And specifically why? What qualities do you feel that the best rapper should have, and what kind of range should they have?
In my opinion, Eminem is the greatest. He's got every aspect of Rap covered. He's got:
High speeds (Rap God, Speedom)
MASSIVE Internal rhyming (The Way I Am, Biterphobia, Infinite)
Can tell a story (Stan, Brain Damage, Kim)
Puts immense emotion and can convey strong messages (Kim, The Way I Am, Till I collapse, Kill you)
Has a WIDE range of flows and styles (Every album has a different style to it, and many of the songs individually have different styles too. Meanwhile Biggie is known for one type of laid back style...)
He's a REALLY good disser (Nail in the Coffin, Canibitch, etc,)
Pretty good rap battler (He was okay when he was first starting out, but he hasn't done any real rap battles since his early career...)
Really good free styler (Not the best though, that would go to Proof. Proof can make shit off the top of his head like it was nothing. If he was still alive he'd be decimating Em lol.)
Overcame racial barrier early on in career and later on as well (Accused of cultural appropriation even though black culture is what he grew up in, surrounded by controversy only because of his skin colour)
And he destroys any song he's featured on.
Who do you think is the best?
Eminem is definitely one of my favorites too. I feel stereotypical saying he's the best, but he's incredible. He's got something for every mood, want to dance? There's an Eminem track for that. Want to contemplate the meaning of your life? There's an Eminem track for that. Want to cry over a breakup? There's an Eminem track for that.
I grew up listening to him although my mom hated me listening to rap music, and she especially hated him.
Personally though, I don't really think any rapper is the best. Not every rapper will appeal to every single person. Just like there is no single greatest artist that will produce work perceived as the best painting by every single person.
kid died years ago. but if he hadnt of maybe this guy would of made it . https://soundcloud.com/meth-god/metheus-meth-god . 16 year old black tweaker in a time (2007)when that was unheard of. even now theres not many black meth users. he was a unicorn before his time. his name is robert rem aka metheus.