The following list, sorted alphabetically, includes rap songs found on Pitchfork’s main year-end tally as well as an additional 16 tracks that did not make that list but are still very much worth your time.

Listen to selections from this list on our Spotify playlist and Apple Music playlist.

Check out all of Pitchfork’s 2019 wrap-up coverage here.

Def Jam

2 Chainz: “NCAA”

2 Chainz’ Rap or Go to the League unpacks a long-held belief: The only two ways for some kids to make it out of the hood are to rap or play ball. The marching, Honorable C.N.O.T.E.-produced “NCAA” is the album’s centerpiece, detailing the rapper’s rise from amateur baller to pro rapper while taking on corruption in the sporting world. The song marks college players as victims of institutional suppression of opportunity, implicating the system as exploitative of the primarily black stars who earn billions in revenue for others. Until recently, the governing body that oversees college sports wouldn’t let student athletes profit in any way off their talents or likenesses, and 2 Chainz, a former player himself, weaponizes that hypocrisy into a rallying cry. Here, his flows are leisurely as usual but he sounds slightly perturbed, too, as if he can’t believe the unmitigated gall of it all. “NCAA” reinforces a fundamental 2 Chainz philosophy: Balling hard should be rewarded. –Sheldon Pearce

Listen: 2 Chainz, “NCAA”

Rimas

Bad Bunny: “Caro”

When the concept of self-love has been commodified by hucksters selling $500 infrared sauna blankets, it can be tempting to toss all of your belongings into a dumpster and welcome a life of self-loathing instead. Luckily, with “Caro,” urbano shapeshifter Bad Bunny offers a more practical solution to embracing your worth. The song rescues ideas of empowerment from sponsored hashtag hell, with the Puerto Rican star flicking off critics of his androgynous style and class-collapsing brashness over a trap beat that’s as quietly menacing as an alien hovercraft. “Don’t you see that I’m expensive?” he spits in Spanish, voicing the indignance of anyone who’s been made to feel undeserving because of what they wear or who they love. Then, midway, the sinister instrumental evaporates, and Bad Bunny is joined by none other than Ricky Martin—who was once lambasted by Puerto Rican clergy members after he came out as gay—for a cloud-parting bridge that exposes the song’s pristine core: “Why can’t I just be?” they plead. “What harm is it to you? I’m just happy.” It’s a startlingly vulnerable moment, one that makes this anthem of acceptance that much more invincible. –Ryan Dombal

Listen: Bad Bunny, “Caro”

Glo Gang/RBC

Chief Keef / Zaytoven: “Spy Kid”

Zaytoven gets the most out of every rapper. As trap’s preeminent pianist, he has produced inspirational turns for many accomplished stars, playing on career-defining records for Gucci Mane, Future, and Migos. “Spy Kid,” the gleaming centerpiece of Chief Keef and Zaytoven’s collaborative mixtape GloToven, puts the often aggressive rapper under the sway of Zay’s eloquent keystrokes. Amid the glow of shimmering keys, organ swells, and pulsing 808s, Keef turns a day in the life of the youngest rap veteran into a game of I Spy, during which he has a moment of clarity: He’s a trailblazer and he isn’t even old enough to rent a car. –Sheldon Pearce

Listen: Chief Keef / Zaytoven, “Spy Kid”

Interscope

DaBaby: “Suge (Yea Yea)”

The core of DaBaby’s gauntlet-throwing year, “Suge” is one of 2019’s most fun and infectious hip-hop songs, putting on display the rapper’s signature bounce and his almost goofy, browbeating nature. His talky flows scan as bar-heavy despite most of his raps being filler, simply because their ferocity can raze beats to cinders. Invoking the name of the strongman turned Death Row Records boss Suge Knight, Da Baby’s breakout single is all about graduating from thug to kingpin but still being ready to put hands on fools—or, you know, dangle them off of a balcony (allegedly) if need be. He runs rampant, bullying, threatening, and coercing his enemies, his claims brought to life by his bum-rushing delivery. The song made clear that DaBaby was wound up and raring to go before he exploded this year, and no one has stopped him yet. –Sheldon Pearce