# What is the best hip-hop album of the 2010s?

> Kendrick Lamar, Drake, Travis Scott, and a new generation reshaped hip-hop in the 2010s. Which album defines the decade?

*By YPB Team · Published April 17, 2026 · https://youpick.best/ranking/what-is-the-best-hip-hop-album-of-the-2010s*

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## Current results (no votes yet)

1. **Kendrick Lamar – good kid, m.A.A.d city**
   Kendrick Lamar's 2012 major-label debut, a cinematic concept album set in Compton that earned unanimous critical acclaim.
2. **Kendrick Lamar – To Pimp a Butterfly**
   Kendrick's 2015 jazz-and-funk opus widely called a generational masterpiece and one of the greatest albums of any genre.
3. **Kendrick Lamar – DAMN.**
   Kendrick's 2017 Pulitzer Prize-winning album that blends trap, pop, and introspection into a cultural landmark.
4. **Drake – Take Care**
   Drake's 2011 breakthrough second album that defined the moody, emotional side of mainstream hip-hop.
5. **Kanye West – My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy**
   Kanye's 2010 maximalist comeback album, called a baroque hip-hop masterpiece and widely ranked among the greatest records ever.
6. **J. Cole – 2014 Forest Hills Drive**
   J. Cole's 2014 platinum album with no features, a personal narrative about success, home, and identity.
7. **Travis Scott – Astroworld**
   Travis Scott's 2018 psychedelic trap epic named after the demolished Houston amusement park, his commercial and critical peak.
8. **Cardi B – Invasion of Privacy**
   Cardi B's 2018 debut that swept the Grammys, making her the first solo female rapper to win Album of the Year.
9. **Future – DS2**
   Future's 2015 mixtape-turned-album that codified melodic trap and debuted at number one on the Billboard 200.
10. **Tyler, the Creator – Flower Boy**
   Tyler, the Creator's 2017 lush and introspective album, a significant artistic leap featuring guest spots from Frank Ocean.
11. **Chance the Rapper – Coloring Book**
   Chance the Rapper's 2016 gospel-rap mixtape that won three Grammys and became the first streaming-only album to do so.
12. **Childish Gambino – Because the Internet**
   Donald Glover's 2013 ambitious concept album accompanied by a screenplay and short film, exploring digital alienation.
13. **A$AP Rocky – Long.Live.A$AP**
   A$AP Rocky's 2013 major-label debut that blended New York rap with Houston influence and debuted at number one.
14. **Run the Jewels – RTJ2**
   Killer Mike and El-P's 2014 free-release punk-rap record hailed as one of the decade's most exciting rap albums.
15. **Vince Staples – Summertime '06**
   Vince Staples' 2015 debut double album, a bleak and cinematic portrait of growing up in Long Beach.
16. **Mac Miller – Swimming**
   Mac Miller's poignant 2018 album, released weeks before his death, exploring vulnerability and self-reflection.
17. **Pusha T – Daytona**
   Pusha T's 2018 Kanye-produced seven-track album, praised as a perfect display of cocaine rap at its most refined.
18. **Earl Sweatshirt – I Don't Like Shit, I Don't Go Outside**
   Earl Sweatshirt's 2015 claustrophobic and introspective album, a stark contrast to typical hip-hop bravado.

Tags: hip-hop, music, rap, 2010s