Kill My Landlord
The best socially conscious hip-hop album you probably never heard, The Coup'sKill My Landlord(originally released in 1993) was actually their second album, but the first released for wide distribution. Reflecting a blue-collar hip-hop perspective rarely represented by the legions of hustlers, players, and gangstas clogging rap music, The Coup came instead talking about community activism ("I Know You"), self-love ("F*ck a Perm"), and revolution ("Dig It"). But unlike the didactic preachiness that sometimes infected the post-Public Enemycrowd, The Coup made messages to free your mindandbody with funky licks and fresh rhymes courtesy of Boots, E-Roc, and DJ Pam the Funkstress. Too bad the masses were too caught up in the G-funk era to give 'em credit the first time through.--Oliver Wang