Pusha T was the best artist of 2013. And to be honest, it wasn't even close
Don't act so surprised. The prophet Yeezus told all his followers that "Pusha T is EVERYTHING."
This year Pusha had one of the strongest mixtape offerings all year in "Wrath of Caine" and one of the 2 or 3 best albums, certainly one of the most overlooked to say the least. Of course, this was a huge year for Hip Hop's heavyweights. The Rap God brought us back to 8 Mile again on "MMLP2". Jay Z blessed us with "Magna Carta Holy Grail" and TWO tours, Drake told us how much had changed on "Nothing Was The Same", and Kanye became Yeezus, dropping a monumental album and tour. Even among the young guns it was a huge year, with Mac Miller dropping 2 albums, a massive tour, and a top rated TV show on MTV. Jermaine Cole brought "Born Sinner" to the masses, and most were pleased. Kendrick Lamar's debut album came out in the fall of 2012, but he pumped out legendary features all year long, including the controversial "Control" verse on Big Sean's now infamous track. But even in a year full of amazing releases and huge moments in Hip Hop history, Pusha T made the most impact on the culture of Hip Hop. Its been a few years in the making, but lets look at how the Neighborhood Pusher went from seasoned veteran to MVP in 2013
For the better part of a decade, Pusha T has been the cream of the crop when it came to clever street rap, but ever since he came out on that VMA stage to perform Runaway with Kanye West in 2010, he has seemed like he had something to prove. Pusha didn't want his legacy to end with The Clipse, and he knew he had to take it to the next level, and beyond, to make a serious impact on not only music, but Hip Hop culture as a whole
We forget that two of our generation's greatest musical minds in Pharrell Williams and Kanye West, fight from Pusha's corner, and for good reason. We forget that before Coke Boys and The Snowman, we had The Clipse. Until this year, Pusha T was not forgotten by any means, but severely under appreciated for sure. Since going on hiatus from Clipse, and signing to Kanye's G.O.O.D. Music imprint, Pusha has been on a mission to bring lyrically sound street rap back to the top. With all the ringtone rap dominating the airwaves and blogs, Pusha's "Fear of God" series didn't get the recognition it deserved. Songs like "My God", "Alone in Vegas", "Blow", and "I Still Wanna" were not only hard hitting and goosebump inducing sonically, they were lyrical marvels. Pusha T always finds a new way to tell his old story, and every verse is a chilling reminder of where he came from, and what he had to do to get here
We also forget that Pusha played a part in what can only be called the demise of Lil Wayne. In May of 2012, Pusha T released a song called "Exodus" that was widely believed to have been a thinly veiled shot at Weezy and Drake, YMCMB's boss and top star respectively. Lil Wayne, without hesitation, tweeted out "Fuck Pusha T and anybody that loves him" and promptly put out his own response track called "Ghoulish" which was unanimously panned by critics and fans alike, as well as by Pusha himself. While Pusha can't take all the credit for ending Weezy's run as a top artist, he is certainly one of the people responsible, and for that we thank him
While the "Fear of God" mixtapes had street anthems galore, it didn't have the club and radio smash that would reach the younger fans that Pusha would need to attain leading into his debut album release. Enter Kanye West, and the Cruel Summer project. Pusha T stole the spotlight on countless tracks, including the massive hit "Mercy" and the infectious "New God Flow". Now the world knew Pusha T as his core fans had for a decade. He hadn't changed the subject matter on his songs, or the almost angry tone in which he rapped them in. But still he had kicked in the door of mainstream Hip Hop, which is a feat in and of itself, let alone for somebody who wasn't 21 and a new face
That brings us to 2013. In late January, we got the "Wrath of Caine" mixtape and it was exactly what it needed to be. WOC was a Fear of God-esque tale of Pusha's come-up and a peek into his life now. It wasn't a collection of singles, but an ode to street culture, and a harrowing look at the spoils and consequences of a life in the drug game. Critics said the production wasn't clean, but it shouldn't have been. This was the last chance before his album to give people the raw lyrics he had built a career on
All year, Pusha has been telling us he had the album of the year in great confidence. Then, in October, he backed it up and released "My Name Is My Name". It had some of the most creative and unheard of production, from Kanye's minimalistic "Numbers on the Board" to fellow Virginia native Nottz' "Nosetalgia". With MNIMN, we got the final culmination of years and years worth of hard work, and never compromising one's artistic style to push sales. Kanye made sure we got the Pusha T that he is a fan of, the lyrical monster that still puts raw passion and realism into his music, making the rest of the music out today just feel kind of plastic and cheap
So before you fill in your MVP ballots, remember...
He's yo Pushaaaa
