This month, Hip Hop OG’s XXL took to their annual task of highlighting the best up-and-coming rappers in the game with ”XXL’s 2014 Freshman Class”. Here at Cool Accidents we decided what better to do with a Freshman Class than give the students grades? Some ace the test and some need to head back to Degrassi Junior High and take a seat next to Drake…

So without further ado, here is the roll call and report card for 2014’s Freshman Class in alphabetical order:

 

First up, if your most popular tracks on Spotify are called “Sucka” and “I Luv This Shit” this isn’t the only test you are going to do poorly in. I can’t help but feel like this straight Top 40 targeting r’n’b stuff has been done to death and while he has some platinum selling feature artists (Fabolous,  Jeezy, Trinidad James) this isn’t breaking any new ground. Sorry Mr Alsina, but I Don’t Luv This Shit.

It is no secret that we love Acid Rap – Chance The Rapper’s world beating mixtape that earned every Honour Roll mention from the internet over the last year. He has done some fairly unimaginable things since, collaborating with Justin Bieber first among them, but somehow it all feels Chance. In our estimation, Chance is the Valedictorian of this class.

 

Expectations couldn’t be much higher for Isaiah Rashad. He has leapfrogged the likes of Ab-Soul & Jay Rock to be the heir apparent to TDE’s crown. The crew has spawned two #1’s with LA natives Kendrick Lamar & Schoolboy Q and now Tennessee’s Rashad is slated for a 2014 full length. He has pitchfork and co on side and we’re giving full marks to the slight southern affectations on what has become trademark TDE flow.

 

Alright, here is a disclaimer – I went straight to google to work out who Jarren Benton is. Turns out he is mates with Hopsin and I saw him perform at The Standard in Sydney in late 2012. Needless to say the impression he left on my hip-hop consciousness was short lived at best. Claiming to sound “like Eminem mixed with 3k” the only way this stuff could be more derivative is if that’s what he actually sounded like.

 

Shouts to Arnie & James Cameron! And thank you rap version of Mr Connor for dropping the h from your first name so I could google you to work out what is going on. Connor is signed to Aftermath and has a slew of mixtapes that date way back to 2005. His latest “Unconscious State” has an impressive list of features including Danny Brown, Talib Kweli, Freddie Gibbs and fellow Michigan representative Royce Da 5’9. The danger is that the supporting cast outshines the lead and in this Freshman class of 2014, Connor gets left behind.

 

Young Jeezy is that you? I am certainly not the first to notice the striking similarity between Kevin Gates’ flow and that of the ice man, but there is just enough personality in here for Gates to dodge the dreaded plagiarism tag. He is hip blog approved and pretty accomplished for a Freshman, but he passes the class with ease. Any student up at 4:30am cramming for finals gets respect from us.

 

We are seven students into the class and Chicago Drill has made its first appearance (Spoiler alter: it’s not the last.) At this point we also get a guy who feels like a genuine Freshman. While Bibby has a couple big tracks, most notably “For The Low” and has the likes of King Louie & Lil Herb in his corner, he was born in the 90’s and has videos shot on cameras you can buy at JB HiFi.  His take on drill is nothing new, but it’s competent, tight, of the moment stuff.

 

I have long since lost track of who in the Chicago Drill scene is beefing with who at any given moment, but Lil Durk seems to at the middle of more than his fair share. A central figure in Vice’s 8-Part Chiraq documentary, Durk’s moment in the sun was 2013’s Dis Ain’t What You Want. Making best of lists across the web at the end of the year, it is one of the most accomplished tracks any of the 12 Freshman have put together. The full length debut is due this year on French Montana’s Coke Boys imprint, an association that could go one of two ways.

 

If Lil Durk has the most accomplished track of the class, Rich Homie Quan has the biggest. This is the dude behind “Type Of Way”, a summer blockbuster on hip hop radio in the states last year that continues to rattle through sub-woofers worldwide. A label mate of Mr All Gold Everything, Trinidad James, Quan has a unique look and has managed to bottle magic once. He boasts on Type Of Way that “Mr CEO is what my title say” and based on this grade he has a shot at cashing in big-time. Jamie Dimon type big time.

 

Alright – you’re getting a shit grade when your most popular track on Spotify features Lloyd Banks. As a younger man I enjoyed On Fire as much as the next guy, but if you’re one of the hottest rappers of 2014 and that’s the dude featuring on your jam, something is amiss. Trying to beef up with Yeezus & Kendrick might get you some clicks as Troy did on Hot 97, but Troy appears to be more sizzle than steak.

 

Ty joins a long list of excellent rappers/pseudo-rappers with truly terrible names (see Joey Bada$$, A$AP Rocky/Ferg, Charlie 2na). Ty’s Beach House EP got buzz in all the right places last year and that release more than qualifies him for a spot on this list. The two standouts Paranoid & Or Nah, both produced by DJ Mustard, are infectious sing song jams with frat party friendly sordid stories that are definitely not Parent/Teach interview approved.

 

Just when you were losing faith in the golden era revivalists, in strolls Chicago’s Vic Mensa. He eschews the Drill of Bibby & Durk for the weirdo boom bap of Chance. This is hop-hop that a live band could play and rapping that could transplanted from a mid-90’s Rawkus release. His has taken a turn of late, release a commercial cross-over attempt in Down On My Luck, but here at Cool Accidents, the last thing we do is discourage young artists on the up from experimenting with their sound. That being said, our hope is that Vic chooses to major in Hip-Hop History rather than hang in clubs with Duke Dumont.

 

And if after 1,000+ words you want to find out more about the list – hit the NPR Microphone Check podcast with Ali Shaheed Muhammad for 52 minutes and 36 seconds of Freshman Class audio goodness -

-Chris P