Quick Links

Let's be honest, the rap game is fully cluttered right now. One of the main reasons for that is with the advances in technology and the ubiquity of the internet, almost anyone can record a song and become an instant star. Also Hip-Hop is now officially the new wave of  mainstream pop music so it's easy to see how the genre can become tainted with a lot of unwanted elements. In the following article, we talk candidly about ten rappers who would be better off hanging up the microphone and walking away forever. The truth hurts but someone has to say it! See below ...

Master P

It’s hard to doubt the legendary status of the rapper Percy Miller aka Master P. In the late 90’s, the 47-yr-old rapper and entrepreneur from New Orleans was one of the biggest names on the scene. He had huge hits like “Mr. Ice Cream Man” and “Make ‘Em Say Uhh!” and the record label he started No Limit Records was pretty much a hit factory churning out new albums from a host of top selling artists every few months. There was even a brief period when Snoop Dogg signed to No Limit. But that was then. Since 2010, P has been trying to rejuvenate his career by affiliating with young street rappers like Fat Trel and Alley Boy, and it just seems like he’s trying too hard to be a man in a boy’s game. According to Forbes, he’s still worth a couple of $100 million from his past successes and entrepreneurial activities. He can just stop rapping and he’ll be just fine.

Chief Keef

There’s a phrase in Hip-Hop called “struggle rappers” and this terminology applies perfectly to Chief Keef from Chicago. He first emerged on the scene with hit songs like “3 Hunna” & “I Don’t Like” and both tracks really exploded. However even then, his lyrics were pedestrian and highly ignorant. But he still got a huge deal from Interscope and when his album “Finally Rich” dropped, it flopped. He has since been dropped from his major record deal, and his music seems to get worse with every new single. He’s still just 19, but perhaps it’s time for him to hang it up.

Birdman

There are some rappers who just need to hang up the microphone and quit. Brian “Baby” Williams aka Birdman is one wannabe rapper who doesn’t even need to enter the recording booth, because he has already amassed a boatload of dollars from being the owner of Cash Money Records. But apparently he still likes the rush of being on stage, and lately he has taken to hanging around young stars like Young Thug and Rich Homie Quan. Their new crew is called Rich Gang, and it honestly just looks embarrassing when he kicks his subpar rhymes and tries to act like a fresh, new rapper. If you’re listening Birdman, it’s time to flap your wings and fly away. The rap game doesn’t need you anymore.

Chet Haze (Tom Hanks' son)

Let’s face it – it’s really tough to be taken seriously in the rap industry when you come from a very pampered and wealthy upbringing. The truth is Hip-Hop is a culture from the streets, and most of the biggest names in the game really started from the bottom before making it to the top. The hardship and harsh experiences they faced is what makes their music so passionate and heartfelt. That’s why a rapper like Chet Haze (Tom Hanks’s son) that attended private school and grew up in the posh Brentwood neighborhood is always going to have issues making it in rap. He’s better off pursuing acting but hey, what do they say: the heart wants what it wants.

Rich Hilfiger (Tommy Hilfiger's son)

Rich Hilfiger is the 24-yr-old son of Tommy Hilfiger, and he’s another child of privilege that’s trying to let out his angst and artistic expression through Hip-Hop. The only problem is that the rap crowd isn’t buying it. Even though he’s gotten tattoos all over his body, smokes a lot of weed, dyes his hair all kinds of crazy colors and dates Rita Ora, he just doesn’t have any street cred. It’s tough when your dad is the man behind a billion dollar global fashion empire. There’s probably not too much he’s had to ask for in his life. And we don’t think it’s too much for the rap world to ask him to find another form of artistic release.

 Diddy

The worst types of rappers are the ones that do it strictly for a hobby. Sean Combs has so many different businesses going on – Ciroc, AQUAhydrate, Deleon Tequila, Revolt TV – to name a few. He still also runs a record label but that doesn’t mean that he should be doing any actual rapping. Let’s be honest, dating all the way back to the 90’s, Diddy has never been an above average rapper. He also hasn’t been shy about admitting that he has other rappers ghostwrite his lyrics. So for all these reasons, it’s probably time for him to hang up the microphone once and for all.

Chingy

St. Louis rapper Chingy enjoyed a great run of success between 2002 and 2007. It also didn’t hurt that he was signed to the label DTP owned by Ludacris, an affiliation that got him lots of great publicity and visibility. He also did his part by creating hit singles like “Right Thurr,” Pullin’ Me Back” and “Dem Jeans.” But in recent years, his career has been dogged by an alleged relation with a transgender man and he also made a recent announcement that he had changed his religion to become a Black Hebrew Israelite. It honestly seems like he’s all over the place and for these reasons, we feel the rap game will do just fine without further contributions from him.

 Ja Rule

In the history of rap, Ja Rule is probably the biggest example of a rapper losing a beef and having his career go straight down the drain. Before his beef with 50 Cent many years ago, Ja Rule was riding high; doing songs with DMX, Jay-Z, J-Lo and making tons of hit singles. After he lost the beef, it was almost like he had Hip-Hop leprosy and the rap fans didn’t want to mess with him anymore. In recent years, he has tried to drop a new song here and there but nothing has ever really stuck. Perhaps he should try getting into acting, because the rapping thing is not working anymore.

Young Thug

For the 22-yr-old rapper Young Thug, 2014 was a real watershed year. He really broke out and was featured on huge songs with T.I., Young Jeezy, Wacka Flocka Flame, Lil Wayne and more. He also had a single called “Lifestyle” which enjoyed major radio airplay all over the country. He might be on the cusp of being the next star but this is one case where it’s all gloss and no substance. His lyrics are barely intelligible and he has a sing-songy style that tends to get tired really quickly. But with all this said, he’s still probably going to end up selling a ton of records when his album drops next year. What ever happened to skills and raw, clever lyrics?

Lil B

Lil B is an odd and intriguing entity in the world of rap music. The 25-yr-old West Coast rapper has perfected the art of shock value to make himself popular and relevant. He is the one rapper who had the balls to name one of his albums: “I’m Gay.” He also had a long history of beefs with rappers like Joey Bada$$, Joe Budden, The Game and even basketball player Kevin Durant. It’s also important to state that he’s built the reputation of being an independent thinker to where top universities like M.I.T. and NYU invite him over to lecture. But even with all these accolades, the music he makes is pretty trash. Leave the rap alone Lil B. and become a professional motivational speaker - he’ll probably make a lot more money that way.