Artists like Shabazz Palaces

Company Flow was an American hip hop trio from Brooklyn, New York City, consisting of Bigg Jus, El-P and Mr. Len.

Elucid, is an American rapper and record producer from New York City. He has been a member of Armand Hammer, Cult Favorite, Lessondary, Nostrum Grocers, and Small Bills.

Digable Planets is an American hip hop trio formed in 1987. The trio is composed of rappers Ishmael "Butterfly" Butler, Mariana "Ladybug Mecca" Vieira, and Craig "Doodlebug" Irving. The group is notable for their contributions to the subgenres of jazz rap and alternative hip hop.

Clipping is an American experimental hip-hop group from Los Angeles, California. The group consists of rapper Daveed Diggs and producers William Hutson and Jonathan Snipes.

Billy Woods, stylized billy woods, is an American rapper based in New York. He is the founder of the record label Backwoodz Studioz, and has been a member of Armand Hammer, Super Chron Flight Brothers, and the Reavers. Woods consistently obscures his face in publicity photos.

Gavin Christopher Tennille, known as Quelle Chris, is an American record producer, rapper and songwriter from Detroit, Michigan. He has released over 15 albums as a solo act and with his collaborative projects.

Jaime Stuart Meline, better known by the stage name El-P, is an American rapper, songwriter, and record producer. He began his career as a member of the widely acclaimed Company Flow, and has been a driving force in alternative hip-hop since the 1990s. He is now most widely-known as one half of Run the Jewels. He has produced for rappers including Aesop Rock, Cage, and Mr. Lif. He was a member of The Weathermen and was the co-founder, owner, and CEO of the Definitive Jux record label.

Camae Ayewa, better known by her stage name Moor Mother, is an American poet, musician, and activist from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She is one half of the collective Black Quantum Futurism, along with Rasheedah Phillips, and co-leads the groups Irreversible Entanglements and 700 Bliss.

Young Fathers are a Scottish progressive hip-hop group formed in Edinburgh in 2008. Their second EP, Tape Two (2013), won the Scottish Album of the Year Award. In 2014, they won the Mercury Prize for their debut album Dead. A second album, White Men Are Black Men Too, followed in 2015. Their third album, Cocoa Sugar (2018), peaked at number 28 on the UK Albums Chart and earned the band their second Scottish Album of the Year Award. Their fourth album, Heavy Heavy, was released in 2023 and earned the band their third Scottish Album of the Year Award. The band composed the soundtrack for the 2025 horror film 28 Years Later.

Ian Matthias Bavitz, better known by his stage name Aesop Rock, is an American rapper and producer. He was at the forefront of the new wave of underground and alternative hip-hop acts that emerged during the late 1990s and early 2000s. He was signed to El-P's Definitive Jux label until it went on hiatus in 2010. In a 2010 retrospective, betterPropaganda ranked him at number 19 at the Top 100 Artists of the Decade.

By Storm are an American experimental hip-hop duo consisting of rapper Nathaniel "RiTchie" Ritchie and producer Parker Corey. From 2012 to 2023, Ritchie and Corey were members of Tempe-based trio Injury Reserve alongside rapper Stepa J. Groggs. Following Groggs' death and the release of their final album By the Time I Get to Phoenix (2021), Ritchie and Corey regrouped as a duo under the name By Storm.

Quasimoto was a side project of American hip-hop producer Madlib, from Oxnard, California. Quasimoto is composed of Madlib and his animated alter ego Lord Quas. Lord Quas is known for his high-pitched voice, which often interacts with Madlib's regular voice. Quasimoto was conceived one day in the studio, when Madlib decided to rap to his own beats. Madlib did not like the sound of his voice, so he decided to slow his recorder down, rap slowly, then speed the recording back up to produce Lord Quas' distinctive high-pitched sound.

Regan Farquhar, better known by his stage name Busdriver, is an American rapper and producer from Los Angeles. He has collaborated with rappers such as Myka 9, R.A.P. Ferreira, Nocando, Open Mike Eagle, 2Mex, Aesop Rock and Radioinactive. His primary producers have been Daedelus, Boom Bip, Daddy Kev, Loden, Paris Zax, Omid, Kenny Segal, and Nobody. He has also worked with D-Styles on two albums.

Travis Miller, best known professionally as Lil Ugly Mane, is an American musician, rapper, singer, and record producer. Noted for his diverse style, introspective lyrics, and various side projects, Miller's work spans a wide range of genres, including experimental hip hop, black metal, lo-fi music, indie rock, and free jazz. He has also produced under the alias Shawn Kemp, and has recorded under the names Bedwetter, Vudmurk and several others.

Wilbert Gavin Mays, better known by his stage name Cities Aviv, is an American rapper and record producer from Memphis, Tennessee. He is also the founder of the independent record label Total Works

Yasiin Bey, formerly known as Mos Def, is an American rapper, singer, and actor. A prominent figure in conscious hip-hop, he is recognized for his use of wordplay and commentary on social and political issues, such as police brutality, American exceptionalism, and the status of African Americans in the United States.

Rahkeim Calief Meyer, better known by his stage name Roc Marciano, is an American rapper and record producer. He is known for his intricate internal rhymes and wordplay detailing mafioso and pimp themes over sample based production. He has been called the "Godfather of the Underground" for pioneering the resurgence of gritty, lyrical rap and use of drumless sample loops in the early 2010s with his highly influential debut album Marcberg (2010).

Justin Lewis Scott, known professionally as Big K.R.I.T., is an American rapper and record producer. Born in Meridian, Mississippi, he began his musical career in 2005. He was signed to Def Jam Recordings by Sha Money XL in 2010, and first gained recognition following the release of his single "Country Shit" in September of that year. The following year, he guest appeared on T.I.'s promotional single "I'm Flexin'", which became Scott's first entry on the Billboard Hot 100.

Dr. Octagon is a persona created and used by American rapper Keith Matthew Thornton, better known as Kool Keith. Thornton performed and released four studio albums under the alias. Having introduced the character in 1993 on the unreleased Ultramagnetic MC's demo "Smoking Dust", Thornton's first full-length recording as Dr. Octagon was on his 1996 debut solo album, Dr. Octagonecologyst.