The beauty of hip-hop’s multifaceted evolution over the past couple of decades is that there’s something out there for everyone. If, for example, singsong pop-hop or slurry Soundcloud rap isn’t your thing, you can dig into artists like Brother Ali and Evidence, two skilled MCs connected to respected indie hip-hop label Rhymesayers Entertainment. Ali is the better known of the two, thanks to a two-decade career built around his thoughtful, soft-spoken style and his social activism. His most recent album All the Beauty in This Whole Life is another banger in an incredibly consistent catalog. Evidence’s sound is more aggressive, both in its lyrical content and its beats. He came up with LA’s Dilated Peoples, one of the giants of the ’90s underground, but he ain’t falling off: His most recent album Weather or Not was one of the best releases of 2018, regardless of genre.

by Ben Salmon