The 20 Best Rap City Freestyles of All Time

Big Tigger didn't really have bars like that, but at least he went off the dome.

Not Available Lead
Complex Original

Image via Complex Original

Not Available Lead

This past Wednesday, Eminem singlehandedly revived a ghost of culture's past that had died too young: the third greatest hip-hop TV show of all time (peace to Uncle Ralph and Yo! MTV Raps), BET's iconic video mixshow, Rap City: Tha Basement. The show originally started in 1989, helmed by Chris “The Mayor” Thomas for the first two years. Later, a colorful Big Lez would hold it down from 1994 to 1999, alternating as host with Joe Clair during those same years until Big Tigger came onboard before the millennium. When he became host, Rap City became Rap City: Tha Basement, and it was the physical demarcation of the booth as the place where rappers would freestyle that sparked the segment’s popularity.

Whether it was with Freestyle Fridays or Rap City, BET had a solid grip on what their audience wanted around the turn of the millennium. (Freestyle Fridays even spawned a Ruff Ryder signing in the Chinbese-American rapper, Jin.) Sure, you could see Eminem or Nelly or Busta on TRL, but they wouldn't spit an exclusive verse like they would in The Booth. Before the Internet popped off, rap fans now in their 20s remember rushing home from school to catch whichever artist was on that day deliver their freestyle at the end. Timing was crucial! If you didn’t get home in time, you might never see that segment again. Some rappers would drop sly disses, others would actually come off the dome. One Harlem hero even wore all pink and counted stacks of money while he spit. Time stood still in that neon-lit recording booth.

Now the show is gone. Cancelled in leaving only a ghost of it’s memory in the form of the Backroom freestyles on 106 and Park. Eminem took us back to the times of guest DJs and animated freestyles this past Wednesday. (Much like he did for Relapse back in 2009.) But that wasn’t enough for us, so we excavated footage of the most timeless Rap City Freestyles of all time to keep the nostalgia flowing. The parameters are simple: writtens can’t be avoided, but verses from album cuts get no shine. Basically, if you've heard the lyrics elsewhere, we (mostly) didn’t include it. So excuse Big Tigger's soggy cereal bars as we rewind our VHS tapes and reminisce about the good ol' days with The 20 Best Rap City Freestyles of All Time.

Written by Max Weinstein (@dubmaxx)

RELATED: The 50 Best Radio Freestyles 
RELATED: The 25 Best Eminem Verses 

RELATED: Best 50 Rap Albums Ever Made

20. Redman and Method Man (2000)

Not Available Interstitial

19. Juelz Santana (2003)

Not Available Interstitial

18. Buckshot (2000)

Not Available Interstitial

17. Jadakiss (2001)

Not Available Interstitial

16. Common (2002)

Not Available Interstitial

15. Jay-Z (2003)

Not Available Interstitial

14. A Tribe Called Quest (1996)

Not Available Interstitial

13. MC Lyte (2002)

Not Available Interstitial

12. Eminem (2009)

Not Available Interstitial

11. Geto Boys (2005)

Not Available Interstitial

10. Killer Mike (2005)

Not Available Interstitial

9. Cam'ron (2005)

Not Available Interstitial

8. Ghostface Killah (1999)

Not Available Interstitial

7. Canibus (1998)

Not Available Interstitial

6. Killer Mike and Big Boi (2002)

Not Available Interstitial

5. Kool G Rap (2001)

Not Available Interstitial

4. Raekwon (2000)

Not Available Interstitial

3. Grandmaster Caz (2002)

Not Available Interstitial

2. Eminem (2001)

Not Available Interstitial

1. The Diplomats (2003)

Not Available Interstitial

Latest in Music