Let the debates begin.
Chicago's rich history of hip hop gets an interesting treatment in the online version of Complex magazine, with a listing of the top 50 rap songs ever recorded.
Local hip hop blog Fake Shore Drive curated the list, which includes rappers you may have forgot existed, like Da Brat who comes in at No. 39 with "Da B Side," to obvious names like Kanye West and Twista, who make multiple appearances, not to mention a handful of underground artists that many casual rap fans probably haven't even heard of.
"It's been crazy. Immediately when it hit the net this week it became a trending topic on Twitter, which isn't easy to do, with people arguing back and forth," Fake Shore Drive's creator and editor Andrew Barber says. "But the best thing is that it gets people to actively engage in conversations about it."
Including from the artists themselves. Legendary producer No I.D., who was behind the No. 1 track on the list, Common's "I Used to Love H.E.R.," called Barber to thank him for the honor. Meanwhile, a member of Crucial Conflict, whose "Hay" was listed No. 4, also called to explain why his track should be No. 1.
"You can go back and forth about songs all day, but what I really wanted to do was to tell a story of the Chicago hip hop scene," Barber says.
Click here to view the full list and check out the top three below.
NUMBER 3
NUMBER 2
NUMBER 1
