2001AwardsPage3

2001 overall was a very up and down year for hip hop. The west coast saw more albums, independent or otherwise, dropped this year more than any other. Unfortunately, the sales did not show a resurgance in the region. The midwest was just as quiet as it seems the only rappers that made any noise was Nelly, Eminem, Tech N9ne and Coo Coo Cal. The South really made a strong push the second half of 2001 with stellar albums dropped by Outkast, Ludacris, Dungeon Family, UGK, Jermaine Dupri and others. I am looking forward to see if this momentum will continue. If drama is what you are looking for, the East Coast was were you needed to be at in 2001. Everything from beefs to shootings was going down and we seen one of the most heated beefs on record since Pac & Biggie with Nas and Jay Z.

I was very impressed with the Dogg Pound Gangsta Clique. Almost every group member dropped a album and not one of them was wack. I think if they all want to see continued success, they need to be unified. I was also impressed with Fred Wreck. This west coast producer laced hits for almost every big name westside rider and he almost made people forget about a certain producer named Dre. Oh, and speaking of Dr. Dre, he is still making his presence felt all over hip hop with his stellar beats (hell, he resurrected Busta Rhymes career). Doggystyle, Tha Row, and DPG Records are all labels to check for in 2002. Hopefully Suge Knight can drop some albums from Crooked I, Above Tha Law and Eastwood because I really think he has some talent over there. No one cares about old Snoop and DPG albums anyway.

Well, I hope everyone enjoyed the awards. Hopefully 2002 will be a better year for rap. I want to take time out to give some shout outs to the following sites that have supported Illuminati:
WESTCOAST 2K
WESTCOAST RYDAZ
WCKILLAZ
SNOOPSDOGGPOUND
DPGC-2G
SOUTHWEST CONNECTION
FUNKY RHYTHMS
WESTCOASTAFTERSHOCK

If I forgot anyone I apologize. Keep it locked here at Illuminati 2G as in the next couple of weeks we will have a hip hop tournament to determine the champ in the world of hip hop. Until then, always strive to move forward (ASTMF).