Last year’s ranking: 2
Featured on: DJ Akademiks on YouTube, Twitch, Rumble, Spotify, and Instagram
Known for: Getting inside information from notable rappers; livestreaming the biggest moments in hip-hop
Followers: 5.2 M IG; 1.6M X
Last year, Ak was no. 2 on the media list. His response? Jubilance. He couldn't really argue with the No. 1, Kai Cenat, but there was also this sense that for all his success he felt like he was still being cancelled for his various transgressions.
This was obviously never true.
If anything, Ak has only grown stronger over the years, even as controversies have built up and he has grown more emboldened to say shit with his chest. (Check out his latest comments about Megan Thee Stallion and Jay-Z if you need proof.) Ak, who called this year his “Jordan year” on Re-Rank, is clearly the top dog in hip-hop media. He's the best at covering the underground, seedier aspects of hip-hop (whether it be the Lil Durk trial or breaking down Pooh Shiesty robbing Gucci Mane); but he does this knowing that rap is a billion-dollar industry, which means you still need to present that proximity to the power players.
And when we say power players, we mean Drake. His cozy relationship with The Boy ultimately makes him a go-to source for the biggest album in rap. He's been eating off Iceman for months, like when he talked about the need for Drake to starve haters or when he shits on Lil Baby for insinuating the Atlanta rapper is on Iceman. And come May 15, when the hip-hop community is listening to the new Drake, one screen will be saved for an Ak stream.
Unless something drastic happens, it's hard to imagine Ak giving up the pole position . His work ethic and his access to power (even while presenting himself as an outsider) allows him the same latitude to be a ball-knower who’s sometimes wrong about shit. And frankly the fact that he loves a good fight means he will keep people entertained for an extended period. He has or will almost certainly have beef with half the people on this list, from Ebro to Roy and Mal to Kid Mero. In fact, you can watch him do precisely this on Re-Rank. —Dimas Sanfiorenzo
What's one thing you love about rap right now?
“I love the fact that we're experiencing a complete reset within music and culture. It means a rebirth—and I'm waiting to see which artists figure out the new meta to become successful or lead an influential movement.
“In an age where a lot of artists blow up from one viral song that gives them enough leverage to become social media stars and even tour locally, there's never been a bigger question around what it means to be a new superstar—or whether it's even worth going down that path. How do you do it? What is mainstream? What is niche? There hasn't been an authentic movement from a budding superstar rapper in a while, and this reset over the last few years has left the field wide open, and that breeds creativity, and encourages someone to break the mold. It's only a matter of time. Music and culture never remain stagnant or die. They just take different forms. I think the next superstar is probably some kid in their bedroom with a unique style, playing around on Fruity Loops and reading this article right now.”
What's one thing you hate about rap right now?
“The thing I hate most about hip-hop right now is everyone wanting to turn it into what they think it should be—or what it used to be. A lot of influencers, media personalities, and even fans don't realize they're responsible for most of the change in hip-hop.”