If we’re being honest, our Hip-Hop scene is pretty much in the later part of its nascent stage. Wouldn’t be wrong to say that it would be a stretch to expect a rush of albums by artists year in year out. However, with that being said, some top artists gave us some of the most unique and exciting releases last year. Some of them truly stood out for us and painted a glorious picture of Desi Hip-Hop last year. Everytime an Indian Hip-Hop artist drops an album, it pushes the culture forward in its own way. A piece of art out there in it’s entirety, truly defining the style and state of mind of the artistes behind the art.
This list is Not a Ranking
We’ve picked some of the releases that garnered massive attention and turned heads around the country to the new sounds and stories coming out of the Hip Hop scene. This list is not a ranking, but a listing of some of the best pieces of art that 2017 had to offer. So sit back, get your headphones ready and get to streaming these Indian Hip-Hop albums of 2017.
1) Prabh Deep – Classsikh
What happens when you add the skillset of hit maker Sez with the lyrical prowess of an emcee like Prabh Deep? Album of the Year 2017 that’s what. Classsikh is a collection of stories from Prabh’s personal experiences. It also pushes his mind state and the way he sees the world forward. A beautifully crafted album which is an essential listen for Hip-Hop enthusiasts all around.
The album stresses the importance of knowledge and inspires the listener with a dose of motivation. The art of storytelling is alive and well with Prabh Deep and the album does well to boast the same process. The album has it all, a great concept, a selective variety, and an amazing execution track after track.
Songs like “Suno”, “Click Clack”, “Kal”, “Kal (Future)”, and “Classsikh” do a great job of setting themselves apart from the rest and this album is a standalone benchmark for Prabh and Sez. Sez brings life to the music and the sound of the whole album. A deadly combination to look out for.
STREAM LINK – http://apple.co/Class-Sikh
2) StreetFood Music – Uposonghor Noy
The dynamic duo straight outta Kolkata, Cizzy and Joe gave us an amazing body of work in 2017.
This album is a Mellow, soothing mix of sounds and stories from the creative visions of Cizzy and Joe. It is an album well suited to the Indian hip hop soundscape. A Bengali-language heavy album, it surprises us at various moments throughout multiple listens. Cizzy is also trained as a classical vocalist. And this just adds to the album a huge spectrum of range (with regards to their vocal prowess and sync on the album.
Songs like Jatri Ami, Kalighat, Faka Rasta, Ghaam and Bhor amongst others really make this a tight knit album and expresses their potential as a producer rapper duo amazingly well. The best thing about this album is the Vibe of it from start to end. One thing that most new artists don’t focus on while going through the process of making an album is consistency. Consistency in terms of concept and execution. This album shines its own light through the stories that are expressed track after track.
That would definitely be an essential album to listen to blasting sounds live from the underground. Head over to the link below and check the whole album out. We’ve placed a music video down below for yall to check too!
STREAM LINK – https://desihiphop.lnk.to/infirmus
3) Hard Kaur – The Rising EP
On the comeback route, Bollywood femcee Hard Kaur took a whole new direction with her music. Drop the collaborative album with some of the best names in the underground circuit. And true to its name this project was called The Rising EP. The project marked her return to the Hip Hop scene in India. The album was so successful that it ended off with her winning big at the MTV EMA’s for Best Hip-Hop Act (India) this year. The album was well pushed, and even had its own tour leg in the UK.
The key players in the tape are some great emcees like Borkhung Hrangkawl, Feyago, Nasty Ninja (Mumbais Finest), Pardhaan, P-Man, Shah Rule, Illa Straight, Stony Psycho (Dopeadelicz), among others. This is a one of a kind tape and were glad that there it recieved the well deserved attention that it did. The emcees also really held it down track through track and big ups to the woman herself for bringing this vision to life.
To check the video for the all star anthem straight from this mixtape. You can also find the link to stream the whole tape down below.
STREAM LINK – https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/the-rising-mixtape-vol-1/1261279633
4) Sun J – Reloaded
Firstly, Sun J is easily one of the all-rounders in the Desi hip hop scene. From pen game to production, he has got all skills locked down. He has written, produced and composed the majority of his own music.
“Reloaded” has five tracks namely – Be Aware, Bhaad Mei Jao, Breakboy, I Represent and Seedhe Slum Se. With singles like that, Sun J’s album “Reloaded”made quite the buzz in the Desi Hip Hop scene. As for the team at Desi Hip Hop, it’s been quite an experience working with ‘The Khatarnaak Hip-Hop Collective’. All the crew members are sincere, hardworking, authentic and different from each other. The crew consists of rappers, beatboxers, b-boys, graffiti artists and is more of a movement and force than a collective.
STREAM/DOWNLOAD – https://desihiphop.lnk.to/reloaded
5) Seedhe Maut – 2 Ka Pahada
The come-up was also very real for the Delhi duo last year. The Seedhe Maut anthem crossed the 1 lakh views mark up recently and the duo have been grinding year in for the results. Encore ABJ and Calm one of the most dynamic Duos to step onto the mic in the Indian Hip Hop scene. The diversity and the range that they bring in through their songs are pretty self evident through one listen. 2 ka Pahada is a modern, hardcore, and banging rap album. It is an album That is much needed in these times of hip hop. The direction is pretty straight-forward. The end result is always good music.
A short and sweet EP is all it takes to get them going. They’ve made all the right moves and they’ve kept up with the times. The music is a direct evidence of that and as a result makes the audience want to vibe and jump along to it. Executive produced by hit record maker Sez, the songs have the ability to capture the listener and groove to the music simultaneously.
Get ready to move and groove to some bangers on this one. Streaming link below and we’ve also added the Seedhe Maut Anthem link down below! Let us know what you felt!
STREAM LINK – https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/2-ka-pahada-ep/1239864719
6) THHM – Street Mix Vol. 1
In yet another come back mode was Bombays very own Hip-Hop media portal – The Hip-Hop Movement. Their latest initiative was the move they made into the music world by directly pushing an album featuring the city’s best talents. Street Mix Volume 1 combines the veterans of the Bombay Hip-Hop scene with the new and up and comers in the scene to create an intense mix of sounds.
THHM pitches together beatboxers, a producer and some emcees to create a unique blend of hip-hop that encapsulates the spirit of the city. Among the names are Bombay veterans D’Evil, Shaikhspeare, EMF, beatboxer D-Cypher and many more. This is a product of synchronized collaborative efforts between all the people involved in the process. And that’s what makes this project special.
There also used to be tapes made by different organizations in and around the city. This move marks the return of such kind of tapes. The fact that it acknowledged beatboxers in the mix too makes this one unique combination. Check the whole thing out in the link below and let us know what you felt!
STREAM LINK – https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/thhm-street-mix-vol-1-ep/1321796202