Top 10 Lyricist in any genre

[Jay9508]

i got a top five

Tupac
Biggie
Luther Vandross
Marvin Gaye
Aaliyah

 

[blindzebra]

Well I can go along with many named already.

And although I am not his biggest fan I really think Elton John is a good writer. Most of his songs are a little too mellow, musically wise, for me but some songs are just great.

I also have a special place for Ronnie James Dio...not sure if his lyrics themselves are great I just like the way he writes, how he structures his lyrics.

Many of the great blues artists...especially when they sing of the mythic bad arse type of guy.

Jim Croce

I have always enjoyed Steve Miller band.

Elton wrote the music, Bernie Taupin supplied the words.

Bono, the early stuff.

Michael Snipe and Mike Mills, the early stuff.

Sting.

Prince.

Don Henley.

Dave Mathews.

Bruce Springsteen.

John Fogerty.

Jim Croce.

Melissa Etheridge.

 

[Hoods]

Biggie smalls...LOL... He aint writing no more...LOL..

No sh**?

Lyrics aren't going to be the same, but you can't argue that alot of those rappers (namely Tupac) have a unique way of expressing their emotions and different situations in the world (in his case the ghetto; thug life). Calling music crap just because you don't like or agree with it's content is ignorant.

 

[StarMan2112]

Here's a top 5:

Neil Peart
Waylon Jennings
Paul O'Neill
Carly Simon
Merle Haggard

 

[LaTunaNostra]

No sh**?

Lyrics aren't going to be the same, but you can't argue that alot of those rappers (namely Tupac) have a unique way of expressing their emotions and different situations in the world (in his case the ghetto; thug life). Calling music crap just because you don't like or agree with it's content is ignorant.

You are wasting your breath.

 

[Qwickdraw]

Whats with all the 2Pac love?

Was he that big in Texas or something?

He was a good rapper but hardly a great lyricist, IMO.

But everytime there's a thread started here about hip hop all I hear is 2Pac this and 2Pac that.

You guys should start a fan club.

 

[Hoods]

Whats with all the 2Pac love?

Was he that big in Texas or something?

He was a good rapper but hardly a great lyricist, IMO.

But everytime there's a thread started here about hip hop all I hear is 2Pac this and 2Pac that.

You guys should start a fan club.

What's with those that dispute him as a lyricist?

Lyrics isn't just about some fancy words put together and making it sound cool or something.

Dictionary.com:
lyr·ic
adj.
Of or relating to a category of poetry that expresses subjective thoughts and feelings, often in a songlike style or form.

No doubt Tupac was a poet with his words. The way he expressed his feelings and emotions is what sets him apart from any other rapper imo. The ability to, and the way he delived his message is what made him a great lyricist. He told his stories and messages in a way that moved you.

With that said, I also put him in my Top 5 list of lyricists, if not as the best.

 

[Qwickdraw]

See what I mean?

 

[Hoods]

See what I mean?

Nice counter-argument. Maybe there's a reason why you're on the outside.

 

[Qwickdraw]

Nice counter-argument. Maybe there's a reason why you're on the outside.

Maybe you shouldn't be commenting on a subject for which your level of exposure obviously begins and ends with "Yo! MTV Raps".

 

[Hoods]

Maybe you shouldn't be commenting on a subject for which your level of exposure obviously begins and ends with "Yo! MTV Raps".

I'm 16 years old. So? You're acting like you're five. I explained why he is, in my opinion of course, one of the greatest lyricist ever. He was a poet with his words and his emotions. What does my justifcation for him being a lyricist have to do with "yo, mtv raps!"? Honestly, ***? Oh well. At least I know how high to really carry your opinion now.

 

[Qwickdraw]

I'm 16 years old. So? You're acting like you're five. I explained why he is, in my opinion of course, one of the greatest lyricist ever. He was a poet with his words and his emotions. What does my justifcation for him being a lyricist have to do with "yo, mtv raps!"? Honestly, ***? Oh well. At least I know how high to really carry your opinion now.

No offense but that explains it.
You weren't old enough to follow Hip Hop during it's Golden Age.
I have listened to all 2Pac since his first appearance with Digital Underground on the Motion Picture Soundtrack Album for "Nothing But Trouble" on the track, "Same Song".
You were 2 years old at the time.

 

[Hoods]

No offense but that explains it.
You weren't old enough to follow Hip Hop during it's Golden Age.
I have listened to all 2Pac since his first appearance with Digital Underground on the Motion Picture Soundtrack Album for "Nothing But Trouble" on the track, "Same Song".
You were 2 years old at the time.

That just means you heard it first. I'll go along though, but just out of curiousity, why do you not classify Tupac as a top lyricist?

 

[Qwickdraw]

That just means you heard it first. I'll go along though, but just out of curiousity, why do you not classify Tupac as a top lyricist?

I wasn't stating who heard him first. That's pointless and irrelevant.

I was stating that I heard him when he was new. Fresh. Entering the scene.
Not once he was shot and killed and all of the mystery and conspiracy that surrounds he and his death was created. I heard him as he grew in the industry. As he went from a no-name rapper to a popular artist. When he signed with Death Row Records. When he started acting, in "Juice" and "Poetic Justice". So on and so on.

I was able to compare him, when he was just a young, raw emcee from Oakland trying to make it, to other raw emcees from all over the country in a similar situation.

I don't mind his music. I think his music was good. But he didn't really do anything groundbreaking, IMO. His lyrics are okay but not "poetic", IMO. They are simple. His music was simple in concept and delivery and thus appeals to the masses. His lyrics are easy to follow and his subject matter was same old, same old. There's nothing wrong with that. Alot of good music is made in such a mold. But he never really broke any new ground or did anything that sperated him from a number of other emcees like himself.

In the world of Hip Hop, the real treasures are buried deep underneath the mainstream popular names and acts just like most genres of art. You have to be a true fan to discover the real talent that exists underground and is hidden behind what the masses accept as "talent". The masses like performers, not artists. The masses like simplicity not complexity. The masses like loud, catchy, repetition not innovations, subtly or depth.

JMO.

 

[C-BoysFaninMIA]

Bob Marley is good, but those other guys ? Cmon man. That crap is just gangsta hood rap that talks about Jail and killing people and life in the hood. Whats so good about that. You want a real lyricist. Try the following.

Bob Dylan
Robert Hunter

2 of the best writers of all time.

Biggie smalls...LOL... He aint writing no more...LOL..

are u serious? have u ever listened to biggie smalls? the things he says tangles ur brain up. and those others guys are serious. try downloading some of their music and find out

 

[CdnCowboy]

I really enjoy a lot of the other lists however these are my favorite lyricists and my favorite lyrics by each of them. As for a songwriter I like Jimmy Page best with creating songs such as The Rain Song, Stairway to Heaven, Since I've Been Loving You among many others.

1) Neil Young (Don't Let it Bring You Down)
2) Bob Dylan (Like a Rolling Stone)
3) John Lennon (Working Class Hero)
4) Robert Plant (Since I've Been Loving You, Hey Hey What Can I Do)
5) Jim Morrison (The End)
Honourable mention to Jimi Hendrix's "Bold as Love"

There is an obvious bias towards classic rock. I have not really taken the time to listen to any rap artists however my friends have tried to get me in to Tupac because of his lyrics. And obviously no "new age" pop music because, well, I think it is pretty talentless.

 

[Qwickdraw]

ENOUGH WITH THE 2PAC!!!!!!!!!!

YOU GUYS ARE OUTTA CONTROL!!!!!!!!!!!!

What, is there one Hip Hop station in Texas, 102pac?
All 2Pac, all the time?

wow.

 

[WoodysGirl]

ENOUGH WITH THE 2PAC!!!!!!!!!!

YOU GUYS ARE OUTTA CONTROL!!!!!!!!!!!!

What, is there one Hip Hop station in Texas, 102pac?
All 2Pac, all the time?

wow.

It's not just a Texas thing. U know that, right? Alot of people liked Pac. Last I heard it's ok for people to like him, ya know. Just because u don't think he's as gifted as others obviously feel he is, why get all heated about it? I don't get that. It's just an opinion.

Pac was talented and that's much more than alot of these so-called artists can say.

I was talking about this to a friend last night about the dude Lyfe Jennings. His CD is garbage, but folks bump him like he's innovative or something. I'm not gonna hate on them just because I don't agree.

 

[Qwickdraw]

Gimme a break.
I'm pretty much joking with my 2Pac posts.
I don't care what people like. It's their opinion.

I'm just trying to put my finger on what it is. If it's not a Texas thing than it must be an age thing or something. Reason being, I grew up following Hip Hop, the majority of my friend's did as well and so did their friends. Hip Hop has always been a BIG thing here in my area. And 2Pac has never really gotten much play around here. From my own observations, he was the guy that people listened to that weren't really big fans of Hip Hop. Kinda like saying, "Winger, now that's Rock and Roll!"

I'm just amazed that no matter what, EVERY ONE OF MY POSTS was followed by somebody mentioning 2Pac. I never saw anyone mention any other mainstream artists. Just 2Pac over and over again. Just trying to figure out what it was. I'm not hating on the guy or anyone who likes his music.

 

[royhitshard]

Waylon Jennings, Johhny Cash, and Malcom and Angus Young!