Andre' 3000: Top Ten Emcee of All-Time?

At the very least, I think a case can be made for him.

There are obvious--at least to me--choices for such a distinction. Those guys are:

Jay-Z
Common
Kool G. Rap
KRS-One
Rakim
Nas
Ice Cube
Big Daddy Kane
Tupac

After these nine, I'd say that it gets murky. Cases can be made for guys like Scarface, Ghostface, Masta Ace, and even someone like Canibus. LL Cool J, despite not having put out a truly good album in over decade, still deserves to be mentioned in this group. However, I think Andre Benjamin is the most intriguing emcee because he has been one of the few who has been able to completely adapt himself to the changing hip-hop landscape. Jay, Nas, Cube, and the like are more elder statesmen than artists for me; they make their music regardless of what's going on in the mainstream. Others, like 'Pac and Rakim, aren't putting out albums. Others still--like Uncle L--have either tried to go mainstream and failed or--like 'Bis--existed so far beyond the scene that their music never even registered on the radar. I'm emphasizing the mainstream scene here because part of what constitutes a hip-hop legend is being able to set trends and influence artists alongside being skilled. Jay isn't a legend just because he made Reasonable Doubt; he's one because he dominated the scene for those "seven summers." 'Pac isn't on this list just because of "Me Against the World," but because he may have been one of the most influential musical icons in any genre of music, not just hip-hop. Given this, I think that Andre' 3000 may be that next Jay-Z in that he has successfully fused his skill level with mainstream success. Alongside Big Boi, the two formed Outkast and became known as one of the best groups in hip-hop's history. Now, with the two growing more apart, 'Dre has slowly, but surely, made his way back into the mainstream. Whether it be on the remix to DJ Unk's hit "Walk it Out," a remix to Jay-Z's "30 Something," or more recently, John Legend's single "Green Light," Dre has appeared on a number of tracks in the past couple of years. More importantly, though, his guest shots have been good; he's chosen his spots wisely, and he's been effective in those spots. Check out his verse on Big Boi's "Royal Flush" for instance:

Styles will change. They say change is dang-erous
As a King standing on the terrace
While his partner pointing up at the riflemen
Coward shooter, never know when your life will end
Then live like there ain't no 'morrow
And if one come then this the motto
Now I put message in bottle
You go to the nearest beach and open your car door
And walk to the place where the sea meets the land
Yeah, it's easier to run the street than walk in the sand
Hey, I'm talking young man. As if chalk in my hand
I will take y'all little ass to school
It's cool when the kids call me Sunny, the hood calls me Stacks
The B's call me honey, Hollywood calls me back
Crack and I have a lot in common
We both come up in the 80's and we keep that bass pumping
That's a nega-tive comparison, embarrassing
Unfortunate that if you come up fortunate the streets consider you lame
Ha, I thought the name of the game was to have a better life. I guess it ain't. What a shame
I don't slang. Never slung but I'm one with the slum that has a name well fitting
Plenty cheese getting. No wonder why they call it the trap
So watch your tail and I'm not kidding
The rats and mice will give advice, they say, "you can paint and draw
Get out of here. Go show them that we're more than slanging raw."
That's when I broke into my Big Rube impression
And I tried to enlighten but that night I learned a lesson
That the morals that you think you got go out the window
When all the other kids are fresh and they got new Nintendo Wiis
And your child is down on her knees praying hard up to God for a whopper with cheese
Do you B) hit the street hard with a flair
Or do you A) go to school for heating and air?
Dare make an honest living or make a crooked killing
Or do a bit of both until you're holding on a million?
Brilliant. You got one foot in, one foot out
You put your left foot back in and then you shake it all about
You do the hokey pokey til you turn your life around
That's what it's all about. 3000 out.

Besides being cogent, it's a damn good rhyme. Check out the internal rhymes interspersed throughout his verses, and the way he stresses his words at certain points in order to create end rhymes ("Dang-erous/terrace" and "nega-tive/comparison/embarrassin"). Technically speaking, it's easily a 10, which is even more admirable given that Raekwon and Big Boi drop good verses themselves before Dre gets on the mic.

His work with Outkast needs no explanation; that alone would at least get 'Dre into the discussion for being a top ten emcee. However, in terms of solo success, I'd say that he has to put out an album or two to show that he can truly stand on his own. Right now, he's got the title of "Best Guest Shot Artist," but he's got to have some solo work to place him in the company of guys like Nas, 'Pac, and Cube. For now, though, he's still the best emcee working not named Chamillionaire.