Best Hip-Hop/R&B/Rap Ballads of All Time

Attention!!!

The ascension of Wiz Khalifa ft. Charlie Puth's See You Again to the top of the charts in both the UK and the US shows that the era of hip-hop/r&b/rap ballads is not completely over. These songs are set apart from the average hip-hop/r&b/rap songs from the fact that there is a fixed structure for them, with the highly personalized rap verses accompanied by an even more emotional chorus mostly by a set of powerful haunting vocals by a featured artist. Eminem is the king of such ballads as his experiment with the structure by sampling the chorus of Dido's Thank You in Stan and featuring Dido herself in the song proved to be a massive commercial success which was also adored by the critics. His entrance to the sub-genre in the early 2000s laid the foundation for the monumental hits to come over the years which took on the form of hip-hop ballads. The female favorite to accompany Eminem on these ballads is Rihanna who has also proven herself as a vocal powerhouse with Jay-Z and Kanye West. Jay-Z, Kanye West, Tinie Tempah and B.o.B are also ardent fans of the hip-hop ballads releasing several throughout their career.

Love The Way You Lie by Eminem & Rihanna takes the crown with B.o.B ft. Hayley Williams' Airplanes takes second place. Interestingly at third place it is once again the king and queen with their hit The Monster. Eminem has the highest number of entries on the list with 7 with Rihanna and Tinie Tempah having 6 entries each. B.o.B, Bruno Mars, Kanye West, Jay-Z, Justin Timberlake, Rita Ora, Nelly, Travie McCoy and the Black Eyed Peas all have several entries on the list. So here are the 50 Best Hip-Hop/R&B/Rap Ballads of All Time:

1. Eminem ft. Rihanna – Love the way you lie
2. B.o.B ft. Hayley Williams – Airplanes
3. Eminem ft. Rihanna – The monster
4. Black Eyed Peas – Where is the love?
5. Jay-Z ft. Alicia Keys – Empire state of mind
6. Nelly ft. Kelly Rowland – Dilemma
7. Wiz Khalifa ft. Charlie Puth – See you again
8. Tinie Tempah ft. Eric Turner – Written in the stars
9. Jay-Z ft. Rihanna & Kanye West – Run this town
10. T.I. ft. Rihanna – Live your life
11. Professor Green ft. Emeli Sande – Read all about it
12. Rita Ora ft. Tinie Tempah – R.I.P.
13. B.o.B. ft. Bruno Mars – Nothin’ on you
14. Eminem ft. Dido – Stan
15. Gym Class Heroes ft. Adam Levine – Stereo hearts
16. Nelly – Just a dream
17. Travie McCoy ft. Bruno Mars – Billionaire
18. Jay-Z ft. Justin Timberlake – Holy grail
19. Labrinth ft. Emeli Sande – Beneath your beautiful
20. T.I. ft. Justin Timberlake – Dead and gone
21. Iggy Azalea ft. Rita Ora – Black widow
22. Bad Meets Evil ft. Bruno Mars – Lighters
23. Lil Wayne ft. Bruno Mars – Mirror
24. Chipmunk ft. Chris Brown – Champion
25. Dr. Dre ft. Eminem & Skylar Grey – I need a doctor
26. Diddy-Dirty Money ft. Skylar Grey – Coming home
27. Black Eyed Peas – Meet me halfway
28. Alicia Keys ft. Nicki Minaj – Girl on fire
29. Tinchy Stryder ft. N-Dubz – Number 1
30. Kanye West ft. Rihanna – All of the lights
31. Keri Hilson ft. Kanye West & Ne-Yo – Knock you down
32. B.o.B ft. Taylor Swift – Both of us
33. Labrinth ft. Tinie Tempah – Earthquake
34. Tinchy Stryder ft. Amelle Berrabah – Never leave you
35. Tinie Tempah ft. John Martin – Children of the sun
36. Nicki Minaj ft. Rihanna – Fly
37. Tinie Tempah ft. Ellie Goulding – Wonderman
38. Gym Class Heroes ft. Ryan Tedder – The fighter
39. Eminem ft. Sia – Guts over fear
40. Professor Green ft. Lily Allen – Just be good to green
41. Tinchy Stryder ft. Pixie Lott – Bright lights
42. Eminem ft. Lil Wayne – No love
43. Gym Class Heroes ft. Neon Hitch – Ass back home
44. Nicki Minaj – Girls fall like dominoes 
45. Sean Paul ft. Kelly Rowland – How deep is your love
46. Travie McCoy ft. Jason Mraz – Rough water
47. T.I. ft. Keri Hilson – Got your back
48. Eminem ft. Nate Ruess – Headlights
49. Eric Turner ft. Tinie Tempah & Lupe Fiasco – Angels and stars
50. Pitbull ft. Kelly Rowland & Jamie Drastik – Castle made of sand

Till the next ballad…

At Ease!!!