I'm sure everyone knows this by now, but I'm a big fan of hip-hop music. I decided to make these three Spotify playlists of 2010's hip-hop. They're divided into early, mid, and late. You'll see why.

EARLY 2010'S HIP-HOP:
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2qYDA4A6HpEf9yA5M0IlXX?si=60bW88-sTxCNYRhUlaRDAA

MID 2010'S HIP-HOP:
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/7vWvjst2O7a87PvzBVFy9a?si=N_QsiB28R5WnegIi0E8X0g

LATE 2010'S HIP-HOP:
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/66reAcS9lv48jR3OAbpEve?si=h2psIulETxSsq42QiQrWHg

All of these playlists consists of songs that were released during their respective era. I tried to be as accurate as possible, and I'm still adding more songs along the way.

Now, this thread is going to be a bit similar to another thread that I previously made, but that was a year ago. So I decided to make a brand new one, especially since I've made playlists now.

I want you guys to try and listen to a few songs from each playlist. Just do it. And try to notice what the hip-hop songs like. Try comparing the early 2010's hip-hop to the mid-2010's hip-hop, and try comparing the mid-2010's hip-hop to the late 2010's hip-hop.

You might not notice the difference right away, which is why you'll have to listen to several songs from each era to get a feel of what hip-hop was like then. If you pay close attention, you'll notice that the hip-hop sound gradually changes and slowly starts to sound different. I don't want to spoil it, so just listen for yourselves.

My preference is early > mid >> late

My preference is early > mid >> late

For me it'd be mid >>> late > early

Early (but some albums sound dated) > late > mid

Late 2010s hip-hop is gonna sound dated in a couple years too. I'm not sure how I'll rank these then.

Early 2010's hip hop was the best, the era after snap & crunk but at the same time the last time before trap music & mumble rap became dominant in hip hop songs, so it was a pretty interesting era to be listening to hip hop music. I miss this time period and it takes me back to most of my years of high school pretty much (technically started when I was in 8th grade).

You forgot to add Bad and Boujee in late.

You forgot to add Bad and Boujee in late.

Wtf how did I forget that  ;D ;D Anyway it's added. Thanks for reminding me.

Like others so far, the early 10s beat the other two by a mile. I don't have to listen necessarily to all the playlists to know which one was the best. However, there are some songs from both the mid and late 10s playlists that i like, but that's it.

Early 2010s definitely wins it for me. I love POWER, Mercy, N***as in Paris, and Black and Yellow, and Thrift Shop. The era definitely had a lot more variety in hip-hop from electronic to trap to pop-rap.  :)

Hip Hop wasn't as mainstream in the early 2010s. I remember everyone on these boards saying "Is Hip Hop dead?" just because it wasn't on the mainstream charts a lot lol. But early 2010s hip hop is like Wiz Khalifa, hip hop mixed with some electro pop elements. Mid 2010s hip hop is clean trap, think Fetty Wap. And late 2010s hip hop is full-on dark mumble trap, like 6ix9ine.

Again, as I've stated before I do not consider trap real hip hop, but for the sake of this thread let's just say it is lol.

IMO, Hip Hop is always at it's best when it's not dominating the charts. The artists seem to focus on core fans instead of simply trying to appeal to everyone. I really miss the early 2010s because of this

IMO, Hip Hop is always at it's best when it's not dominating the charts. The artists seem to focus on core fans instead of simply trying to appeal to everyone. I really miss the early 2010s because of this


I always prefer Underground or Online Hip Hop over Pop/Mainstream Hip Hop. Although I am okay with Underground Hip Hop that just so happens to somehow reach mainstream, but still is rooted in the underground in terms of its sound. But generally speaking I don't think there was a single chart topping hip hop track I liked aside from maybe 7 or 8 from the 80s - 00s.

Early 2010's hip hop was the best, the era after snap & crunk but at the same time the last time before trap music & mumble rap became dominant in hip hop songs, so it was a pretty interesting era to be listening to hip hop music. I miss this time period and it takes me back to most of my years of high school pretty much (technically started when I was in 8th grade).

It was a pretty interesting time because streaming was just beginning to make big waves. Overall, I preferred Spotify to blogs and mixtapes sites because I felt I discovered a wider variety of sounds & artists. This was the first time in music that listeners were able to discover music this way with such easy access. I had been using streaming sites since 2005 but back then they only had major artists on their platforms. So I think the early 2010s mark a special time in music/rap history.

Early 2010s: pop-trap era when trap rap became more pop oriented compared to the mid 2000s.

Mid 2010s: Swag rap, mumble rap

Late 2010s: Emo rap, Soundcloud rap

Hip Hop wasn't as mainstream in the early 2010s. I remember everyone on these boards saying "Is Hip Hop dead?" just because it wasn't on the mainstream charts a lot lol. But early 2010s hip hop is like Wiz Khalifa, hip hop mixed with some electro pop elements. Mid 2010s hip hop is clean trap, think Fetty Wap. And late 2010s hip hop is full-on dark mumble trap, like 6ix9ine.

Again, as I've stated before I do not consider trap real hip hop, but for the sake of this thread let's just say it is lol.


6ix9ine aesthetic is bizarre like that music video he did with nicki Minaj that was colorful and literal rainbows but when you hear the lyrics and beat it’s pretty low and dark. Would get the wrong impression if you saw it without the sound

Early 2010s rap is like what I like to consider the Young Money /Trapaholics era. Artist like Drake, Nikki Minaj, Wiz Khalifa, Waka Flocka were getting mainstream rap success while J.Cole, Wale, Kendrick Lamar and Cheef Keef were hitting underground success. The Early 10s were definitely an interesting time for hip-hop. It wasn't as suburbanized as is now but still bigger than rock. Back in High School if you were a white kid really Into rap it was still seen as tryhard music now with emo/mumble rap white kids who are heavy into rap music aren't pressured to act hood.

Examples of prototype Early 2010's Hip Hop:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=STvVFDTFXBo

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZXIA-U2mL3U

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C9a_rT87B1k[

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HAsID3crrTk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z8Nmip4sPHM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9G49Tdw4KDw

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N8yZOht2ATM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a2Gh3VdnXQs

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jqhMBpPivG4

Part 2 coming soon


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y7lSH4rLXQI

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wKkbSDdR2RY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mb8KwHwur8M

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jHr01MQ2t70

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rJOsjP33nF4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2YYF0j-FV3c

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p4HSmFLYCWU

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JMwi8vFXUpo

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ROlKx7PG6sY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tsmqrk7Wgsk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TRLSQDCkcaA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZoWsL3vXSLw

Early 2010s rap is like what I like to consider the Young Money /Trapaholics era. Artist like Drake, Nikki Minaj, Wiz Khalifa, Waka Flocka were getting mainstream rap success while J.Cole, Wale, Kendrick Lamar and Cheef Keef were hitting underground success. The Early 10s were definitely an interesting time for hip-hop. It wasn't as suburbanized as is now but still bigger than rock. Back in High School if you were a white kid really Into rap it was still seen as tryhard music now with emo/mumble rap white kids who are heavy into rap music aren't pressured to act hood.

Emo rap definitely widened the appeal to people of other races and cultures. Too bad most of its prominent stars are dead (Lil Peep, Juice WRLD, etc.)