Welcome to the first installment of our new monthly series where we highlight the best bars of the past month. The end of 2014 is end shaping up pretty good in the world of rap. The fourth quarter isn't for the faint of heart. It's crunch time, and the verses we picked vary from worthy rookies to grizzled veterans. Timbaland has Gunplay on his ass for "leaking" a version of "Movin Bass" on which his new artist Tink goes the fuck off, Big K.R.I.T. does what Big K.R.I.T. does on Cadillactica album cut "Saturdays = Celebration," Flying Lotus got himself a DOOM feature about mating with Sasquatches and what not, Pusha T is gearing up for a follow-up to My Name Is My Name by taking your favorite rapper's "Lunch Money," and Mystikal popped up on a Mark Ronson track for the upcoming Uptown Special. Check out our picks for Best Rap Verses of the Month.
10. Flying Lotus f/ DOOM “Masquatch”
Date: Nov. 20, 2014
“I came up to the forest to finish this last record
I knew it was a female since it was ass naked
Sneak up while I'm in the woods splittin' blunts
The pussy was good, I only hit it once."
—DOOM
I'm always here for some new DOOM. It'll be featured on the next-gen version of Grand Theft Auto V, so you can get weird with Trevor in a trailer park. Wash that meat!
8. Mark Ronson f/ Mystikal “Feel Right”
Date: Nov. 23, 2014
"I've been bad, bruh
What you gettin' mad, fuh?
I'm gon' have to light you up
I eat flames up/And crap fire out
Don't make me light my butt!"
—Mystikal
I don't watch Saturday Night Live, but I immediately felt like shit when my Twitter timeline told me Mystikal was performing on SNL in a suit. And, to my surprise, he hasn't lost a step. He still sounds the same. Mystikal is the rap game James Brown. Just a man and his band.
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6. Rick Ross f/ Tink and Jay Z “Movin' Bass”
Date: Nov. 19, 2014
"I poke niggas like Pillsbury
Robbin' them in they hood/Mask on me like Jim Carey
Got a Spanish boy who don't speak no Ingles
Give him the product, he gon' pack it like it's Green Bay."
—Tink
Rick Ross is mad because of the way Timbaland went handling the unreleased version of "Movin' Bass," and it's hard not to side with the boss on this one. However, the version with Tink on it is far superior, and Ross should be mad at himself for choosing the wrong one. We're glad people are being put on to Tink. She went absolutely nuts on this. Not too many newcomers can go back and forth with Hov and Ross.
5.
4. Big K.R.I.T. f/ Jamie N Common “Saturdays = Celebration”
Date: Nov. 10, 2014
"In the event of my demise I won't go kicking and screaming
I know that God had a reason, just don't give up believing
As long as the sun shines after the storm
So we don't cry at the dinner table
Rejoice and just be thankful
I made it home, sick of lyin', safe and sound
Battle with drinking so please don't pour me no liquor
Out on the curb, fight the urge to go retaliate
Carry on, just be strong enough to walk away
Uh, speak the truth even if they crucify me
Uh, free my soul even if they chain my body
Uh, look to God if ain't nowhere to go
Beware those prophets that touch a leg before they touch your soul
We reap what the sow when the boat man cometh
Gotta pay what we owe
Jesus walks so I run to him
How can they love me when I'm knowin' what they done to him."
—Big K.R.I.T.
Man, the second verse on "Saturdays = Celebration" is timely. K.R.I.T. is always able to reach deep down in his soul for honest raps. Given the events that have unfolded in the country these last couple days, close your eyes and sing this hymn for a better tomorrow.
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2. Pusha T “Lunch Money”
Date: Nov. 18, 2014
"Papi get me everything I want
Ridin' 'round with Miguel Cotto in the trunk
What I'm cooking in the kitchen, niggas?
Bobby Brown, New Edition, niggas
What I'm wearing in this blizzard, nigga?
Mink, leather, or it's lizard, nigga
St. Laurent, I'm in all layers
The mannequin to you ballplayers
Shout out my Mac 11 monster
Grew up on Nintendo playing Contra
And though that nigga only 5'9"
100 bodies on his timeline
What's the price of success?
Lost my bitch, bought a chef
The 911 cost 211
Watch looking like a jeweler's heaven
Hidin' seven, I'm so alive
Your bank account Swiss, nigga, so is mine
This is crime by design
If the crown ain't mine tell me who am I behind?"
Jesus, Push, relax. He's such a fucking bully. Regardless if you feel like the beat is trash (I strongly disagree), Pusha Ton blacked, especially on the last verse. Papi is giving this dude drugs that will knock you out. Fuck your connect!