Don’t get us wrong, there’s more than enough love to go around for Chicago-born Lupe Fiasco and Rhymefest, who are both buzzed about as refreshingly intellectual and positive lyricists.
But RedEye couldn’t resist comparing the careers of the two MCs who released albums a few months apart earlier this year.
Here’s how ‘Fest and Fiasco stack up so far.
NEIGHBORHOOD
Rhymefest: South Side
Lupe: West Side
ALBUM
Rhymefest: “Blue Collar” debuted at No. 6 on the Billboard Top Rap Album charts in July.
Lupe: “Food & Liquor” debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Top Rap Album charts in September.
BUZZWORTHY VIDEO
Rhymefest: “Brand New,” featuring Kanye West as the blinged-out baller foil to Rhymefest’s blue-collar hero.
Lupe: “Kick, Push,” featuring Lupe in his element–skateboarding.
HIP-HOP HONORS
Rhymefest: 2005 Grammy for co-writing, and hip-hop Song of the Year ASCAP award for “Jesus Walks.”
Lupe: Four nominations at BET’s first annual Hip-Hop Awards earlier this month. Named one of GQ’s “Menof the Year.”
KANYE CONNECTION
Rhymefest: In addition to “Jesus Walks,” a then-little-known West produced Rhymefest’s first indie album, “Raw Dog,” in 2001, according to The New York Times and billboard.com.
Lupe: Appears in Kanye West’s “Kiss the Sky” video.
