This retrospective on the best hip-hop of the past year is the fifth and final installment in the Best of 2019 Hip-Hop for the Amoeblog.  Scroll down to see videos and read about the final fifteen in the Top 50 Artists/Songs Video Countdown (#15 - #1) of the year; a year that surpassed all previous ones in hip-hop history in terms of sheer volume of quality releases both physical and digital/streaming only. Also below is the top contender in best 2019 sequel by a hip-hop artist to their own previously recorded song. But first up is the Best West Coast Anthem of 2019 song/video.




Following in the tradition of such classics as 2Pac / Dr .Dre’s “California Love” was East Bay rap star G-Eazy’s 2019 West Coast anthem, the appropriately titled “West Coast” (video above) featuring guest spots from Blueface, ALLBLACK and YG. Runner up was the 2019 Mellow Music Group released, Aesop Rock produced Homeboy Sandman (non-album) track “West Coast.”

My mind is constantly blown by the steady flow of incredible hip-hop emcees and producers from Detroit that are constantly releasing some of the best contemporary hip-hop music. Perhaps it is the indelible influence of the late great J Dilla or the fact that generally rents are affordable for artists in the economically challenged city, with the exception of the small downtown gentrified area, that was once the bustling epicenter of the US motor manufacturing industry.  Further the artists from Detroit always display a love for their city in their lyrics and their production practices. The most notable of these in 2019 was Apollo Brown whose album Sincerely, Detroit was a literal hip-hop love letter to his hometown Michigan city. With 56 different Detroit artists making appearances on the 21 track, 79 minute album it was also the most comprehensive representation of Detroit’s hip-hop acts.

Featured Detroit artists, from old school to new school, included  included Black Milk, Clear Soul Forces, Royce Da 5’9”, ELZhi, Slum Village,  Guilty Simpson, One Be Lo,  Bronze Nazareth, Kuniva,  Boog Brown, Trick Trick and many more. Interestingly Detroit’s most famous rapper Eminen is noticeably absent. Other Detroit artist releases of the past year included Danny Brown's WARP Records album  uknowhatimsayin¿ LP, Nolan The Ninja’s album Illphoria 2 LP,  Clear Soul Forces’ (featuring Ilajide, E-Fav, LAZ, and Noveliss) albums STILL LP and Detroit Revolution(s) LP,  Chris Orrick's  Out To Sea LP and his I Read That I Was Dead collaborative album with The Lasso, Black Milk's Mass Appeal released DiVE LP,  Bronze Nazareth's album Gravitas he recorded with (CA artist) KXNG Crooked,  Ellie Santiago’s  smooth pop rap single “So Cool” and last but not least (even though she no longer lives in her hometown) the Detroit born breakout star of 2019, singer/rapper Lizzo and her album Cuz I Love You   (also avail on vinyl deluxe edition LP) her album. 

The lineup for the upcoming 2020 Coachella music festival, that spans six days over two weekends in April with identical lineups for the two weekends of April 10th -12th and April 17th -19th, was recently announced with its long list of performers (as per the above official festival poster) once again featuring a wide variety of hip-hop/rap acts. Hip-hop along with alt-rock and numerous electronic dance acts such as  Calvin Harris, FKA Twigs and Jai Wolf, make up the majority of the music acts scheduled for 2020 Coachella. Tickets can be purchased here for Weekend Two only since Weekend One is reportedly already "sold out."

The hip-hop acts for the upcoming festival include the Saturdays headliner Travis Scott, whose 2018 hit album Astroworld LP continues to sell well, the pop rappers Lil Uzi Vert, 21 Savage, Lil Nas X, DaBaby, and Big Sean. Then there's the hip-hop power duos of  Run The Jewels' (RTJ) Killer Mike and El -P, and Freddie Gibbs x Madlib whose 2019 collaborative album Bandana LP was very successful for the two revered longtime hip-hop artists.

The long-running, award winning and ever popular Amoeba Music What’s In My Bag? (WIMB?) interview series (now up to Episode # 632) had another successful year of one-on-ones with a wide variety of music-collecting artists and entertainment figures as they went crate-digging at Amoeba. Among the hip-hop artists interviewed in 2019 were Canadian turntablist/producer Kid Koala WIMB?,  Atlanta based hip-hop due EARTHGANG WIMB? and hip-hop/electronic DJ/producer KAYTRANADA WIMB?