The Best Posthumous Hip-Hop Albums Ever Released
I’ll be honest here, I don’t usually believe in posthumous albums at all. More often than not, albums released after an artist’s death are usually heartless cash grabs from record labels or well-intentioned denials of loss that don’t live up to the brilliance that made those artists legends in the first place. Still, there are exceptions to the rule.
When they’re done right, posthumous albums can offer snapshots and additional insight into previously undocumented eras, reminders of what made them great, and occasionally, even extra material that stands up to the work the artist completed while they were alive.
In honor of Nipsey Hussle’s recently released “PROLIFIC” album, check out some of the posthumous rap albums that are worth their weight.
Nipsey Hussle & Bino Rideaux, “PROLIFIC“
Nipsey Hussle’s posthumous album “PROLIFIC”—released on Friday, Aug. 14—was fully completed a year before his tragic 2019 death, according to his family. And it shows. It was recorded with protégé Bino Rideaux before the duo’s 2017 mixtape “No Pressure,” and the goal was clear: “More songs for women,” Bino told Billboard, “and a project aimed at real-life experiences we were going through at the time.”
The the project pairs Bino’s cool, collected demeanor against Nipsey’s signature raspy delivery. “All Summer” is a trunk-rattling jam perfect for sunny days. “I Just Wanna Know” is a raunchy jam featuring Ty Dolla $ign and Cardi B, while “Super Real” is a great addition to Nipsey’s collection of no-frills street talk.
J Dilla, “The Shining“
J Dilla was one of the most important hip-hop and R&B producers of the 2000s, lending his perfectly imprecise drum patterns and sampling sorcery to his group Slum Village, De La Soul, Erykah Badu, and others. He had only finished about 75 percent of his third studio album, “The Shining,” when he died in 2006 of complications from lupus. But before his passing, he tasked longtime friend and fellow Detroit native Karriem Riggins with ensuring that the album was completed.
The release was worthy of Dilla’s legacy, combining a roster of his most beloved collaborators, including Busta Rhymes, Common, and Dwele, among others, with a set of beats full of the warmth, versatility and ingenuity that made him such a luminary while he was alive.
Makavelli (Tupac Shakur), “The Don Killuminati: The 7 Day Theory”
Tupac’s album, “The Don Killuminati: The 7-Day Theory,” recorded under the alias Makavelli, is just as steeped in mythos as it is in actual music. The album was reportedly recorded in a week in August 1996, about a month before the shooting in Las Vegas that would ultimately take his life.
When the album dropped in November of that same year, conspiracy theories abounded that he had faked his own death and was using the track list to drop clues about his attackers. But mythos aside, it’s an album brimming with emotion: Pac lashes out with name-specific disses at a laundry list of enemies, delivers a carefree West Coast anthem in “To Live & Die in L.N.,” and creates one of his most iconic songs ever in “Hail Mary.”
Sean Price, “Imperious Rex“
Whether it’s his collaborative work as a member of legendary 90s collective Boot Camp Clik or his solo material in the 2000s, Sean Price’s ruggedness, irreverence, and wit made him one of rap’s most beloved personalities. Thankfully, those qualities still shine brightly on his posthumous album “Imperious Rex.”
Longtime Boot Camp Clik producer Dan The Man helmed the album’s creation, and he curates a selection of beats that convey the cavernous sound that the crew was associated with. The 16-song track list is also flooded with guest appearances by some of rap’s greatest— MF DOOM, Prodigy, Styles P, several members of Wu-Tang Clan and Boot Camp Clik.
UGK, “UGK 4 Life“
Released two years after Pimp C’s passing in 2007, “UGK 4 Life” features vocals recorded prior to his death, with Bun B completing the project as a tribute to his late partner-in-rhyme. The result is classic UGK: the sharp contrast between Bun’s heavy baritone and Pimp’s high-pitched wit, slab-ready beats, and vivid tales of Houston street life.
A song like the nostalgia-laden “The Pimp & The Bun,” accented by a guitar licks by Mannie Fresh and a chorus by Ronald Isley, would be heartbreaking if not for the fact that UGK completed and accomplished so much while both members were alive. Instead of an occasion for mourning what could’ve been, “UGK 4 Life” plays as a farewell tour to one of the greatest rap duos of all time.
Mobb Deep, “Infinite“
One reason many posthumous rap albums turn out so poorly is because there’s such a large separation between the voice that recorded those original verses and the final product that fans hear. This wasn’t the case for Mobb Deep’s “Infinite,” because even though Prodigy died in 2017, the other half of the duo, rapper/producer Havoc, is alive and well.
By that standard, this was as close to politics as usual as a posthumous album can be. Havoc and longtime collaborator The Alchemist split production duties—eleven tracks to four, respectively—setting unearthed Prodigy verses over fresh beats to deliver one of the most impressive additions to Mobb Deep’s discography.
Big Pun, “Yeeeah Baby“
Even before his premature death in February 2000, Big Pun was a history-making MC: his debut “Capital Punishment” was the first rap recording by a Latino rap artist, earned a Grammy nomination for Best Rap Album, and peaked at No. 5 on the Billboard 200. He still planned to record five more songs for “Yeeeah Baby” before his death, but his unparalleled talent was still apparent on what he had already finished.
“Watch Those” and “Off Wit His Head” are still full of the wit and street sensibilities that made him great, “It’s So Hard” is a charming, BBQ-ready jam with Donell Jones, and “100%” leans into his Latino heritage with a perfectly-executed sample of Argentinian musician Lalo Schifrin’s “Anita.”
Big L, “The Big Picture”
Big L is one of rap’s greatest “what-if” stories ever. In the ‘90s, Big L had built a rep as one of Harlem’s most ferocious freestylers, joined Lord Finesse’s legendary Diggin In The Crates crew, co-founded a group called Children of the Corn with Cam’ron and Mase (along with other members), and was in the process of signing with Roc-A-Fella Records before he was murdered in 1999.
His sophomore album, “The Big Picture,” was incomplete when he was killed, but there are still classic songs that showcased his brilliance. “Ebonics (Criminal Slang)” is a smart conceptual song that smartly breaks down street lingo, “Flamboyant” is still one of rap’s greatest displays of braggadocio, and “Platinum Plus” features a phenomenal DJ Premier beat that Big L annihilates with Big Daddy Kane.
Mac Miller, “Circles“
Before his death from an accidental drug overdose, Mac Miller had already undergone an extraordinary musical evolution. After launching his career in the early-2010s “frat rap” scene—a genre often dismissed for its focus on partying and booze—he gradually embraced jazz, built his own production identity, and transformed his Los Angeles home into a creative hub for rising West Coast talent.
His posthumous album was designed to be a companion piece to “Swimming,” his fifth album and arguably his most definitive artistic statement. Producer Jon Brion was hired to work on “Swimming,” and he was brought onboard to complete “Circles” after Mac’s passing. Songs like “God Speed,” “Good News,” and “Complicated” candidly show that he was still working through his substance abuse issues, but the album still balances dreariness with moments of hope.
Pop Smoke, “Shoot For The Stars, Aim For The Moon“
Pop Smoke’s life ended just as his stardom was reaching a fever pitch. He had been the face of rap’s bubbling Brooklyn drill movement, with hits like “Dior” and “Welcome To The Party” taking over the streets and Billboard charts alike in one of the most authentic rises to fame that rap had seen in recent years.
Twelve days after the release of his mixtape “Meet The Woo 2,” he was murdered in a home invasion in Los Angeles. He was already deep in the recording process for his debut album “Shoot For The Stars, Aim For The Moon,” but fellow New Yorker 50 Cent — who says that he saw himself in Pop — was enlisted to complete the album after his passing, securing guest appearances and meeting deadlines.
Notorious B.I.G., “Life After Death“
Okay, we’re cheating a little bit with this last one: Biggie’s sophomore album “Life After Death” only fits here based on technicality. He had already completed the entirety of the album while he was alive, but it was released a little more than two weeks after he was murdered in Los Angeles in March 1997.
The truly posthumous albums to come out under his name, “Born Again” and “Duets: The Final Chapter,” carry the same lack of cohesion as other vampiric posthumous releases. But “Life After Death” is one of the greatest rap albums ever: a double disc with little to no filler, it finds Biggie at his sharpest, most confident, and most versatile. He crafts a pair of the two most inescapable hits of the late 90s (“Hypnotize,” “Mo Money Mo Problems”) and writes an instruction manual for drug dealing (“Ten Crack Commandments”), with equal dexterity.
