[J-Dogg]

This is basically a matter of opinion,so i know heads will disagree with each other,but if you really thought about it objectively with no bias whatsoever(and took every aspect of MCing or rapping into account--lyrics,influence,record sales,financial power),in my informed opinion,the answer to this heavily debated question would have to be the guy i think is simply the best ever(bar none!)...and that guy,my fellow hip-hop die-hards would have to be the one and only Shawn Corey Carter;better known as Jay-Z, also referred to as Hova or Jigga.
Now,i could break it down 4 y'all all day as to why i think he's the G.O.A.T, but i don't have that kind of time,so i'll just be brief and state the obvious....Which rapper past or present has a catalogue that can match Jay's?--a body of work that has been nothing short of consistent...that jamaa has dropped an album every year since he first debuted (from 1996-2003),including the Best Of Both Worlds stuff he did with Kells(which was dope)...All records went platinum with the exception of Reasonable Doubt(Which was one of his two classics along with Blueprint).
Some criticize Jay 4 his knack 4 reciting some of Biggie's lines,but come on now, how could you possibly front on his lyricism? no other reputable rapper i can think of, has displayed a more impressive array of different flows...His flow/delivery could take it's time and come at you slow("Hard knock life",for example) or it could grab u by the collar and come at a more startling pace (check "Jigga what,Jigga who")...who else could switch up their flow as effortlessly as Hov?....and his rhymes--i don't even need to go there!!...are y'all familiar with his "no pen/paper" method of coming up with rhymes?..and his penchant 4 knocking down verses at just one take?--enough said!!.
What really makes him stand out from the rest of the greats,is his ability to make commercial joints while still bringing it on the lyrical side of things...what other rapper has been as successful at that undertaking?....man,i could go on forever with this but like is said--no time; so i'll just leave y'all with that little piece...i might further my case and make a more solid argument by responding to anybody with a different opinion...but until then, that's it from me....What do y'all think?...holla!!!...

[F2]

Since the Rap world is so broad and wide,I don't think it is fair for me to just keep my opinion by my side. I do believe we should not brand any Group/Rapper/Mc/Host e.t.c. as THE GREATEST EVER bcoz some of those are Alive, or dead, and at the same time there are some very talented and new folks joining the rap scene you know. You don't have to sell Platinum after platinum in order to cut a Niche about ya self in this rap world. According to my sources which are more than credible plus my own analysis of this Music Industry, I have come to realise that Artists/Rappers/ who go Gold[500.000] with their albums tend to be very consistent with their Fan base and are accustomed to alot of street respect. For example, Groups like the lox,Onyx,Mobb Deep,M.o.p, Wu tang clan[Method man, Redman], Foxy Brown, Lil Kim, and many more have street credibility bcoz no matter what happens to the rap world,they are veterans and their albums are guaranteed to go gold eventually. In this rap game if your fan base is not consistent, then you may as well kiss tha game good bye.Look at Ruff Ryders First lady E.V.E., her debut sophomore Album feat the smash Single "What you want" went double platinum. Since then her follow up albums have been "a Flop " as she has been unable to maintain that tempo bcoz of too much pressure to either even or tople that mark she established without first creating a stronger fan base. Without any reasonable doubt, I do agree the president and C.E.O., a.k.a. Jigga man is one of the best lyricist out there. I watched him a couple of months ago Freestylin' in B.E.T.s 106& park to the instrumental of Trillvilles song "some cut", and he was Of tha chain. However, in real sense he wasn't "freestylin'" bcoz those lyrics are what came out later in Butch Cassidys Song titled " Am a Hustler", Meanin', they were written or were one of those UNRELEASED TRACKS.Word on the street is that Jay-Z gave Cassidy that particular song himself and he even gave T.I.another song too. If you take a trip with me to the Dirty south, A couple of years nobody knew who T.I. was other than the underground streets rap world. His debut album featuring Beanie Man in the song "Am serious" was just a disaster if not a catastrophe. However, he kept quiet for a while bcoz he was not under any pressure whatsoever commercially. Look at him now, Shooting videos of almost each and every song in his album bcoz his street fan base stepped up to promote him.
Ok, lets take a midwest swing. There we find Nelly and the rest is history. Remember how Damon Dash,Diddy[Bad boy], never considered to pay attention To his Demo tape? We only know Nelly from his COUNTRY GRAMMAR album but that guy had been doin' his thing in the streets of midwest since time in memorial and when the streets decided to support a brother, he blew up and right now he is sellin' more than the entire Bad Boy Roster!!
I can go on n' on when it comes to music analysis. But since this thread is only limited to Rappers, I don't want to bring other musical casualties of different Genre just to proove ma point on how streets are very important when considerin' who should be VIEWED as the best. Ever wondered why ALL RAPPERS tend to release tracks in the MIXTAPES and claim it got leaked into the internet? Do you believe it is a leak? Nope!!! Itz called a strategy n' nowdays internet is also considered a Street! You beter believe dat!!

[J-Dogg]

Damn,i was expecting more feedback from heads on this topic but...i guess no one really wants to touch this issue.