Hip Hop has been around for almost five decades and in that time rappers have released albums that defined the culture. There are countless best Hip Hop albums lists out there, but there isn’t one that’s considered canon or held in high regard. Legendary producer 9th Wonder wants to change that.

“Canon is, pretty much, the vessel of the world that all of our knowledge of academia lives in,” 9th Wonder told HipHopDX. “It’s also the standard of what needs to be taught from now on. Somehow, someway, Christopher Columbus discovering America entered the canon, and we are now removing it. So, everything has something that’s supposed to be taught from generation to generation. We don’t have a standard list of albums that are supposed to live in the canon.”

Hip Hop has a large history, and it’s hitting an age where it’s no longer the new sound in town. Preservation is key, and with the genre turning 50, it’s time. The Jamla Records boss is teaming up with the Loeb Library at Harvard University to compile a list chronicling the top 200 Hip Hop albums of all time.

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