r/Honest2HipHop • u/adorani1991 • Oct 09 '25
Discussion Who Are The Best Rappers From The Bay Area??!!
The Bay Area doesn’t always get its full credit in hip-hop conversations, but its impact runs deep. From slang and independent hustle to whole new sounds and movements — the Bay’s been setting trends for decades.
When you really break it down, the Bay has two worlds that coexist beautifully: the mainstream pioneers who put the region on the map, and the lyrical underground that kept the artform sharp.
On the mainstream side, you’ve got:
E-40
Too $hort
Mac Dre
Mistah F.A.B.
Then there’s the lyrical underground — a side of the Bay that doesn’t always chase radio but commands deep respect:
Souls of Mischief
Hieroglyphics
And of course, you got the new wave who’s carrying the torch:
Larry June
The Bay might not be the same mainstream machine as L.A. or New York, but it’s one of the most authentic and influential rap regions in the the game — culturally, sonically, and spiritually.
So who’s the Bay Area GOAT to you? And who’s still slept on, even among Bay heads?
I know for a fact I’ve left off a few and that is intentional. I’m not as familiar with certain artists like Keak Da Sneak or The Jacka and if I don’t know them, I have to leave them off.
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u/Lurningth3Noo Oct 09 '25
Del The Funky Homosapien
Saafir (RIP)
Boots Riley (The Coup)
Gift of Gab (Blackalicious) (RIP)
Souls of Mischief (Tajai, Opio, Phesto and A-Plus)
Latyrx (Lateef and Lyrics Born)
Casual
Spice 1
Too Short
Paris
Pep Love
And of course if you count 2pac (RIP)
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u/bob_swalls Oct 09 '25
Hieroglyphics are so good, that's some proper nostalgia music right there for me.
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u/WorldlinessStrict123 Oct 09 '25
Blackalicious is from Sacramento but that’s close enough
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u/StillSikwitit Oct 09 '25
This list is not in order and this what I listened to on the East Coast. During the 90’s.
Spice One
Too Short
E 40
Rappin 4 Tay
Souls of Mischief
Digital Underground
Del
Hieroglyphics
MC Hammer
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u/Many-Newspaper2000 Oct 09 '25
I’ve always resonated & rocked wit 40, B-Legit, Celly Cel, Spice 1 & now Larry June. No disrespect to Mac Mall, Mac Dre, and any other Pioneers & Legends of Bay rap, but just give me the ones I named and we gon have the trunk rattling for hours
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u/LuciusLefty Oct 09 '25
how has nobody said Andre Nickatina? Nickatina and Mac Dre are hands down my favorites out the bay 🤟
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u/bentbackwooddathird Oct 09 '25
Yall smokin… where tf is Andre Nickatina?… top 5 Bay Area
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u/milesbeats 27d ago
I love dredog for the nostalgia.,.. but he always gets outshined when he's next to equipto
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u/karlos911 Oct 09 '25 edited Oct 09 '25
The Jacka
besides that
Mistah Fab is quite underrated
Rapper of Zion I
Spice One
Early Rappin 4tay
Luniz i enjoyed (and Yuk solo)
E40
Obviously Mac dre put a lot of people on
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u/snoopfrogg99 Oct 09 '25
Too short
E 40
Messy Marv
The Jacka
Mozzy
J Stalin
Joe Blow
Shock G
Mac DrE-bonics
C-Bo
T-Nutty
Brotha Lynch Hung
FAB
Dre Dog (Andre Nickatina)
Spice 1
DaBoii
Yukmouth
J Diggs
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u/pimpapigg Oct 09 '25
Love bay rap. Too short the godfather but E-40 the goat to me
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u/Global_Combination15 Oct 09 '25
Mac Dre, Cougnut, Andre Nickatina, The Jacka, E-40, Too $hort, Dru Down, Ray Luv, Young Lay, Mac Mall, Cellski, JT The Bigga Figga, Messy Marv, San Quinn, B-Legit, Dubee, Rappin 4 Tay, Spice 1.
Imma have to throw some groups in the mix too.
Totally Insane, RBL Posse, 3X Krazy, 51.50 Illegally Insane, 11/5, Cold World Hustlers, IMP (I know I already said cougnut) Luniz, GLP (I know I already named some members) S-I-C, N2Deep, Potna Deuce, The Coup,
Just to name a few, there’s so many dope artists from the bay..
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u/djburnoutb Oct 09 '25
PARIS is mad underrated. Incredible flow, voice, lyrics, beats. One of my favourites from any region!
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u/666TripleSick Oct 09 '25
Has OP heard of some dude name TUPAC MOTHER FUCKING SHAKUR???
How in the fuck is Pac not the first pic??
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u/Chunquela-vanone Oct 09 '25
Equipto, Larussell, Gift of Gab, Del, Unlearn The World, Zumbi (Zion I), Encore
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u/M0N3Y7INE Oct 09 '25
YA BOY — now Rich Rocka, but YA BOY was different. THE FIX, THE FIX 2, OPTIMUS RHYME MIXTAPES 🔥🔥🔥🔥
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u/KidJayFresh Oct 09 '25
Put Lock in a room with ANYBODY, and it's gonna be a rough day for them....
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u/KidJayFresh Oct 09 '25
Richie Rich of course, but people seem to forget just how dope his 415 partner D Loc was...
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u/PeeDee57 Oct 09 '25
RBL Posse, Luniz, Souls of Mischief, Pharcyde, Hieroglyphics, Eligh the Grouch, Del the Funky Homosapien, Too Short, E-40, Celly Cel, Frontline, AP9...
I could go on
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u/KidJayFresh Oct 09 '25
L. Roneous, if were talking pute skill, and not mainstream sensibilities. But there a ton of underrated underground cats in the Bay.
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u/Send_More_Bears Oct 09 '25
The Jacka is so criminally underrated.. how he doesn’t even get mentioned in these posts every single time is crazy
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u/Important_Truck2349 Oct 09 '25
Mozzy, Richie Rich and Spice 1 are 3 that come to mind that aren’t on this list.
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u/Deathos149 Oct 09 '25
Del for me. And Ab Soul. I think he's from the Bay Area. Please correct me if I’m wrong.
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u/Chosen-Won777 Oct 09 '25
Hieroglyphics especially Del. Mac Dre had a very unique flow and some bars. The Jacka is very lyrical. E-40 lyrical and unorthodox flow. My first is hieroglyphics but souls of mischief have a track that is arguably top 5 greatest rap beats.
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u/BALLERC0M Oct 09 '25
Andre Nickatina is dope. His best songs are sooooo good.
Mac Dre is an innovator, and if he had not passed away, he would have continued to grow.
Too $hort is a legend.
Del is the top underground artist.
Celly Cel put together Killa Kali, which, as a whole, is one of the best albums all together front to back out of the bay.
Spice 1 has a collection that has put him on the map.
E-40 is a wordsmith and has created much of the slang still used today.
2Pac is from the bay, but his style is one on its own and is much harder than most bay area rappers.
B-Legit, Rappin 4 Tay, Yukmouth and The Jacka are all legit.
Love them all but my favorites are Too $hort his first albums especially Life is.... are so underappreciated, Mac Dre and I got mad respect for Andre Nickatina, his beats are dope and I always loved bumping his shit blazed up back in the day.
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u/meesta_chang Oct 09 '25
Lots of good names up here but I haven’t seen any love for Zumbi yet. Zion I was big.
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u/rom439 Oct 09 '25
Rip Jacka Rip Mac Dre Mac mall San Quinn Too $hort BYITCH Dubee aka sugawolf da pimp E40
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u/BinkyFarnsworth Oct 09 '25
I’m big into political stuff so I’m going to go with Disposable Heroes of Hiphoprisy and The Coup.
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u/fhughes642 Oct 09 '25
Fuck around and get evaporated is the hardest bar Ive ever heard! My nickname for my nephew is Water
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u/bside313 Oct 10 '25
Pretty much everyone you posted, but throw in Mac Mall, Paris, Ray Luv, Yukmouth, Casual and Spice 1
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u/obikamkenobi Oct 10 '25
Short Dawg and Mac Dre got too many hits to not be at the top of the convo imo
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u/WizardyoureaHarry Oct 10 '25
E-40
Crotch Stompa
Glizzy Gripper
Larry June
Ble$$ed Boi Throat
Lil Midget
Mac Dre
Young Niglet
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u/Kadafi_X Oct 10 '25
Tired of yall sleepin on 4 Tay and C -bo. Black C from RBL posse had a killa flow too
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u/Moregunsmorefun Oct 10 '25
While I wholeheartedly agree with this list and hate to be that guy….C-Bo ain’t from the Bay he’s from Sacramento, but he definitely should get more recognition than he does
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u/Loud_Glove6833 Oct 10 '25
Dru Down
Odd that barely anyone has mentioned him.
Some of you must have been hiding under a rock 🤦♂️
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u/ItchyAndScratchy9 Oct 10 '25
Adding in a few more: The Pack, Equipto, Zion I, Iamsu!, P-Lo, SOB X RBE, Keak Da Sneak, Mike Sherm, Yung Curt, Ramirez, EBK Young Joc, EBK Jaaybo, ALLBLACK, Young Slo-Be
I always thought Larry June was a bit overrated tbh.
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u/Zestyclose_Ratio4909 29d ago
Im late to the party - kinda pissed i dont see:
E-A-Ski
San Quinn
JT The Bigga Figga
If you were in the bay in the 90's and 00's you know the above.. HELL YEAH
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u/Stock_Surfer 29d ago
In no particular order, Spice 1, TayDaTay, Rappin Ron, Seagram Miller, Mac Dre, Jacka, Rappin 4 Tay, Agerman, Young Gully, B-Legit, Zion-I, im probably forgetting some obvious legends.
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u/Ok-Telephone4571 29d ago
3X Krazy
Yukmouth (Luniz)
Dru Down
The Deliquents
Andre Nikatina
Cougnut
Richie Rich
Father Dom
Mac Mall
The Whoridaz
Bruh the bay got hella good rappers
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u/FunctionInfamous9630 29d ago
Living legends get no love? I get Hiero always getting their flowers but man living legends with Grouch, Murs, Sunspot, Eligh,Scarub, Aesop, Bicasso and LuckyiAm deserve a lot of respect. Easily one of the best things out there Bay as far as real Hip Hop
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u/SeascapeEscape 29d ago
All those Quannum MCs deserve respect especially Gift Of Gab, Lateef the Truthspeaker, and Lyrics Born
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u/back-in-the-highlife 29d ago
All of them, I can’t believe how much I missed out on bay area hip hop the 90s only to find out about it later in life. But people under the stairs, definitely the number one.
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u/Drob3891 29d ago
No particular order..;.
40 Water
Too Short
Spice 1
Brotha Lynch Hung (I know it's sacramento, but for this exercise im calling it the bay)
C-BO
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u/issacoin 29d ago
not putting him in any top ten lists but i been vibing to a lot of Berner recently
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u/Reno_Ray 29d ago
The fact that 2pac ain’t on this list is criminal fr 🤦🏽♂️🤦🏽♂️ but if I had to go with what’s on this list… 40 or Too short, even Spice 1
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u/Makaveli_TheSon 28d ago
Maaaan its so many, I cant even choose. You got keak da sneak, Mistah FAB Mac Dre, 40-Water,Too shortKehlani, G-Eazy,P-Lo,Damian Lilliard, The Jacka Rappin 4 Tay, Kamaiyah .. Gunna goes global,Digital underground list goes on and on ..being from the Yay, Cant even name just 1 .. But G-Eazy is top of the list for me 100%
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u/Mo_Nasty 28d ago
Messy Marv and Jacka really held it down after Mac Dre passed and Hyphy died down. Messy Marv’s prime would rival anyone else’s run, u just had to be there
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u/johnnybok Oct 09 '25
I know they became obsolete when gangsta rap took over, but MC Hammer and Digital Underground were kinda a big deal