Rap is traditionally a young man's sport. Generally speaking, the 'greatest albums of all time' were put out by youngsters. As rappers age, their albums usually become duller than the early work they're best known for. Almost every rapper has fallen victim to this trend.
That isn't to say older, more seasoned rappers haven't released awesome music. Ghostface Killah is still on his grind; a Nas verse is almost always bringing the heat; Snoop Dogg's Bush was a stylistic risk that came out pretty awesome. Rappers can definitely continue to put up big numbers past their prime, as evident from the aforementioned and others.
With that said, we're taking a look at the rappers who will go over the hill in 2016. Do they have what it takes to put out music like they once did? We'll leave that up for debate in the comment section.
Rick Ross
Born: January 28, 1976
That's right, the boss is turning 40 next year. By exploding onto the scene in 2006 with "Push It" and "Hustlin'," you could call Ross a bit of a late bloomer. He already hit 30 by the time he gained noteworthy mainstream success.
Ross has also had a great 2015, in terms of music anyways. He's put out a number of awesome tracks, along with a pretty solid mixtape in Black Dollar. With Black Market due out in a couple days, it seems like Rozay still has a few dope projects left in the tank. As someone who came up as a grown adult, as opposed to a 20 year old kid, his chances of on-par output are lookin' good.
Cam'ron
Born: February 4, 1976
The Dipset member, and successful solo artist, has a big album coming up in Purple Haze 2. Will it live up to the original released in 2004? Only time will tell, but time has also told us that in Cam'ron's forty years on the planet, he's been making fire rap records for about twenty of them. Make forty look good, Killa!
Born: February 29, 1976
Time treats everyone differently, and it hasn't treated Ja Rule particularly well. After a solid run of singles in the 00's, Ja has remained relatively quiet, releasing just two albums in the past ten years. Is there anything that could boost this guy back to the glory days?
Aesop Rock
Born: June 5, 1976
Just over a week ago, Aesop Rock and Homeboy Sandman released a five-track project called Lice. If you're a fan of Aesop Rock's indie rap style, you'll probably dig this. While he waits to turn forty in June, it's nice to have fresh material from one of the best in his class. Let's hope that Aesop continues to experiment with different rap flavors like he has in the past, always pushing the genre forward through collaborations and brainy bars.
Plies
Born: July 1, 1976
It's the question that's on everybody's mind, right? When is Plies going to come with the fire he brought on gems like "Shawty" or "Plenty Money"?
If that question wasn't on your mind, we're happy to have put it there. Plies turns forty halfway through 2016, and hopefully his upcoming release Purple Heart drops before that. We know you're dying to hear it. Well, even if the music isn't working as well as used to for Plies, he'll always have his Instagram videos to fall back on.
Born: July 15, 1976
Jones' output has been relatively slow in the past five years, but if you missed last year's We Own The Night Pt. 2, give it a listen. There's nothing on the books from the Dipset MC, but he still released one of the dopest Christmas rap songs of all time in this one...
Bizzy Bone
Born: September 12, 1976
With the exception of the past five years, Bizzy Bone has really lived up to his name. With 8 Bone Thugs and 10+ solo projects under his belt, the near-forty-year-old deserves a little down time. Nevertheless, the fans still want E. 1999 Legends, Bone Thugs' fabled final record, and hopefully we get it some time in 2016.
Kuniva (of D12)
Born: December 10, 1976
If D12 had a massive 2016, that would be awesome, right? They've already got the ball rolling with their recent Devil's Night: The Mixtape project, however we still have our hopes for the release of a proper full-length that includes Eminem. We haven't received one since 2004's D12 World. Kuniva, our subject, did release A History of Violence last year, though, which featured the same brand of dirty dozen hip hop we're used to hearing from him and his band.