Reviews by Carl Chery, Kemet High, and Adrian Covert
In February, we launched Spotify CLASSICS-our first-ever program to celebrate catalog music. Our inaugural list acknowledged the Classic Hip-Hop and R&B Albums of the Streaming Era and featured timeless releases like Kendrick Lamar's DAMN., Future's DS2, Jay-Z's 4:44, and Travis Scott's ASTROWORLD, to name a few.
In April, we kicked off the second chapter of CLASSICS by unveiling the 100 Greatest R&B Songs of the Streaming Era. And today we unveil the latest chapter of our CLASSICS program: The 100 Greatest Hip-Hop Songs of the Streaming Era. Spotify defines the streaming era as a time frame that spans from 2015 until present day.
Hip-hop has been the most influential genre in pop culture for decades, but it became the No.1 music genre in the U.S. in 2017, according to Nielsen. Hip-hop's commercial ascendance coincided with existential shifts for the genre. Rap transitioned to a more melodic format, occasionally making it hard to distinguish between hip-hop and R&B. Trap became the most popular sound in music, and its practitioners started releasing music at a relentless pace. But hip-hop remains as creatively inspired as ever, marked by the emergence of an exciting new generation who have already made their presence felt when it comes to the best hip-hop songs.
Spotify's U.S. hip-hop editorial team-spearheaded by Carl Chery, Creative Director, Head of Urban Music-has taken on the ambitious task of reviewing thousands of songs, and in the end, this list offers a snapshot of hip-hop during the streaming era. Spotify CLASSICS is 100% qualitative. The criteria for the list are based on quality, impact, replay value, influence, and cultural significance. The program is driven by our editors' music and cultural expertise-not by data-meaning that big streaming numbers were not a requirement to make the list.
Note: All songs were released on Spotify after January 1, 2015. The Spotify streams are current as of May 20, 2024.
100. Coi Leray Players Uptown Records, 2022 Produced by: Johnny Goldstein
Spotify Streams: 459,472,370
Fun Fact: There's a version of Players that features Coi Leray singing rather than rapping, but she hated it and overhauled the entire song to make it what it is today.
99. Fivio Foreign Big Drip RichFish LLC/Columbia Records, 2019 Produced by: AXL BEATS
Spotify Streams: 77,303,121
Fun Fact: Big Drip was created the day that Fivio Foreign's close affiliate, Sosa Geek, was locked up. Elsewhere, it was AXL BEATS's idea to use Fivie's ad-libs as a primary-as opposed to secondary-sound.
98. Doechii Yucky Blucky Fruitcake Five 5 Records, 2020 Produced by: Unicorn Waves
Spotify Streams: 46,210,978
Fun Fact: Yucky Blucky Fruitcake was Doechii's first song to appear in our RapCaviar playlist.
97. YG ft. Nipsey Hussle FDT Def Jam Recordings, 2016 Produced by: DJ Swish
Spotify Streams: 38,857,798
Fun Fact: When YG and Nipsey Hussle were filming the accompanying video for FDT, they shot their solo parts separately to avoid mixing their respective groups.
96. Sexyy Red SkeeYee Open Shift/gamma., 2023 Produced by: DJ Meech, Banbwoi, Tay Keith
Spotify Streams: 90,942,958
Fun Fact: In an interview with Montreality, Sexyy Red explained the meaning behind SkeeYee, saying, If you see a cute girl or somebody with a big booty or you trying to holler at somebody, they call that the geek call. A geek is a crackhead, dope fiend. Like when you serving geeks where I'm from, that's a geek call.
95. Freddie Gibbs, Madlib Crime Pays Keep Cool/RCA Records, 2019 Produced by: Madlib
Spotify Streams: 43,770,445
Fun Fact: There's an unreleased, alternate version of Crime Pays that features Norah Jones on the chorus.
94. Moneybagg Yo Time Today CMG/N-Less/Interscope Records, 2021 Produced by: Real Red, YC
Spotify Streams: 187,755,749
Fun Fact: Moneybagg Yo told Genius he initially wanted to push Hard For The Next as a single, but CMG label head Yo Gotti insisted he go with Time Today instead, which proved to be a solid choice.
93. Lil Durk ft. Gunna What Happened to Virgil Alamo Records/Sony Music Entertainment, 2022 Produced by: Chop Squad DJ
Spotify Streams: 143,392,151
Fun Fact: Chop Squad DJ made the beat for What Happened to Virgil in just 25 minutes during an Instagram Live session where fewer than 100 people were in attendance.
92. Flo Milli Never Lose Me RCA, 2023 Produced by: Gerreaux
Spotify Streams: 249,249,152
Fun Fact: The beat for Never Lose Me first appeared as Babyface Ray's Ron Artest. Flo Milli's version began as a freestyle but ultimately became a bona fide hit.
91. Denzel Curry Ultimate PH Recordings/Loma Vista Records, 2015 Produced by: RONNY J
Spotify Streams: 217,371,123
Fun Fact: Denzel Curry shot the video for Ultimate in LA's Arts District just a few blocks from the Spotify offices.
90. A$AP Rocky Lord Pretty Flacko Jodye 2 (LPFJ2) A$AP Rocky Recordings LLC/RCA, 2015 Produced by: Nez & Rio
Spotify Streams: 330,047,035
Fun Fact: LPFJ2 first appeared in 2014 at the end of A$AP Rocky's Multiply video in a clip featuring DMV rapper Yung Gleesh dancing to it.
89. Yo Gotti Down In the DM Epic Records/Sony Music Entertainment, 2016 Produced by: Ben Billions, Schife Karbeen
Spotify Streams: 177,922,823
Fun Fact: Down In The DM was intentionally made to capture the essence of Snapchat and Instagram on the same night Yo Gotti's cuts from The Art of Hustle, General (featuring Future) and Bible (featuring Lil Wayne) were made.
88. Doja Cat ft. Rico Nasty Tia Tamera Kemosabe Records/RCA, 2019 Produced by: Doja Cat, Kurtis McKenzie
Spotify Streams: 328,481,933
Fun Fact: In an Instagram post, Tamera Mowry ranked Tia Tamera
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
07/10/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, today announced the latest Long-Term Supported (LTS) release of Dalet Flex. Build...
06/09/2026
June 9 2026, 23:00 (PDT) Dolby and MagentaTV Bring Fans Closer to the FIFA Worl...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
16/07/2026
June brought stabilization to the television market. Poles spent an average of 3 hours and 36 minutes a day in front of their TV screens exactly the same as i...
16/07/2026
Glensound returns to IBC with a major new addition to its intelligent loudspeaker range, the Greater Divine Supernal studio monitor, alongside recent developmen...
16/07/2026
33 leading exhibitors are taking part in the GREAT Britain and Northern Ireland Pavilions and linked locations across IBC2026 (Amsterdam RAI, 11 14 September)...
16/07/2026
Hitomi Broadcast will introduce Spectra, a new HDR colour verification solution measured in picture, not using VPID, at IBC2026 (Hall 10, Stand A40). Expanding ...
16/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
16/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
16/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
16/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
16/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
16/07/2026
Zixi, a leader in live video delivery and workflow orchestration, and Comcast Technology Solutions (CTS) today announced a strategic new integration to deliver ...
16/07/2026
Blackmagic Design Cameras Capture Immersive Flight for New Cirrus App
Brie Clayton July 15, 2026
0 Comments
Leader in Personal Aviation taps URSA Cin...
16/07/2026
XenData Announces LTO Archive Appliances with both File and S3 Object Storage In...
16/07/2026
Fox Corporation Executives to Discuss Fourth Quarter and Full Fiscal Year 2026 F...
16/07/2026
More interfaces now compatible with Focusrite Control 2 Your Focusrite interface might now be compatible with a public beta support of Focusrite Control 2. If...
16/07/2026
Onimusha: Way of the Sword is coming to GeForce NOW at launch, with the playable...
16/07/2026
Together the semi-finals had a combined reach of 1.98 million unique individuals...
15/07/2026
The 2026 FIFA World Cup is a big deal for DAZN, which has distribution rights in three markets: Italy, Spain, and Japan. Each requires a different editorial app...
15/07/2026
As sports-media organizations manage rapidly growing content libraries and incre...
15/07/2026
HBS director of digital Johannes Franken talks SVG Europe through the operation built to serve FIFA World Cup 2026 rights holders remotely from Stratford, east ...
15/07/2026
IBC has unveiled the conference program for IBC2026, with this year's event ...
15/07/2026
Software-defined wideband RF platform supports 96-kHz monitoring, streamlined fr...
15/07/2026
New AI-powered module enables broadcasters and content owners to extract dialogu...
15/07/2026
Weeklong gathering at EBU headquarters will test new IPMX capabilities and expand certified product ecosystem...
15/07/2026
Force Tech has announced the appointment of Bryan Adams, CTS, as Vice President of Integration. Adams will oversee AV and broadcast integration project delivery...
15/07/2026
USA Sports has announced an exclusive English-language agreement with the Bundes...
15/07/2026
ITV Sport's FIFA World Cup 2026 coverage has been produced from one of the m...
15/07/2026
Program will provide professional camera kits, training, and technical support to participating local newsrooms...
15/07/2026
San Francisco church becomes first U.S. deployment of the 2 M/E production switcher...
15/07/2026
Former ESPN and NFL Network executive to advise startup league on media, distribution, technology, and fan engagement...
15/07/2026
The Houston-based RSN is the live-game home of the Astros and Rockets...
15/07/2026
Launched alongside new FreqSoft installer
Designed to bridge the gap between hardware and software, Freqport's FreqInOut FO1 unit provides a simple way ...
15/07/2026
Save up to 55% on software until 23 July 2026
Expressive E have just launched their Summer Offer sale, with discounts of up to 55% now applied across their ...
15/07/2026
Real-time stem-separation tool updated
zplane have recently released a new and improved version of their real-time stem-separation plug-in which they say ma...
15/07/2026
A new benchmark in bass enhancement
Described as a new benchmark in bass enhancement , Baby Audio's latest release has been designed to augment the lo...
15/07/2026
DMC Production's AR 1 and AR 2 units reverse the conventional OB workflow, keeping all production-critical processing at the venue while operators work remo...
15/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
15/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
15/07/2026
GigaCloud, a leading Ukrainian cloud service provider, and Cubbit, the first geo-distributed cloud storage enabler, today announced a new Business Alliance Part...
15/07/2026
SMPTE, the global society for media professionals, technologists, and engineers, has announced the launch of the SMPTE 110th Anniversary Campaign, a fundraising...
15/07/2026
Studio Technologies, a leading manufacturer of high-quality audio, video, and fiber-optic solutions, unveils the new StudioComm Model 762 Stereo Level Control, ...
15/07/2026
COW Jobs: Producer, Virtual Events - Hybrid, Full Time, Salaried
Brie Clayton July 15, 2026
0 Comments
Producer, Virtual Events (Hybrid | Full-time | ...
15/07/2026
Brazilian media organization builds nationwide CDN with Broadpeak's high-performance software for low-latency streaming and new content distribution service...
15/07/2026
DHD announces a new utility designed to increase the efficiency of its audio mixing systems during initial installation and subsequent configuration.
Anyone w...
15/07/2026
BCNEXXT Brings Next-Generation Vipe to IBC2026, Breaking the 1:1 Channel-to-Server Ratio New innovations liberate broadcasters from legacy playout infrastructur...
15/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
Reviews by Carl Chery, Kemet High, and Adrian Covert 
