Gucci Mane was the most consistent mixtape auteur of the modern era; choosing his highlights comes down to a matter of temperament. Throughout 2007 and 2008, from No Pad, No Pencil to the full series of Wilt Chamberlain tapes and Gangsta Grillz: The Movie with DJ Drama, Gucci Mane broke the rulebook. Throwaway mixtape tracks could be hits. Every verse mattered. He flanked the entire industry, taking the model pioneered by 50 Cent and magnified by Wayne to its logical outer limit. And then he went to jail.

By the time he was released in spring 2009, people were just beginning to comprehend the full scope of what he'd accomplished. He was underground no longer. Writing on the Wall, his first tape and one of his most compelling contributions, created a new blueprint. Opening with the carnivalesque “Hurry,” it showed such madcap creativity: “Gucci got a warrant/How the fuck I get subpoenaed?/Objection! What's the objection?/Your honor, I'm a genius!” “First Day Out” remains his signature record with Zaytoven, iconic lyrics (“I'm starting out my day with a blunt of purp...”) sketched out with menacing understatement. Then there was "Wasted,” the Fatboi-produced track so hot it would jump from mixtape cut to radio single, propelling the rapper onto the Hot 100 yet again. Lyrically inventive, musically ambitious, and unpredictably urgent, Writing on the Wall was quintessential Gucci.—David Drake

Release Year: 2009

Listen: Gucci Mane: Writing on the Wall