Now that I’ve completed my top ten mixtapes of 2009 list, it’s time to move on to the top tapes of the decade. This was the decade where mixtapes became more than DJs yelling over new exclusives, the mixtape transformed into the “street album.” Not only are these new-age mixtapes almost integral to an artist’s set up for their album release, but they have also been used to keep their names in the streets–they’ve cut out the “middle man” (record labels) & are delivered directly to the consumer. You should know what to do by now if you don’t agree with the list.

10.
Jay-Z
S. Carter Collection (2003)

This mixtape dropped outta nowhere. I did hear about something coming along with those cinder blocks, I mean, RBK S. Carter shoes that dropped in April ‘03–but I didn’t know that it was a full-length mixtape. And to say it was a good mixtape is not saying enough. At all.

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