This was a tough category. There were so many dope, short projects that were offered up this year that it was really hard to narrow it down to my favorites. I just kept the one ruling principle in mind as to who made the dopes music. With that being kept in mind there were some dope artists left off…most notably The Brown Bag AllStars. That crew put out a ton of dope EPs this year and surely some of them would have made a Top 10, just not the Top 5. I simply couldn’t let got of these joints.
The 17th gave us ‘FREE Music’ but not only that, he gave us some remarkable music. This EP is close to flawless as they come. You get eight tracks jam packed with flavor, great concept, flows, production, and delivery. Another remarkable aspect is that much of the EP is his from beginning to end. He of course is the lead emcee, but also the producer for the bulk of the tracks as well.
Serge Severe and Terminilllinked up for a superlative effort on Service Without A Smile. The two really played off of each other’s strengths and this proved to be one of the illest producer/emcee combos of 2012.
Speaking of ill producer/emcee combos, how about this one? Swiss-American hip-hop group, Nefew, Virginia emcee Shakes, and super producer Nottz link up for for this five track EP. You can’t go wrong with this joint!
MayDay has a sound all unto themselves. They have have great production to back them up on Thrift Store Halos and their melodies, rhymes, and guest shots throughout make this one a clear winner for 2012.
The Narcicyst comes back in 2012 with a lyrical fury from Dubai. Ok, a lyrical fury may be a bit extreme but his world observations set to rhythm set him apart from the pack this year.
Hip Hop Dependency 