10 New Rappers For 2010

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Last year saw a stack of talented new artists like Wale, Fashawn, Skyzoo, Torae and Paten Locke break through into the rappersphere. As the A&R's and PR's scrabble like crabs in a pot trying to find the next Biggie or Pac, we're here to cut through the hype and give you the low down on the new names to watch this year.

Jay Rock
Hailing from South Central LA's notorious Watts neighbourhood, Jay Rock is quickly following the path trodden by fellow LA alumnus The Game. With street-orientated rhymes and a melodic yet aggressive voice Jay Rock has earned himself a major label deal with Warner Bros and even ended up with a spot on The Game's tour.

Curren$y
This New Orleans rapper was formerly signed to both Master P's No Limit and Lil Wayne's Young Money Entertainment but has since gone independent. So far Curren$y has put out some digital-only releases - through his own clothing label Fly Society - meaning his talent has largely been slept on. This year though he is set to drop his latest album The Grand Scheme of Things, which should catapult him back into rap consciousness once again.

Tiron
Tiron Jeffries is fast making a name in the game for the originality and honesty in his lyrics. His 2009 mixtape offered us a chance to Ketchup with his best work so far, and even though it was an assortment of tracks from over the last five years, it sounded more coherent than many of last years' studio albums. 2010 will hopefully see Tiron leave the virtual world to hit the shelves with a debut album.

Drake
Drake is gonna be huge, there's no doubt about it. He's Canada's answer to the Fresh Prince, having starred in the remake of kids TV show Degrassi Junior High, and is now signed and touring with Lil Wayne. The only question is how big will Drake be and will he follow Will Smith's footsteps all the way to Hollywood?

Dom Kennedy
Part of the new west coast wave Dom Kennedy is yet another new school artist who couldn't be bothered to think of a rap name (thank you Kanye). Hailing from Leimert Park in Los Angeles, Dom has dropped three mixtapes so far but is expected to land a deal and hit us with a full studio album in 2010.

Blu
Blu famously turned down Death Row Records to go independent, subsequently making his mark on the underground with a critically acclaimed collaboration with Exile, Below the Heavens. Many mix and beat-tapes later, Blu is one of the most respected emcees and producers on the scene and his debut solo album is eagerly awaited.

Pac Div
Pacific Division have streamlined their once mammoth posse down from ten to a manageable trio and the quantity control has led to quality control. Now signed to Universal Motown and working with the Neptunes, they are set to release their debut album and follow-up on last year's massively popular Church League Champions mixtape.

Hayes
Labelled as the new Biggie for his storytelling abilities, Earl Hayes has already been signed by Dr Dre and Timbaland in a joint venture. With two of the games biggest heavyweights behind him you can fully expect this rapper to be a household name by the end of the year. Living up to B.I.G's rep may be too much for the rookie rapper but Fiddy's crown is definitely within his reach.

J Cole
No relation to the footballing Coles, or Nat King for that matter, Jermaine Cole is the first signing to Jay-Z's Roc Nation imprint. A talented wordsmith with a heavily Kanye-influenced sound, J has more of an introspective outlook that might just endear him to those who are sick of the egomania of Hova and Weezy.

Jay Electronica
New Orleans native Jay Electronica is the heir apparent to the underground hip hop throne. He's Erykah Badu's boyfriend, in a group with Mos Def and in the studio with Just Blaze and Nas. With 5 years of steady growing buzz from internet releases and a recent iTunes hip hop chart number one, everything suggests 2010 will be Jay's year.

It looks like another good year for hip hop. As well as the ten men above there are a host of new artists on the rise, such as Wiz Khalifa, Nipsey Hussle, Bobby Ray, Big Sean, XV - and hopefully a few surprises too. Hip hop will even make it to the World Cup, with Canada's finest K'naan getting his Waving the Flag track licensed by FIFA.

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