Artists like Kendrick Lamar

Johnny Reed McKinzie Jr., better known by his stage name Jay Rock, is an American rapper. Born and raised in Southern California, Rock signed with the Carson-based independent label Top Dawg Entertainment (TDE) in 2005. He secured a major label joint venture deal with Warner Bros. Records and Asylum Records to release his 2008 debut single, "All My Life ". Failing to chart, the mergers fell through and Rock departed from both of the latter labels shortly after. He then signed with Missouri rapper Tech N9ne's label Strange Music in a joint venture deal with TDE in 2011.

Black Hippy was an American hip hop supergroup from South Los Angeles, California, formed in 2008. The group consisted of rappers Ab-Soul, Jay Rock, Kendrick Lamar, and ScHoolboy Q. Black Hippy was constructed after all of its members had signed to Carson-based indie record label, Top Dawg Entertainment (TDE).

Quincy Matthew Hanley, better known by his stage name Schoolboy Q, is an American rapper. He began recording in 2007, and released his first two mixtapes, ScHoolboy Turned Hustla (2008) and Gangsta & Soul (2009) to local success. After signing with the Carson-based record label Top Dawg Entertainment, Hanley's debut studio album, Setbacks (2011) and its follow-up, Habits & Contradictions (2012) were both released to positive critical response; both also performed moderately on the US Billboard 200 chart as digital exclusives.

Jo-Vaughn Virginie Scott, known professionally as Joey Badass, is an American rapper and actor. Born in Brooklyn, he formed the regional hip-hop group Pro Era in 2011, with whom he has released three mixtapes and formed the larger collective, Beast Coast the following year.

Rakim Athelston Mayers, known professionally as ASAP Rocky, is an American rapper, record producer, actor, fashion designer, and model. Born and raised in Harlem, he embarked on his musical career as a member of the hip hop collective ASAP Mob, from which he adopted his stage name. In August 2011, Mayers' single "Peso" was leaked online and began receiving radio airplay within weeks, propelling cloud rap into mainstream attention. He signed with Polo Grounds Music, an imprint of RCA Records, that October and released his debut mixtape, Live. Love. A$AP to widespread critical acclaim.

Herbert Anthony Stevens IV, better known by his stage name Ab-Soul, is an American rapper. Raised in Carson, California, he signed with the indie record label Top Dawg Entertainment (TDE) in 2007, where he formed the West Coast hip-hop group Black Hippy alongside fellow California-based rappers Jay Rock, Kendrick Lamar and Schoolboy Q. His third album, These Days... (2014), peaked at number 11 on the Billboard 200. He is Black Hippy's sole member to remain an independent artist.

Terrence LeVarr Thornton, better known by his stage name Pusha T, is an American rapper. He rose to prominence as one half of the Virginia-based hip hop duo Clipse, which he formed with his older brother Malice. Established in 1994, the duo were discovered by Pharrell Williams and signed with his record label Star Trak Entertainment, an imprint of Arista Records, in 2001. They initially released three studio albums—Lord Willin' (2002), Hell Hath No Fury (2006) and Til the Casket Drops (2009)—to mild commercial success; the former spawned the Billboard Hot 100-top 40 singles "Grindin'" and "When the Last Time", for which they became best known.

Vincent Jamal Staples is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and actor. He first became known for his appearances on the projects from Odd Future members and affiliates, including Earl Sweatshirt's Earl (2010) and Doris (2013), Mike G.’s Ali (2010) and The Jet Age of Tomorrow's Journey to the 5th Echelon (2010). He signed with Talib Kweli's Blacksmith Records prior to the release of his collaborative mixtape with Mac Miller, Stolen Youth (2013). The following year, he signed with No I.D.'s ARTium Recordings, an imprint of Def Jam Recordings, to release his debut extended play, Hell Can Wait (2014), which received critical acclaim and marked his first entry on the Billboard 200.

Kids See Ghosts were an American hip-hop superduo composed of rappers Kanye West and Kid Cudi. Formed during West's 2018 Wyoming sessions, the duo's only album, Kids See Ghosts, was released in June of that year by Def Jam Recordings, along with their respective label imprints, GOOD Music and Wicked Awesome Records. A critical and commercial success, the album peaked at number two on the US Billboard 200 and received gold certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Despite a planned sequel and television series, the duo disbanded in 2022 due to personal disagreements, and Cudi ended his affiliation with West in 2025.

Donald McKinley Glover Jr., also known by his musical stage name Childish Gambino, is an American actor, rapper, singer, comedian, and filmmaker. While he studied at New York University and after working in Derrick Comedy, a comedy group, Glover was hired by Tina Fey to write for the NBC sitcom 30 Rock at age 23. He gained fame for portraying college student Troy Barnes on the NBC sitcom Community from 2009 to 2014. He created the FX series Atlanta (2016–2022), which he starred in and occasionally directed. For his work on Atlanta, he won various accolades including two Primetime Emmy Awards, as well as two Golden Globe Awards.

Dreamville Records is an American independent record label founded by rapper J. Cole and his manager Ibrahim Hamad. The label ended its distribution deal with Interscope Records, a unit of Universal Music Group in July 2025. The roster includes Bas, Cozz, Omen, Lute, JID, EarthGang, and Cole himself. Dreamville also houses American record producers Elite, Ron Gilmore, and Cedric Brown.

Clipse also known as the Clipse, is an American hip-hop duo from Virginia Beach, Virginia. Formed in 1994, it consists of brothers Gene "Malice" and Terrence "Pusha T" Thornton. Pusha T was known as Terrar during the group's early years, while Malice was originally known as Malicious. As key figures in establishing Virginia as one of Down South's strongholds in hip-hop, the duo's frequent subject matter is based around illegal drug trade.

Jacques Bermon Webster II, known professionally as Travis Scott, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and record producer. Scott has had five number-one hits on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart, along with a total of over one hundred charting songs. In addition to ten Grammy Award nominations, he has won a Latin Grammy Award, Billboard Music Award, MTV Video Music Award, and several BET Hip Hop Awards. Scott is known for his dynamic live performances, eclectic musical style and fashion, while taking influences from artists including Kanye West and Kid Cudi.

Isaiah Rashad Joel McClain is an American rapper and singer. He first gained recognition following his performances on the 2012 Smoker's Club Tour alongside rappers Juicy J, Joey Badass and Smoke DZA. He is a founding member of the Chattanooga, Tennessee-based hip-hop collective TheHouse, which he formed with rappers YGTUT, Michael Da Vinci (MikeyD), Chris P, and Brian Brown.

SOB X RBE is an American hip hop group founded in 2016. The group consisted of Slimmy B, Yhung T.O., DaBoii, and Lul G. The group met as teenagers in the Bay Area of California, with influence from West Coast figures in the area's hip hop scene. They are best known for their 2018 song "Paramedic!," which entered the Billboard Hot 100 and was included on the Kendrick Lamar-curated Black Panther film soundtrack. The group disbanded the following year, mainly due to the incarceration of member Lul G, who was convicted of murdering 26-year-old Rashied Flowers in July 2019.

Shawn Corey Carter, known professionally as Jay-Z, is an American rapper, businessman, and record executive. In 2023, Billboard and Vibe ranked him as the greatest rapper of all time. Rooted in East Coast hip-hop, Jay-Z is known for his complex lyricism that often uses double entendres, wordplay, and braggadocio. His music is built on a rags to riches narrative. According to Forbes, he is the wealthiest music artist in history, worth an estimated US$2.8 billion as of 2026.

Simbiatu "Simbi" Abisola Abiola Ajikawo, better known by her stage name Little Simz, is an English rapper and actress. She rose to prominence with the independent release of her first three albums: A Curious Tale of Trials + Persons (2015), Stillness in Wonderland (2016) and Grey Area (2019), the last of which was shortlisted for the Mercury Prize and won the awards for Best Album at both the Ivor Novello Awards and the NME Awards.

EarthGang is an American hip-hop duo from Atlanta, Georgia, composed of Olu and WowGr8. They are co-founders of the musical collective Spillage Village, with JID, Hollywood JB, JordxnBryant, 6lack, Mereba, and Benji.

Madvillain was an American hip-hop supergroup formed in 2002, consisting of rapper MF Doom and producer Madlib. Their only album, Madvillainy (2004), earned critical acclaim and cult popularity, widely regarded as one of the greatest rap albums of all time and a benchmark record for alternative hip-hop. Their intricate rhymes and lyrics, short song structures and use of obscure, stylistically diverse samples made for a sound that was generally unfriendly to commercial radio but was lauded for its influence on underground rap. A follow-up album to Madvillainy was rumored to be in production at various times since the late 2000s, but no further original material has surfaced from the duo since 2010, and MF Doom's death in 2020 has left the future of the project uncertain.

Daniel Dumile, also known by his stage name MF Doom or simply Doom, was a British and American rapper, songwriter, and record producer. Noted for his intricate wordplay, signature metal mask, and "supervillain" stage persona, he became a major figure of underground hip hop and alternative hip hop in the 2000s, and has been widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential lyricists in underground rap.