slamming Hip Hop album.

It opens with the DJ Premier produced "KRS-One Attacks," with a great beat and a few sparse samples from KRS reminding the doubters of his musical legacy. "Outta Here" is an autobiographical song, with its drum track and dash of piano, it's made for blasting.

The whole album is a showcase of KRS's style of teaching and phenomenal rhyming skills. "Slap Them Up," "Sound of da Police," and "P" Is Still Free" are some of the standout tracks of this outstanding album

Scarface - The Diary

1994's The Diary is the third solo album from The Geto Boys' Scarface. Presented as a whole, the entire album is a journey through the underworld, depression, and paranoia. This is Gangsta Rap: stories of criminals and poverty, and the results and aftermath. I rarely can start this album without listening to the whole thing.

Scarface paints a picture of swagger attitude on the outside, while inside his head, there is conflict. Is a person trapped by circumstances, choices, or their mind?

The first three songs, "The White Sheet," "No Tears," and  "Jesse James," are three acts of one story that asks is doing what's right and worth it because in the end we all die alone? Also, Face tells a heartbreaking story of struggle, pain, fear, and death in the outstanding "I Seen a Man Die."

Ice Cube - Death Certificate

On his second solo album, Ice Cube fully came into his own, musically and lyrically. It's a classic gangsta sound with a strong 70's funk influence. Lyrically, the album is rage, anger, controversial, and great. It has the same energy as great Heavy Metal or the blues, with Cube's complex rhymes and storytelling.

The songs are (depressingly) still relevant today. Reality, poverty, and pain presented like a classic film; entertaining and engaging. Standout songs include "My Summer Vacation," "A Bird In the Hand,"  and "Alive On Arrival."

WC And The Maad Circle - Ain't a Damn Thang Changed
I declare this the perfect gangsta rap album. Even that is selling it short. It's much deeper and more insightful than that. It's one of the best albums, as a whole, all the songs from track one to the end. Each song is an insight into a man trying to live life. A simple everyday life that is derailed by social realities. Together, it is a painting reflecting reality.

Compton's Most Wanted - Straight Checkn 'Em

From 1991, this was the second album from CMW. They always had a unique flavor in their songs. Nihilistic, dark visions in the lyrics, paired with often beautiful fusions of jazz and funk sounds. They also have some of the best uses of lyric samples and movie clips in songs.