No if tupac was alive you'd get smacked 4 that one compared to tupac jay-z is nothing. Tupac is the best rapper of all time.

Wut up ya'll I heard what all ya'll have said, and I agree with some of ya'll in some area's, but some of ya'll is some stupid SOB's. First of all I will have a list of the top ten lyricists of all time, dead or alive, then I'm a explain the ish aight.

1. Big Pun
2. Rakim
3. Nas
4. Blackthought
5. Q-tip or Phife (I ain't picking F dat)
6. Eminem (Slim Shady Eminem Rawkus-first album em not Shady records sellout)
7. KRS-One
8. Common (Sense not other guy)
9. Big (for all ya'll dumb ass n*gga's Big means Biggie Smalls)
10.Mos Def or Talib Kweli (n*gga's I ain't picking dis either)

First and foremost I would like to say that I could also throw Big Daddy Kane, Pharoahe Monch, Wordsworth, Jane Doe, Bahamadia, Canibus, Pete Rock, any member of De La Soul, Slick Rick, Big L(the man Biggie stole from, also the only good Harlem rapper), any dood in D-Block, the so called king of mixtapes Lloyd (I'm so boring) Banks, AZ, Guru, 2-Pac or Marley Marl, but I won't remember this is my own opinion. I in my heart believe that Big Pun is the greatest lyricist in a time where many people focused on the deaths of Big and Pac. They never realized the Verbal Murderer this guy is. Every song that he did with someone, he made them look like they were garbage. He made Black Thought sound like an amateur. If many more people listened to the ish he was saying they would be shocked to how good he was. He was tooooo good for words. If it weren't for Rakim many rappers wouldn't be rapping today... Its that simple. Nas 10 years in the game, the only one alive from the era of the triple threat, Nas, Big, 2-Pac, people overlook Nas cause he's the only one still alive. BlackThought, if you don't realize pick, up a Roots album, thats Black culture. Tribe called Quest...huh how we miss thee. Eminem, the same exact rapper as Royce da 59 at one point. I guess it really does pay to be white. Seriously, he at one point was nasty, then he met MTV, then street cred hit low. Everyone else you should know why they on the list. LISTEN UP ya'll my two favorite verses of all time go to Busta Rhymes from 'Scenario', and Mos Def from 'Thieves in the Night'. Mos Def's verse is absolutely unbelievable, only GOD could have created a greater verse. Ow by the way. One day I may update this list with Cassidy's name, n*gga's listen to his underground ish. One final note Mos Def and Talib will definately go hire on the list one day, I'm just waiting for more, cuz they are amazing to listen to.

Next I'm a put a list of top main stream rappers of all time, that doesn't mean they are good Emcees, that just mean that they are good at appealing to white society, MTV n*gga not MTV2 and also 106 and park. Matter a fact, I'll put a * next to the rappers that I think are good.

1. Nelly
2. 2-Pac*
3. Jay-Z* (sometimes, cuz sometimes he is mad wack)
4. Ja-Rule-Snoop Dogg* (tie) (Snoop is good on occasion, he is a great entertainer)
5. Eminem*(sometimes)
6. 50(all he is; a catchy ass hook rapper, flows is aight at best)
7. Busta Rhymes*
8. Ludacris*
9. LL Cool J(may have longevity but he ain't all that)
10.Outkast*(they almost also made my top ten greatest lyricists list)

There are some other's that I could mention such as Puffy dat dood sucks, DMX, Kanye West, Redman, any member of Wu-Tang, NWA, Bone Thugs etc, but I won't.

Finally cuz I'm tired of typing to ya'll ignorant ass n*ggas, I'm a make the greatest Emcees of all time list quick with not much to talk about after.

1. Without a shadow of doubt in my head, from Illmatic to NasDaq DowJones, the greatest Emcee of all time dead or alive, rapping or not rapping anymore is NAS!
2. Biggie (changed the game more than any rapper ever)
3. Big Pun
4. Rakim
5. 2-Pac
6. Eminem
7. Tribe Called Quest (scew it Q-tip)
8. BlackThought
9. BlackStar(For ya'll small minded n*gga's thats Mos Def and Talib Kweli)-tie for 9th
10.KRS-ONE

Yeah ya'll I do believe that the N-A-S is the greatest. He is the most consistant (spelled wrong I think) rapper of all time, and he holds claim to the greatest hip-hop album of all time
Illmatic. Like I said before Pun is the man. The only reason why I put Biggie over Pun is because his impact on the hiphop game, whether positive or negative. Everyone has their opinion. I could never put Jay-Z on this list, come on ya'll he wouldn't be shit if Big was still alive, all he would be is Big's sidekick, just like Puffy. 2-Pac can never be #1, at least to someone who really loved Biggie. Come on ya'll did ya'll forget that when Pac was alive, most of us from the East Coast hated Pac. He became king when he died, so most of us except him now in death. I'm all for it, but lets not forget he instigated the whole East versus West beef with Suge Knight and the Faggot bunch. I love hip hop, MOST and I mean most fans of hip-hop don't know shit about hip-hop, learn ya'll roots people. Hip-hop in many ways it is becoming just as pop as N-Snyc and Britney Spears, hip hop must find its heart again.

"Hip-Hop is chasing the almighty carrot, I could only vouch for my life and what I do"
-?uestlove from the Roots