MCing is one of the essential elements of hip-hop: The best MCs can sway the world with just words and flow. They don't just entertain us — they introduce us to new styles, regions and slang,

Ask any hip hop head and they’ll say certain things define a good MC,  wordplay, metaphors, punchlines, swagger, breath control and delivery,

The top MC’s in Naija now are ModeNine, MI, eLDee, Rukus, SauceKid, Killz, Naeto C,   Yeah I know we got others but if I name them all I’ll be here till tomorrow,

While eLDee was one of the better rappers in his TrybesMen heyday, I don’t think what eLDee does now can really be called rap,  cos all he seems to do is spit a bar or two and then switch to autotune,

ModeNine is undisputably a good MC,  However he’s a punchline MC. Similar to Big L and Cassidy. The kinda rapper you’d listen to and go “ohh! Did u hear that?” but the koko is Big L and Cassidy rarely make it onto Top 5 MC lists because they’re not versatile enough to switch their flow up when it matters,

I have an opinion on all the above listed eMCee's but the advantage MI has on these other cats right now,  is he has a little bit of everything and is more versatile,  Every classic album has a bit of everything that appeals to different genres, 

A party track, a ladies track, a ‘street-cred’ track, 

Case in context, Notorious BIG’s debut album ‘Ready to die’;

One more chance = party track;           Read - Anoti
Big poppa             = ladies track;          Read – Short Black Guy
Warning               = Street-cred track;  Read – Talk about it/ Crowd Mentality

(Proof that it’s not all bout Punchlines?)

I got that venom rhyme like Sprite got lemon-lime/ Donna Karan dime, keep her hair done all the time/ My rhyme, somewhat Shakespearean, blood I'm smearin' and/ Tongue-kissin' my lawyer at my hearin'/ In this day and age, my rap is like the plague/ I married this sh--, y'all n---as still engaged."

— Notorious BIG "Realms of Junior M.A.F.I.A." (from Junior M.A.F.I.A.'s Conspiracy, 1995)

Then Kanye West raised the bar by making gospel hip with ‘Jesus Walks’; Read – Jehovah/ Chant down Babylon,  But then MI also has the intangible: his voice.

A dope album would require a spin when we first wake up in the morning. We’d listen to their songs when we're on the way to that job we hate or when we're heading out to the most jamming club,

So while I think MI has to has to be the most consistently excellent MC in the game, and be at his apex every year before he can be considered Naija’s best MC, 

I do think his album would have got 5 mics in ‘The Source’.


“30,000 sold in 30 minutes,  shitttt!!”