I was alive when Eminem's Lose Yourself became the first Rap song to win an Oscar. It's lyrical depth and complexity, baffled and inspired me! So when I see songs like CoCo, No Type, All Gold Everything dominate Billboard Charts lately, I cannot help but feel for the state of lyricism in Rap. It almost feels like Rap sold its soul for catchy beats and lines as it made inroads into pop. In fact, French Montana went on to say "All lyrical rappers I know are broke" in 2014 (makes sense because he is pretty rich). Several rappers have echoed similar sentiments and most recently GZA has weighed in as well.

"All lyrical rappers I know are broke" - French Montana

So just how much lyricism is lost in transition from Underground to Mainstream Rap? Also, are there any lyrical heavyweights who actually manage to maintain a wide appeal? These burning questions led myself and Dr. Ostrich to create Rapalytics, a website that lets people explore and compare lyrical features of rappers and their albums. With over 10,000 songs from 150 artists and counting, it is the first browsable and interactive analytics website for Rap lyrics!