Top 5 Worst Rappers of All Time

Graphic by Noah Weinberg

By: Noah Weinberg

Rap is a beautiful sport, but not every competitor is worthy of glorious admiration. There are countless terrible MCs to keep track of, so I took it upon myself to carefully rank the 5 worst rappers ever. Of course, music was the most important criterion for my list, but other factors, such as having a horrible personality and/or blood-curdling vibes were equally as essential in this ranking. So without further ado, let’s get into the list.

5. Machine Gun Kelly

Picture this: You’re an up-and-coming rapper from Cleveland, you’ve built a dedicated fanbase, and after years of grinding, you ink your first major label record deal. As a midwestern rapper with dyed-blonde hair, the Eminem comparisons naturally flood in. In six years, you unceremoniously take digs at Eminem and his daughter, referring to the latter as “hot as fuck.” You even send subliminal shots toward Em on your collaboration with Tech N9ne. 

You don’t think anything of it: I mean, it’s not like Eminem would actually go out of his way to respond to you: You’re just a C-list rapper full of tattoos. But uh, do you know who Eminem is? The man dissed his own mother. Do you really think he’s afraid of the rapper who made “Half Naked & Almost Famous?” 

So now, after Eminem proves you wrong and disses you, your fame grows exponentially, and the world is waiting for your next move. The only proper response? Writing a diss track toward Eminem. A daunting task for most, but you’re built for this. You pick up the pen, grab your notepad, and craft the single worst opening line to any diss track in history:

“Ayy, somebody grab him some clippers (zzzzt) / His fuckin' beard is weird”

It’s challenging to defend MGK following his beef with Eminem; honestly, it seems as if MGK doesn’t want to defend himself. In his projects since the release of the diss track, Machine Gun Kelly has deviated from his hip-hop roots and flourished as a pop-punk star. This man is simply not a rapper anymore. That’s fine, but it doesn’t exempt him from his placement on this list. 

4. Smokepurpp

Some rappers are modern-day poets; some rappers are wordsmiths. Some rappers aren’t too lyrically focused but instead make “vibe-oriented” music. Fortunately for all of us, there is only one Smokepurpp. 

Usually, I wouldn’t waste words on an artist of Smokepurrpp’s irrelevant caliber, but the rapper born Omar Pineiro has remained in the limelight for all the wrong reasons. In April 2022, a twelve-second video of Purrp went viral, showing one of his concerts with only a handful of attendees. The clip epitomizes the phenomenon of “falling off,” because you don’t expect a once platinum-selling artist to only have a dozen people at his shows.

Further evidence of Smokepurrpp's creative ineptitude comes from a forty-minute-long freestyle on TimWestwoodTV, in which he does a disservice to every single beat he moans on. Let’s take a moment to dissect one of Smoke’s most lyrically dense bars. Over the steel-drum instrumental loop to Kodak Black’s “ZEZE,” Purrpp reminds the audience of crucial elements to his layered identity:

“I’m a motherfuckin stoner/I’m a motherfuckin boner.”

Smokepurpp could go on to cure cancer, solve climate change, or even successfully fold a fitted sheet. But this bar, this bar which likens the rapper to an erect penis, is sufficient enough for Smokepurrpp’s position on this list.

3. Bhad Bhabie

Most know her simply as the “cash me outside” girl, but best believe that Bhad Bhabie is one of the more loathsome humans associated with hip-hop. Even before getting into the music, Bhabie pleaded guilty to grand theft, drug possession, and falsifying a police report while underage. Of course, that’s without mentioning when she pummeled a fellow airline passenger in 2017. 

Nearly seven years ago, Bhabie broke onto the scene with her heavily meme-ified appearance on Dr. Phil. But the worst effect of that day was how she used that notoriety to launch her abominable music career. Bhabie’s first single, “These Heaux,” might be the greatest “I’ve hit rock bottom” song in history, simply because the listener can tell through the ear-splitting sonic experience that life can indeed get worse. The 808-boosted beat is corny and obnoxious, while Bhad’s lyrics infect the listener like a nasty bout of the flu. It’s cringy to hear a 14-year-old rap:

“I'm riding solo don't need no one but me / Run up a check, yeah we runnin' the streets / Red cup? No it ain't Kool-aid / Got me fed up, you hoes too fake (yeah)”

The “rapper” born Danielle Bregoli continues to release what I technically have to refer to as “music.” She’s still an Atlantic Records label signee, but currently, the Florida native has moved to a more lucrative career – her very own OnlyFans account. It’s unclear what the next decade will look like for Bhabie, but her musical career has been nothing short of very, very Bhad.

2. Lil Xan

Honestly, a part of me wants to like Lil Xan. His rags-to-riches origin, laid-back atmosphere, and chuckle-worthy – albeit problematic – pseudonym help his case as a valid celebrity. Unfortunately, Lil Xan’s music is a depressive and gloomy dumpster fire. His debut album, Total Xanarchy (props for the witty pun), lacks interesting lyrics, flows, and production. Some “highlight” bars from the project come from the album’s fourth track, “Diamonds,” where right before uttering a homophobic slur, Lil Xan creeks out:

"They sleep, they snooze, aye / I don't think it's true, whoa / All the bags, it's true, whoa / I get the money, don't got a bih, whoa / I'ma go ball like I'm talented, whoa”

With artistic output so drab and unpolished, it’s easy to see how Xan’s music blatantly derives from more impressive Soundcloud rappers like XXXtentacion. Lil Xan should take an indefinite leave from hip-hop and maybe consider a totally different career path, like carpentry or becoming an accountant. Because much like the drug he’s named after, Lil Xan’s music leaves any user dreary and tired after repeated use. 

1. 6ix9ine

Ranking 6ix9ine as the worst rapper to ever touch a mic was one of the easiest decisions I’ve ever made. Whether it’s Tekashi’s abhorrent sexual assault of a minor in 2015, his $20,000 payment to an associate to shoot at Chief Keef, or a 47-year charge for racketeering as a member of the Nine Trey Gangsters, his character is as rotten as three-week-old gouda. The cherry on top is that Tekashi never served more than 2 years of prison time because he was happy snitching on his former gang. 

Now, the feds have never hit me with a RICO case, but if they did, I sure as hell wouldn’t turn on my gang like that. I’d serve that prison time like a champion. Tekashi’s publicized trial led to shunning and ostracization from several established figures in hip-hop. It’s not like the rainbow-haired rapper was revered prior to his snitching; however, following the trial, 6ix9ine was treated like hip-hop’s Tonya Harding. 

In terms of musicality, 6ix9ine is just as unbearable. His brash, abrasive vocal cadence is dizzyingly one-dimensional. His lazy lyrics consistently urge the listener to yank their hair out, while the sheer volume and violence so closely associated with the Brooklyn rapper should be enough to dispel any potential new listeners.

Tekashi’s programmed musical formula is as obnoxious as it is clickbait. Simply put, there’s no redeeming quality to this man’s artistry. Disturbing lines about forced underage sexual activity or something as embarrassing as:

“Dick up in the pussy, bet that shit get gushy gushy,” 

don’t exactly make 6ix9ine hip-hop’s saving grace. Tekashi 6ix9ine isn’t just the worst rapper in history; he’s one of the scummiest and most morally corrupt celebrities this century.