Underground hip-hop

Underground hip hop (also known as underground rap or simply underground) traditionally refers to hip hop music that is outside the general mainstream canon or counter-cultural in nature, usually with a heavy emphasis on emotion, lyricism, and/or social consciousness.

Being outside of the mainstream, it is common for artists or songs that are considered "underground" to have little commercial success, though this is not a requirement, as many have gained massive followings, especially in the streaming era. In recent years, the term has also been used to refer to hip hop subgenres that incorporate themes of trap, plugg, or rage which often feature melodic vocals with heavy use of Auto-Tune (or similar pitch correction tools) with virtually no focus on lyricism or connection to counterculture.

Despite little overlap between the traditional and modern definitions, both are still commonly used. "The Underground" also refers to the community of musicians, fans, and others that support non-commercial, or independent music. Music scenes with strong ties to underground hip-hop include alternative hip hop and conscious hip hop. Many artists who may be considered "underground" may not have been so, and may have previously broken the Billboard charts.

Style

Underground hip hop encompasses several different sub-genres of hip hop music like; Boom Bap,Trap, Alternative, Punk Rap and many more. Numerous acts in the book How to Rap (2009) are described as being both underground and politically or socially aware, these include B. Dolan, Brother Ali, Diabolic, Immortal Technique, Jedi Mind Tricks, Micranots, Mr. Lif, Murs, Little Brother, P.O.S, Zion I, and Madlib.

Underground artists and groups with critically acclaimed albums include Atmosphere, Binary Star, Blu, Cannibal Ox, Company Flow, Del the Funky Homosapien, Roc Marciano, Danny Brown, Freestyle Fellowship, Hieroglyphics, Juggaknots, Jurassic 5, Kool Keith, Little Brother, MF Doom, Non Phixion, Planet Asia, RJD2, and MC TP.

Additionally, many underground hip hop artists and groups have been applauded for the artistic and poetic use of their lyrics, such as Aesop Rock, Aceyalone, Busdriver, Cage, CunninLynguists, Dessa, OhSo Kew, Doomtree, El-P, Eyedea & Abilities, Illogic, Onry Ozzborn, MF Doom, Rob Sonic, Billy Woods, and Sage Francis.

Some underground artists and groups produce music that celebrates the fundamental elements or pillars of hip hop culture, such as Artifacts, Dilated Peoples, People Under the Stairs, and Fashawn, whose music "recalls hip hop's golden age".

Early beginnings

In hip hop's formative years, the vast majority of the genre was underground music, by definition. Although the Sugarhill Gang gained commercial success in 1979, most artists did not share such prominence until the mid-1980s. Ultramagnetic MCs' debut album, Critical Beatdown (1988), can be seen as one of the earliest examples of "underground hip hop". New York underground rapper Kool Keith received notable success with his album Dr. Octagonecologyst, gaining more attention than any contemporary independent hip hop album "in a while". The Stretch Armstrong and Bobbito Show was a notable underground hip hop radio show that was broadcast on WKCR, and later WQHT, in New York City from 1990 until 1999. It featured rappers such as The Notorious B.I.G., Big L, Jay-Z, and Eminem, as well as groups like Wu-Tang Clan, Mobb Deep, Onyx, and Fugees, all before they gained their popularity. In 1999, Prince Paul and Breeze Brewin' created one of the first rap opera albums, named A Prince Among Thieves. Rolling Stone gave the album a 4.5/5.

In the 1990s, progressive rap acts such as Black Star and Juggaknots helped inspire and shape the underground hip hop movement that would follow in subsequent decades. Also in the 1990s artists like MF Doom, Talib Kweli, Madlib started their music careers which primarily focused on alternative genre, which was less popular around the time, and kept them in the underground partially, due to the popularity of gangsta rap. While the popularity for gangsta rap was fading throughout the 2000s, the notoriety for alternative rap started to grow with the increased popularity of artists like Kanye West leading the charge with his release of Graduation competing for #1 on the billboard top 100 against 50 Cent, the most popular gangsta rap artist at the time. With the increase popularity of a new genre, it became possible for more artists to try different sounds.

2010s

The 2010s witnessed a surge in independent labels that championed underground artists, allowing them to maintain creative control and authenticity. Labels like Backwoodz Studioz, founded by Billy Woods, became pivotal in promoting avant-garde hip-hop. Backwoodz fostered a community that prioritized artistic freedom, leading to critically acclaimed releases like History Will Absolve Me and the Armand Hammer project Rome

Alongside these independent movements, some artists within larger labels also embodied the underground ethos through their lyricism and refusal to conform to commercial trends. One such figure was Ab-Soul, whose work stood apart even within the mainstream-affiliated Top Dawg Entertainment roster.

Among the most lyrically intricate artists of the 2010s underground hip-hop scene was Ab-Soul, a member of the Top Dawg Entertainment (TDE) roster alongside Kendrick Lamar, ScHoolboy Q, and Jay Rock. While his 2012 album Control System received critical praise for its political commentary, philosophical depth, and emotional vulnerability, particularly on tracks like “The Book of Soul,” it never gained mainstream traction. Ab-Soul's music delves into esoteric topics including metaphysics, religious theory, government surveillance, and grief, which set him apart from more commercially friendly peers. Unlike Lamar or Q, he avoided high-profile marketing and rarely released radio-oriented singles, resulting in lower visibility despite his substantial cult following. His abstract style, combined with infrequent releases and minimal promotional presence, which led many to regard him as one of the most underrated lyricists of the decade.

The introspective and cerebral lyricism embodied by Ab-Soul also found new expressions in the latter half of the 2010s through a wave of younger underground artists who prioritized vulnerability, abstraction, and emotional depth over commercial accessibility. While Ab-Soul operated within a larger label framework, many of these newer artists emerged entirely outside traditional industry structures, building grassroots followings through DIY methods and digital platforms like Bandcamp and SoundCloud.

Following in the tradition of introspective lyricists like Ab-Soul, Earl Sweatshirt played a pivotal role in redefining underground hip-hop in the mid-to-late 2010s. Though he first gained recognition through the Odd Future collective, Earl distanced himself from the group’s chaotic, high-profile energy and began crafting music rooted in grief, depression, and internal conflict. His 2015 album I Don’t Like Shit, I Don’t Go Outside marked a turn toward minimal, brooding production and confessional writing, while Some Rap Songs (2018) abandoned conventional song structures altogether in favor of abstract, loop-based composition and poetic fragmentation. These creative risks earned critical acclaim and established Earl as a foundational figure in the evolution of lo-fi and avant-garde rap. His stylistic shift directly inspired a wave of emerging artists, including MIKE, who has cited Earl as a major influence on both his approach to lyricism and the textural, collage-like sound that would define his work.

Building on the groundwork laid by artists like Earl Sweatshirt, MIKE (Michael Jordan Bonema) emerged as a leading voice in a new wave of lo-fi, emotionally raw underground hip-hop. Based in the Bronx, MIKE began gaining attention with his 2017 project May God Bless Your Hustle, which blended distorted soul samples, uneven drum loops, and deeply personal reflections on grief, depression, and adolescence.1 Unlike many of his peers, MIKE eschewed polish and structure in favor of mood and memory, crafting music that felt more like internal monologue than traditional rap. His influence and community-building extended beyond his solo work through the sLUms collective, which helped foster a generation of similarly experimental rappers and producers. Despite consistent critical acclaim from outlets like Pitchfork and NPR, MIKE remains largely unknown to broader audiences. His refusal to conform to industry marketing norms, combined with the challenging and emotionally demanding nature of his music, has limited his mainstream visibility. Still, within underground circles, MIKE is seen as a generational talent who redefined the emotional and sonic possibilities of hip-hop in the late 2010s

Genres

• Rage
• Plugg
• East Coast hip hop
• Southern hip hop
• SoundCloud rap
• Trap
• Progressive rap
• Experimental
• Alternative
• Gangsta Rap

Further reading

• Sartwell, Crispin (1998). "Rap Music and the Uses Of Stereotype". Act Like You Know: African-American Autobiography and White Identity. University of Chicago: University Of Chicago Press. ISBN 978-0-226-73527-6.

• Green, Dylan. “How Billy Woods’ Backwoodz Studioz Became New York’s Best Underground Rap Label.” Pitchfork, 18 May 2023, pitchfork.com/features/article/how-billy-woods-backwoodz-studioz-became-new-yorks-best-underground-rap-label/.

External links

• Media related to Underground hip hop at Wikimedia Commons