The 15 Best Rapper & Rapper Joint Albums Ever, Ranked

Imagine the threat of being murdered on your own s—t… for the duration of an entire album! Even in a pre-“Ether,” pre-Internet era, the blood-and-guts gamble known as the rapper x rapper collab album was rarer than Mr. Clean with hair, ahi tuna steak seared by a green-eyed Ethiopian in the middle of Little Italy.

Who can share a stage? Better yet, who can split a paycheck? Label politics and the ego economics scare and disincentive even the nicest of MCs from nutty pairings. It’s perhaps why we never got Wolves or WANG$AP, The Commission or The Standard.

Three is a magic number. Two? Not so much. Those of us who still haven’t heard I Can’t Feel My Face know this to be true. However, outliers not only occasionally exist, but in instances outperform even peak projects in each solo star’s catalog.

For the 15th anniversary of Watch The Throne, Okayplayer celebrates the treacherous twosomes capable of collaborating for the duration of a whole project, strong enough to make something greater than the sum of their parts.

Those that entered the game as groups – we’re looking at you OutKast, Clipse, EPMD, etc – are exempt. Similarly, so are producer-dependent collab albums — unless it’s a producer making beats for two rappers. Then it’s legit as far as our criteria goes. Check out the list for yourself below.—Ian Stonebrook

15.  'Faith Is a Rock' - MIKE & Wiki (Produced by The Alchemist) (2023)

It’s hard to be understated and spectacular, but MIKE and Wiki make it feel effortless. First, they did it as solo masters of the interior — introspective writers with the ability to extract complex existentialism from forlorn subways and busy bodegas. They swirl their gifts together for their Alchemist-produced LP, Faith Is a Rock. Here, MIKE and Wiki flaunt slow-motion agility, foggy symbolism, and syntactic precision for tracks that render empty 40 bottles into catharsis and fleeting thoughts into spiritual adventures. 

Tidy, yet free-wheeling, “Thug Anthem” is lounge music that doubles as a flex theme song; MIKE takes home the verse of the song honors for collapsing the distance between not-so-humblebrags and sad boy ruminations, all while rhyming “nuts hang” with “mukbang” and “love can’t.” For the hilariously titled (and, then-accurate) “Mayors a Cop,” Wiki sifts through hazy horns to pick apart the local sociology for a cosmic indictment of trash mayor. He sandwiches his political critiques between musings on reincarnation and his own conflicted psyche. It can get slightly monotonous at the end, but together, along with ALC, MIKE and Wiki are as efficient as a Steph and KD pick & roll for an album fans didn’t know they’d been praying for.—Peter A. Berry

14. 'Kids See Ghosts' - Kanye West & Kid Cudi (2018)

Kanye West’s Wyoming sessions slightly predated that of Taylor Sheridan’s, creating a constellation of seven-track albums that range from timeless on arrival to instantly forgettable. Kids See Ghosts, the reconciliatory collab with Kid Cudi, is the second best of the bunch, providing the most endearing experimentation and accessible vulnerability this side of Pablo.

Rock riffs, sporadic scatting, and hallmark humming create a safe space for the all-over-the-place Ye, putting once-mentee Mescudi in the unlikely big bro role. “4th Dimension” and “Feel The Love” offered instant utility the summer of release, while “Reborn” and “Cudi Montage” find the Man on the Moon and rap’s Andy Kaufman not just grounded but already home.—Ian Stonebrook

13. 'How Fly'- Wiz Khalifa & Curren$y (2009) 

Kush clouds and camo cargo shorts stumbled out of classic cars, as two stoners – one 6’4 of charisma, the other 5’9 of streetwear – cast a shadow on legacy labels. Wiz Khalifa and Curren$y stood tall as free-agent castaways turned blog-era darlings capable of creating an IRL aesthetic both blunted and aspirational.

How Fly sees the overgrown kid from New Orleans and the army brat from Pittsburgh covering each other’s flaws and introducing each other to growing niche audiences and a lifestyle starter kit soon coopted by those who didn’t take themselves CRS-serious yet still saw themselves as more nuanced in taste than the New Boyz. Over the course of a collab and later a career, Wiz is a vibe, Curren$y a craftsman. The former would find himself back on Top 40 charts while the latter would rewrite the indie blueprint. Even so, the two tokers always credited each other when looking at their red-eye arrival.—Ian Stonebrook

12. 'Coke Wave' - French Montana & Max B (2009)

Before the quirky, regionless status quo 2010s rap, French Montana & Max B emerged as ministers of hip-hop unorthodoxy. They preached their own joint gospel on Coke Wave, tape that’s weird and wavy as the uptown street gremlins that made them. For the project, the situational duo play with hooks and sounds like ping pong balls, serving up takes on Bad Boy majesty (“Been Around the World”), soul samples and everything in between for tracks that flew all over the net.

Wielding the same Hayes sample Dr. Dre used for “Xxplosive,” the two turned in a smoked out anthem for cocaine cowboys — if they took a trip to the astral plane (“It Gotta Be”). For tracks like the Tony Yayo featured “Do It Right,” they blend an S.O.S. interpolation with an Above the Law classic for a West Coast joy ride that’s as sleazy as it is ironic. Playful, often hypnotic, and surprisingly inventive, French Montana and Max B’s first wave is the type you’d willingly drown in.—Peter A. Berry

11. 'Blackout!' - Method Man & Redman (1999) 

Most media outlets cite Method Man and Redman’s Blackout! as the first formal rapper x rapper collab album. The Y-chromosome-carrying MCs who would soon conquer Harvard campuses, Toni Braxton samples, and Fox sitcoms started their public partnership with the wit and weed jokes over an Interstate 78 soundtrack.

Funny enough, doubling down on hip-hop ethos resulted in crossover success. Not only was Blackout! an event album, but it propelled the tandem to TRL airplay, Family Values tour legs, and a Roy Jones Jr. entrance performance. Living vicariously through Method Man and Redman’s friendship knew no boundaries, with the feeling still felt anytime “Da Rockwilder” comes on at a concert, sporting event, or TNT movie rerun.—Ian Stonebrook

10. 'Like Father, Like Son' - Lil Wayne & Birdman (2006)

After an apex ascent that crescendoed in the nine-nine, the house that Birdman built began to crumble. Both BG and Juvenile left the label they made famous, Mannie Fresh felt underpaid, and Turk got locked up. The only one who believed was Birdman, convinced he could channel all his lavish resources into Cash Money’s child star talent, Lil Wayne.

He was right. Following two Carter albums, a lowball Roc-a-Fella offer, and unmatched mixtape buzz, Wayne was not just the hottest name on Cash Money but the hottest rapper in the game. Rather than liquidate all that equity into the highly anticipated third Carter album, Like Father, Like Son cast Tunechi and Stunna as a dope-dealing duo with a modernized Southern sound and metallic tinges of rockstar sheen. It was surprisingly good when it came out, and still stands up today.—Ian Stonebrook

9. Her Loss - Drake & 21 Savage (2022) 

21 Savage holds his own as a leading man, but damn does he steal the show when cast in a supporting role. Such is the case on Her Loss: Drake’s return to rap after a house music sabbatical that sees Savage narrating and ad-libbing from the passenger seat. Here, T.I. interpolations sit next to saccharine Oobie samples, Drake talks tough and 21 Savage lives out his karaoke fantasies and everything is fun and a little over the top. 

An angry Aubrey turns the dial up on petty mode with male and female rivals absolutely able to get it. Each time the 6 God switches flows or snubs a friend-turned-foe, the blunt bravado of 21 quickly corrects the tone of the project back to that of a buddy cop movie. Do Drake and Savage fight fair when partying on opps with the help of expensive samples and plenty of tough talk? Maybe not, but the s—t sure slaps—Ian Stonebrook

8. 'A Written Testimony; - Jay Electronica & JAY-Z (2020) 

Editor’s Note: Yes, we know that JAY-Z is not technically listed as an official joint album owner with Electronica. No, that doesn’t change the fact that he’s on almost all of the tracks. So we’re counting it.

Critics crucify post-Roc-a-Fella JAY-Z under the assumption that every move he makes is purely possessed by power and capitalist gain. Well then, explain playing uncredited co-star for a 43-year-old rapper’s debut album?

A Written Testimony, released in early pandemic days as only Jay Electronica could prophesy, is as interesting and unpredictable as its byline barspitter, compelling CEO HOV to soul search while grabbing both his nuts and his knots. Raw emotion and A-tier wordplay spill out of the two drastically different yet spiritually synced storytellers who claim god MC belief and babies by Badu and Beyoncé.—Ian Stonebrook

7. 'Race Music '- Elucid & billy woods (2013)

Elucid and billy Woods, two of underground art rap’s most prolific voices, brought their styles together as Armand Hammer, and delivered an experimental rap fire bomb with Race Music. The debut studio album from the two outlines a political ethos but, perhaps even more significantly, it displays hallmarks that they would build on going forward. Tracks like “Hatchet Job” are as thoughtful as they are abrasive, full of religious imagery and political jabs. “Shark Fin Soup” is a staggering lyrical showcase; as the murkiness of songs like “Duppy” recall the best in classic indie rap tropes. Even more streamlined moments like “New Music” make Company Flow seem as slick as Trackmasters.—Stereo Williams

6. 'Run The Jewels' - Killer Mike & El-P (2013)

As Dungeon Family middle child Michael Render and Company Flow founder Jaime Meline courted two decades of professional rapping and four decades of life, the realities of ascending age and late-stage capitalism created only one viable option: release a joint album for free and split the profits.

The politically punk project pulled in not just lifelong supporters of each act, but canvassed a wide web of angsty gentrifiers who liked dubstep and rebellious rap fans who missed Public Enemy and Rage Against the Machine in equal measure. It worked. Really, really well. Not only did the creative kinship reinvigorate two tactically sharp veterans, but it met the moment as America’s next wave of uncomfortable conversations were about to be put on blast.—Ian Stonebrook

5. ;Mos Def & Talib Kweli Are Black Star; - Mos Def & Talib Kweli (1998)

Before P. Diddy donned a gold glove at Burning Man or Ye wore red hats at the White House, each energy dragon existed as interlopers of rap’s underground, equally enamored by the spirit of the genre’s artistic core that on its surface combatted each super producer’s commercial ambition. This curiosity placed Puff in attendance at Mos Def open mics that shunned shiny suits, with West once warming up the crowd before Talib Kweli took the stage.

Equally unlikely, it’d be an heir to the Fox News empire that’d allow Black Star to both form and shine. And shine they do. 28 years after its release, “Definition” feels like a cathartic exhale in the wake of rap tragedy. The hook itself — “1,2,3, Mos Def and Talib Kweli” — feels almost Kid N Play-adjacent in its childlike simplicity. But that straightforwardness grants it an earnestly jovial spirit that can almost feel naive in a post-Trump era. Still, the track only disguises the complexity of existential, metaphysical tracks like the Common-assisted “Respiration” and “Thieves in the Night,” which deliver harsh, universal truths through florid poetry. 

Years after it dropped, the album remains a quintessential “conscious rap” classic: a project indebted to fundamentals while somehow forecasting a warm, conscious core carrying hip-hop’s future.—Ian Stonebrook

 4. 'Fetti '- Curren$y & Freddie Gibbs (Produced by The Alchemist) (2018)

From the moment it was announced, it was pretty obvious that Fetti was going to be a classic. And it is. Laced with Curren$y and Freddie Gibbs’ somersaulting slick talk and some of the most stylishly eerie ALC beats ever concocted, it’s a tale of two superstars being placed into an offensive ecosystem that allows the most efficient bucket getters to score even more easily; ALC’s soulful, yet minimalist surfaces allow Spitta’s calm vocals to subtly snarl, and Gibbs gravelly voice to growl a little more evocatively. For “Location Remote,” Spitta and Gangsta Gibbs spit over a track that sounds like a seance at dusk, with Spitta speaking to the souls of men who failed to acquire chains as genuinely golden as his own: “N—s dyin' to be like us, losin' they minds tryin'.” Gibbs typically gets even more vivid, all while managing to juxtapose The Matrix and Cosby Show references with the seamless ease of a Kyrie handle package. Soulful, skillful, and swaggering, Fetti is an infinity stone. The rap gods collected Alchemist, Spitta, and Gibbs, and simply put, they all snapped.—Peter A. Berry

3. 'Rich Gang: Tha Tour Pt. 1' - Young Thug & Rich Homie Quan (2014)

I’m sure Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga’s collab albums are good, but have you heard Tha Tour Pt. 1? The idea of pairing generational vocal talents is somewhat commonplace for a designed pop radio hit or even a legacy rock tour. However, pairing tonal talents for an entire album, while they’re both blossoming into a genre-shifting ascent, almost never happens. It happened once in 2014.

Backed by the brass of Birdman and an array of Atlanta-based producers, the mix of melodies, elastic enunciation, and animated ad-libs proves prophetic for everything that would follow, yet still purest in its original form. Powered by slurred delirium and a soundscape that slithers like his vocals, Quan’s “Milk Marie” feels like a melted version of Future Hendrix. The squeals on Thugger’s “Givenchy” still feel inhuman.

Keep in mind, Thugger and Quan were wildly controversial upon arrival for the clothing they wore, captions they posted, and chemistry they unabashedly celebrated. And yet, they delivered something so dynamic and undeniable that the entire paradigm shifted. These were authentic ATLiens that would make OutKast proud. —Ian Stonebrook

2. 'Only Built 4 Cuban Linx' - Raekwon & Ghostface Killah (1995)

When Waterworld was the No.1 movie in America and T-Boz was dropping triple entendres tied to unprotected sex, RZA’s approach to scoring summer blockbusters was doubling down on his own strain of raw, avant-garde. Only Built 4 Cuban Linx, perhaps the climax of the Abbot’s infamous five-year plan, cast Raekwon as the leading man on the warmest, most cinematic album to come from the Shaolin set. Ghostface Killah’s emotionally unhinged storytelling makes him the perfect co-star to The Chef’s cool, confident, unhurried narration. Just ask yourself: how many people can brag about having a demented fisticuffs soundtrack like "Guillotine (Swordz)” and a timeless dance floor slap like “Ice Cream”? Even if they could: do they also have a GOAT sparring session like the Nas-assisted “Verbal Intercourse”? 

Any way you look at it, Only Built 4 Cuban Linx is a masterclass in range while remaining within the theme. OB4CL has it all. Depth dazzled with flash, soul samples and recitable raps that have aged like a ‘93 Snow Beach pullover in their ability to both capture a time and forecast a grandeur space. Skits, interludes, and voiceovers evoke dramatic tension and suspenseful action. Two trendsetting MCs, two big thumbs up.—Ian Stonebrook

1. Watch The Throne - JAY-Z & Kanye West (2011)

Kid Cudi and Rihanna. Big Sean and J Cole. Kanye West and JAY-Z’s ability to spot talent has, at best, made them rich, and on occasion made them scared. Such was the case on Watch the Throne: at first an EP-extension of the My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy sessions and eventually a reaction to the national threat known as Aubrey Graham.

A common enemy, and soon the enemy of Common, Drake’s station as an outsider auteur and confident hitmaker made him a sizeable successor to each totem of rap’s ruling guard. In fact, before Watch the Throne was even announced, Drizzy and mentor Lil Wayne had hinted at a collab album of their own .

While we never got 12 tracks of “Ransom” or “Ignant S—t” sequels, we did get one of the most opulent rap albums ever with an arena tour to match. Watch the Throne is unmatched in its ambition and execution, seeing two Mount Rushmore rappers confronting sensitive subject matter and their own egos. A murderer’s row of producers pulled in from MBDTF’s Hawaii camp - as if they couldn’t get all of them anytime on their own merit - created an obstacle course of a soundscape that only Ye and Jay could navigate. Perhaps that’s why there are no additional rapping features.

With stylish existential studies like “No Church in the Wild” and apex stadium anthems like “N—s in Paris,” Watch The Throne was an exercise in mastery as much as it was an event. The two biggest rappers in the game from a catalog standpoint formed a duumvirate that raised the stakes and fences for any up-and-comer looking to leap into the GOAT conversation.—Ian Stonebrook