From naming Nicki Minaj as the greatest female rapper of all time to crowning her hit ‘Super Bass‘ as the greatest female Hip-Hop song ever on its ‘500 Best Pop Songs List,’ Billboard is no stranger to making tongues wag and jaws drop over the years for their polarizing “best-ever” tallies.
That trend is one that continued with their latest list, ‘The 100 Best Rap Albums of All Time,’ which was comprised solely of studio albums and ranked its roster based on commercial performance on Billboard as well as subjective criteria like cultural impact, longevity, and more.
And while the list was expectedly male-dominated (with Nas‘ groundbreaking 1994 LP ‘Illmatic‘ printed at #1), its inclusion of females was undoubtedly noteworthy.
Look inside to see what ladies got a nod from the Music Bible.
In what came as little surprise, Lauryn Hill‘s ‘Miseducation of Lauryn Hill‘ (1998) – which not only sits atop Apple Music’s ‘Greatest Album Ever‘ list but is also crowned the greatest female Hip-Hop LP ever by ‘Rolling Stone’ – was named by Billboard’s recent tally the best Hip-Hop album ever created by a woman.
Among females, Hill leads a pack of game-changing sets: Missy Elliott‘s 1997 debut ‘Supa Dupa Fly,’ Cardi B‘s 2018 debut ‘Invasion of Privacy,’ Lil Kim‘s 1996 debut ‘Hardcore,’ and Queen Latifah‘s 1989 debut ‘All Hail the Queen.’
Look below to see where Lauryn landed on the overall list.
Billboard’s Greatest Rap Albums of All Time
- Nas – ‘Illmatic’
- Dr. Dre – ‘The Chronic’
- Lauryn Hill – ‘Miseducation’
- OutKast – ‘Aquemini’
- Notorious B.I.G. – ‘Life After Death’
- 2Pac – ‘All Eyez on Me’
- Snoop Dogg – ‘Doggystyle’
- Eric B. & Rakim – ‘Paid in Full’
- JAY-Z – ‘The Blue Print’
- Slick Rick – ‘The Great Adventures of Slick Rick’
Honorable Mentions
- Missy Elliott – ‘Supa Dupa Fly’ (#20)
- Cardi B – ‘Invasion of Privacy’ (#29)
- Lil Kim – ‘Hardcore’ (#49)
- Queen Latifah – ‘All Hail the Queen’ (#51)
- Nicki Minaj – ‘Pink Friday’ (#69)
Click here to see the full list.
Cardis debut album light years ahead of Nicki’s magnum opus in literally EVERY capacity 🤣🤣🤣🤣
instead of just the Full List or the TOP 3 we get “Best Female Rap Albums of All Time”. This list is FAKE anyway, there’s nothing special about Illmatic.
Lauryn Hill has been exposed for having ghostwriters and ghost producers. She really wants people to believe she wrote and produced her biggest hit. Google Robert Glasper and Lauryn. Cardi B is trash and also that teeny bopper song bi Oinka Garbaj.
Miseducation isnt even a Rap album. This is just yet another failed attempt to kiss Lauren’s 🍑. Missed education making every posible list is regurgitating. I agree that it’s #CLASSIC but Lemonade, Confessions, The Emancipation & Dangerously in Love is WORLDS superior.
Illmatic is OVERRATED as hell. & why this site feels the need to single out FEMALE rappers (instead of just the Full List) is beyond me. 😑
Because it’s full of f*** who Stan pop girls and Nicki DUH. The posts about male artists specifically rappers always tank. Go take your insulin fattie girl.