Philadelphia
rappers.
Battle-tested technicians, a live-band tradition and a city that rarely got its credit on time.
Philly was making street rap records in the mid-'80s, the same years New York was. Schoolly D's early singles were some of the first gangsta rap on wax, and DJ Jazzy Jeff gave the city a reputation for turntable skill that never left.
The Roots built a live-band tradition that changed how rap could be performed. Then Roc-A-Fella's Philly wing and later Meek Mill kept the city's battle-tested, high-speed delivery in the national conversation.
Schoolly D
"P.S.K. What Does It Mean?", the self-released 1985 single that drew gangsta rap's map
FoundationsProfile →West Philadelphia1987DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince
The first rap Grammy, and a double album where the DJ got two full sides
FoundationsProfile →Philadelphia1995The Roots
Hip-hop as a working band, from Philly street corners to the Tonight Show stage
Golden ageProfile →West Philadelphia and Germantown1999Eve
Ruff Ryders' First Lady, who wrote every song on a debut that went to No. 1
Platinum eraProfile →Philadelphia2000Beanie Sigel
Roc-A-Fella's Philly anchor, leader of State Property and a grim, conversational flow
Platinum eraProfile →North Philadelphia2012Meek Mill
Philly battle-rap intensity scaled up to arena size on Maybach Music
Internet eraProfile →