The second album from Kendrick Lamar, and the one that really helped bring his talents to the rest of the world – and maybe mark a whole new generation of hip hop in the process! At some level, Lamar is in the same territory as many of the south Cali rappers before him – with tales of rough life on the mean streets – but his approach here is very different, both in terms of the personal quality in the lyrics and the subtle drama in his presentation – and the lean production, which seems to strip things bare, and avoid the thuggish cliches that might celebrate such a background. Even the title alone hints at the tension that's made the record so durable over the years – and titles include "Bitch Don't Kill My Vibe", "The Art Of Peer Pressure", "Money Trees", "Poetic Justice", "MAAD City", "Singing About Me I'm Dying Of Thirst", "Real", and "Compton". LP, Vinyl record album

The second album from Kendrick Lamar, and the one that really helped bring his talents to the rest of the world – and maybe mark a whole new generation of hip hop in the process! At some level, Lamar is in the same territory as many of the south Cali rappers before him – with tales of rough life on the mean streets – but his approach here is very different, both in terms of the personal quality in the lyrics and the subtle drama in his presentation – and the lean production, which seems to strip things bare, and avoid the thuggish cliches that might celebrate such a background. Even the title alone hints at the tension that's made the record so durable over the years – and titles include "Bitch Don't Kill My Vibe", "The Art Of Peer Pressure", "Money Trees", "Poetic Justice", "MAAD City", "Singing About Me I'm Dying Of Thirst", "Real", and "Compton". Deluxe edition vinyl 3 bonus tracks: "The Recipe" with Dr. Dre, "Black Boy Fly" and "Now Or Never" with Mary J Blige. LP, Vinyl record album

Kendrick Lamar takes wider creative left turns than ever before on To Pimp A Butterfly – with a funk steeped production style that filters tried-and-true P Funk influences through leftfield modern beatcraft styles, inspired by cats like Madlib to Thundercat, the latter of whom is an official contributor. Fresh material from an increasingly pivotal figure – who may not be revolutionizing the game on the level of the heavy critical praise he's heaped with, but he's certainly marching to his own beat, rather than chasing hits! Includes "Wesley's Theory" with George Clinton & Thundercat, "King Kunta", "These Walls" with Bilal, Anna Wise & Thundercat, "Aright", "For Sale?", "Institutionalized" with a Slick Rick-homage of a guest verse by Snoop Dogg (sign us up for any record that gives props to The Ruler...and extra points for transplanting that style of flow to Compton), "Momma", "Hood Politics", "The Blacker The Berry", "How Much A Dollar Cost" feat James Fauntleroy & Ronald Isley, "Mortal Man" and more. LP, Vinyl record album

One of those classic late 90s hip hop albums that initially got lost in the shuffle of record label politics and other issues – finally out for the rest of the world in the following century! The record's from a time when King Tee was allied strongly with Dr Dre – who produces part of the set, and also makes an appearance alongside other Cali all-stars – like MC Ren, DJ Quik, and Too $hort – royalty, for sure – but don't forget that King Tee was also on the scene pretty early himself! And while there were some issues that may have held the record back, the set's still a key part of that legacy that Tee brought to the west – with titles that include "Speak On It", "Stay Down", "Skweez Ya Ballz", "Monay", "Da'kron", "Big Boys", "Let's Make AV", "Tha Game", "Reel Raw", "2Gs from Compton", "Shake Da Pot", "Nna Moenin", "Step On By", "Big Ballin", "The Original", "Nuthin Has Changed", and "Where's T". LP, Vinyl record album