THE TOP FIVE MAJOR LABEL MC'S OF THE YEAR 1. Common Was there any question in your mind? Common went back to basics with "Be", after potentially alienating some of his core fanbase with "Electric Circus" (hey, we liked it). Under production from Kanye West and J. Dilla, Common produced arguably his greatest record yet, touching on a wide variety of topics and exercising several different styles of rhyme. Testify! 2. Phonte (Little Brother) Phonte Coleman's progress over time has been damn near scary. In just over a couple of years, and now the release of "The Minstrel Show", Phonte catapulted himself to the upper echelon of emcees, with an absolute stellar outing. Combing sharp wit, a solid flow, brutal honesty and great intellect, Phonte is one of the best yet. And don't front on his vocal chops either - all hail Percy Miracles! 3. T.I. Although we doubted T.I. declaring himself "king of the south", one year later, we have to give him the crown. Able to rock a party, or simply deliver his lines cooler than cool, T.I.'s got the natural swagger and essence of a great emcee, as evidenced on "Urban Legend", not to mention several other show-stealing moments on the P$C record, and wherever else he guest appeared (ahem, Lil Kim). He's the king! 4. The Game Sure, Game's lost a little hype since his early 2005 debut, thanks to his defection from G-Unit, and people are quick to criticize him for excessive name-dropping in his rhymes, but "The Documentary" proved that his skill cannot be denied. Unlike most rappers out there, Game knows his hip-hop history, frequently referencing classic events and classic records, such as Eazy-E's dinner with the president and "Brenda still throwing babies in the garbage". What you know about that? 5. Beanie Sigel Though Beans is still a gangsta rapper at heart, with "The B-Coming", it was interesting to hear him shift from the confrontational emcee to a more pensive one, as tracks such as "Look At Me Now" and "Feel It In The Air". Both songs displayed a matured emcee, willing to expose a vulnerability that was previously untapped. It may have taken Beanie a few LP's to get his formula down, but there's no denying he found it here, as even Bean's more commercial friendly material did nothing to lessen his product. He found his zone with Snoop and the Neptunes on "Don't Stop" and continued his amazing chemistry with Jay-Z on "Its On." While Beans LP features a slew of high profile guest shots (Jay-Z, Snoop, Redman, Twista, Bun B) it was his husky growl and venomous lines that solely command your attention throughout. THE TOP FIVE INDY MC'S OF THE YEAR 1. MF Doom The decision for top indy emcee these days is pretty much unanimous. Everybody loves MF Doom, with many new people joining the cult fanbase every day. Hilarious rhymes and a one of a kind style set Doom above the rest, proving that you don't need to parade drugs, murder, and your wealth to see success as a hip-hop artist. 2. Cage Ironically enough, in an interview with this very website, Cage stated that he's not concerned with being on anyone's top emcee lists, just making good music. Nevertheless, after shedding excess weight both physically and lyrically, the true tales told on "Hell's Winter" made for some of the most compelling and interesting lyrical material featured on record this year - and he did it without having to resort to drugs or horrorcore. 3. Ras Kass If Ras Kass released more material, he'd likely be on this list every year, as there may not be a finer, more technically proficient emcee then John Austin. While his choice in beats, like some of his "Four Horsemen" counterparts has been his Achilles heel, there's no denying he's mastered the craft and is able to flip a variety of styles at ease. Name another emcee as rough, rugged and raw, who can dazzle with metaphors and punchlines, yet still be edutaining? But there is a virtual laundry list of reasons Ras is not a yearly member of this list; first, thanks to Priority Records he has not released a "proper" solo-LP in over seven years (2001's Van Gogh never hit shelves - although its an E-Bay top seller) and though he has tracks in the can with a virtual who's who list of producers (Dr. Dre included), Ras refused to do anymore business with his now former label. Second, Ras has spent the last few years incarcerated due to DUI charges (Vegas, baby!). Now released, Ras returned in 2005 with Institutionalized, a mixtape/primer effort that picks up where he left off, and proved Game is not the only emcee that can resurrect the Left Coast. While Institutionalized is a bit rough around the edges and contains the usual mixtape filler, it finds Ras doing what he does best, shredding microphones; "Air Em Out" and the ridiculous "Write Where I left Off" (homonyms anyone?). While Ras may not be the most commercially accessible artist (at least not yet), in 2005 he proved that his best is yet too come! But can we get another LP already?? 4. Slug Releasing a total of 3 records this year (although "Se7en's Travels" being old material), Slug got his chance to shine brightly on Atmosphere's "You Can't Imagine How Much Fun We're Having" and "Felt 2: A Tribute To Lisa Bonet", with Murs. Master of the "average guy" style of rap, Slug was at his most lyrically physically fit this year, fashioning himself into easily one of the best emcees in the game. Slug - you can find him in the A's in your Ipod. 5. Gift of Gab Although the response was mixed on Gab's solo outing , "4th Dimmensional Rocketships Going Up", he saw a return to form with Blackalicious' "The Craft". Showing off his amazing lyrical agility, as well as smart, conscious lyrics, Gab was at his best in 2005. With such crazy complexity, people will still be dissecting his verses, as 2006 rolls ahead. --

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