Chicago. My city, my inspiration, the place I went to college, and where I fell in love with hip hop. Fakeshoredrive and Ruby Hornet gave me the tunes, I listened, and learned. I listened to a new mixtape on the 50 minute train ride to Columbia, then the newest tracks on the 30 minute walk to the actual campus. I did the same thing on the way back. For 4 years, 5 days a week, I repeated the process.
In that time, and even after, I paid attention to the songs bumping out of cars on Michigan Avenue and buzzing on social media. There are so many important records that changed the face of Chicago hip hop, and often, hip hop in general.
I’ve decided to give my readers a history lesson on the city’s hip hop starting around 2011, in the form of a playlist. While many of these tracks were major hits and jump started the careers of now very popular rappers, many are songs that I’ve discovered and have continued to play throughout the years.
I’m about to school ya’ll. Peep above.