In his prime, Lil Wayne arguably held the crown as “Best Rapper Alive”. His work ethic for releasing countless mixtapes throughout the years made the self-declaration a strong-yet-valid statement.


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From revolutionizing the way the world actually perceives mixtapes, to ushering Drake and Nicki Minaj into the spotlight as soon-to-be legends in their own right, the overall consistency of Dwayne Carter puts him among the GOATS in hip hop. Ironically enough, he recently made a GOAT list of his own.

During a sit-down with Complex, these are the rappers that the rapper puts in his top: Cam’ron, UGK, 8 Ball & MJG, Missy Elliott, and Jay-Z. Missy expressed her gratitude for the inclusion via Twitter:

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Take a look at why Lil Wayne makes a good argument for the aforementioned MCs:

CAM’RON:

Killa Cam was a part of a megaroster in the early days of Roc-A-Fella Records, led by executives Jay-Z and Dame Dash. After securing a deal with The ROC, he brought along The Diplomats.  Cam’ron was one of Roc-A-Fella’s go-to hitmakers during that time. He would go on to release a handful of platinum and gold-certified albums during his time at the label.

UGK:

The Underground Kingz, consisting of Bun B and the late Pimp C, was formed in Port Arthur, Texas. They are considered pioneers of southern Hip-Hop, thanks to the group’s breakout success after being featured on Jay-Z’s 2000 hit single “Big Pimpin”. That same year they also had a street smash with Three 6 Mafia on the classic “Sippin’ on Some Syrup” (also featuring Project Pat) and later in 2007 with OutKast on “International Players Anthem (I Choose You)”. It would be the final song that the duo did together before the passing of Pimp C.

8BALL & MJG:

8Ball & MJG is another southern rap duo, with these guys hailing from Memphis, Tennessee. The group released an impressive eight collaborative albums and a number of solo albums. In 2005, they were featured on the Three 6 Mafia hit “Stay Fly” alongside G-Unit all-star Young Buck, which peaked at number 13 on the Billboard Hot 100 charts. The duo’s last album, Ten Toes Down, was released in 2010. Not only did Weezy sample 8Ball & MJG’s ” Lay It Down” on his I am Not A Human Being II mixtape in 2013, he also named the song “Lay It Down” as well (seen above).

MISSY ELLIOTT:

According to Billboard, Missy Misdemeanor Elliott is the best-selling female rapper of all time, with over 30 million records sold in the United States alone. Her style and visual creativity set her apart from many of her peers. Although the femcee has a wide variety of hit singles on her own, Missy has written and produced for a number of artist, most notably the late, great Aaliyah. Along with right hand man Timbaland, Elliott co-wrote and co-produced a number of Aaliyah’s classic hits (“I  Care 4 U”, “If Your Girl Only Knew”, the game-changing “One in a Million”) up until Baby Girl’s untimely death in 2001. As a four-time Grammy Award winner, Missy’s hit singles include “One Minute Man”, “Get Ur Freak On,” and the club banger “Work It”, the latter two for which she’s received Grammy gold.

JAY-Z:

He is one of the best-selling musicians of all time and is most likely on every hip-hop fan’s GOAT list. Shawn Carter — the man who Weezy also shares a surname with — has sold over 50 million albums and 75 million singles worldwide, include 21 Grammys to his name. As a rapper and record executive, he led the successful Roc-A-Fella Records label along with former friend and business partner Dame Dash. As the evolution of S. Carter continues to unfold, the music does as well. On his most recent 2017 album, 4:44, Hov speaks on the importance of financial freedom, ownership and leaving a legacy for your children. He is certainly one of the most referred emcees of all-time, and he rounds out Lil Wayne’s list of GOAT rappers.

 

What do you think of Lil Wayne’s choices for top 5 rappers? Sound off over on Facebook and Twitter.