Image via Complex Original
Liverpool striker Daniel Sturridge scored the winner this weekend against Southampton, and without a doubt, he celebrated his team's first win of the English Premier League season by kicking back and vibing with his favorite tracks. The 24-year-old Sturridge, growing up in the early 2000s with College Dropout and 50 Cent, has a wide ranging taste for hip-hop, and a hunger to learn more and more about the genre. His opinions aren't whack either. Get into a debate with him over anything rap related, and his views are as articulate and knowledgeable as any other hip-hip head who spends their days trolling blogs and digging deep on Soundcloud.
During a recent interview with Complex, Sturridge became engaged in a deep conversation about the state of hip-hop, and tangentially name dropped a few dozen artists who he's up on and seriously fucking with. He's got a little something to say on each of them as well. Check out who Sturridge is listening to after a day's work on the pitch in 25 of Daniel Sturridge's Favorite Rappers.
Drake
“I think Drake is a very nice guy. A lot of people talk bad about him but in my opinion he is the leader of my generation in terms of music, in how he merges different genres. Nowadays hip hop isn’t just hip hop you have to be an artist. You can’t just be hip hop. Singing he does upbeat, slow stuff, raps, if you ask him to do either of them he will do them happily. When I listen to a Drake song, I get what he is saying when he is talking about the women, and he’s talking about. It’s the fact of how real he is. The honesty. The honesty when he’s talking about stuff. When he’s talking about 'they don’t have no rewards for that, trophies.' When he’s talking about the fact that he’s trying to take care of his family.”
Kanye West
“I’m saying for Kanye West when I was in school, I used to listen to College Dropout, that was my album. I did like Yeezus too, I did like some of the songs. I feel like Kanye West is someone that innovates and his sound will catch on. I think Kanye West is, people don’t give him the credit he deserves for what he has brought to our generation.”
Kid Cudi
“Like for me, Kid Cudi doesn’t get respect for his music and I love Kid Cudi. He’s not hip hop, he’s an artist. You have to respect the fact that he might do a rock song like “Sky Might Fall.” That song right there for instance, I love that song. That’s not hip hop, even though he’s rapping. The way the beat is, it’s not a normal hip hop song. So hip hop fans won’t like that, whereas a fan of music will be like, ‘Fair, I like what he’s doing.’”
Young Thug
“I hear Young Thug, one of my favorites at the minute. I like “Lifestyle,” or Ain’t About the Money, with T.I. “Danny Glover” too. I love Young Thug.”
A$AP Ferg
“I like Joey Bada$$ and A$AP Ferg. Like A$AP I mess with as a whole. I feel like they all have their own different vibe going so I like them.”
Common
“I like Common’s new album, I do like a lot of his stuff.”
Troy Ave
“To me, I prefer Troy Ave. I like him because he’s more Ma$e/Diddy 90s.”
Lil Durk
“I can listen to a Lil Durk or a Chief Keef.”
Bobby Shmurda
“Yeah, Bobby Shmurda, I like that song”
Joey Bada$$
“I like Joey Bada$$ and A$AP Ferg.”
Fekky
“For me, I said something on my Twitter the other day when I said that UK music doesn’t get the respect it deserves on the US shores, so, on that note, I’d probably say in a club, I wanna hear some Fekky, I wanna hear some Rechte 2.”
The Weeknd
“I love The Weekend. To be honest with you, it was strange because I was thinking everyday: 'Wow actually Canada is doing very well.'”
Rick Ross
“Rick Ross, you could argue that maybe he’s keeping it real and still talking about that stuff but his voice is so—he’s got that voice where he can rap about anything and it sounds good pretty much. Because his voice is so sick.”
Wretch 32
“For me, I said something on my Twitter the other day when I said that UK music doesn’t get the respect it deserves on the US shores, so, on that note, I’d probably say in a club, I wanna hear some Fekky, I wanna hear some Wretch 32.”
Chief Keef
“I can listen to a Lil Durk or a Chief Keef.”
Dizzee Rascal
“[In a club] I have to hear Dizzee Rascal.”
Ryan Leslie
“I love Ryan Leslie. I feel like Ryan Leslie doesn’t get enough respect for his music. He’s released so many albums and none of them, for me, get enough respect. But for me, I just find that maybe NY hasn’t gotten the respect it deserves because people are used to a certain type of music from NY and people don’t like the fact that people aren’t rapping like Cam’Ron or Biggie or Jay Z and 50 Cent.”
50 Cent
“50 Cent, play his first couple of albums, especially the first album, everyone loves it. It doesn’t matter what he’s saying, it’s about the timing of it.”
Tinie Tempah
“I have to hear some Wretch 32, some Tinie Tempah. I need to hear some Chip. I wanna hear U.K. music played more in the U.S. for me.”
Jay Z
“The fact of Jay Z, it doesn’t matter what you play. If you play the old stuff, even the newer stuff on his album. He’s got hits on there. “FuckWithMeYouKnowIGotIt,” those types of songs, massive songs, you can’t deny that. But he’s not talking about killing people anymore or selling cocaine like he used to. None of that now. He’s changing his style for our generation.”
Krept and Konan
“Have you heard the song, “Don’t Waste My Time?” I have to hear “Don’t Waste my Time by Krept” and Konan [when I'm at a club].”
PARTYNEXYDOOR
“It’s next level, like for me, PARTYNEXTDOOR is the next person in line to blow up.”
Nicki Minaj
“I think that for me, Nicki Minaj has obviously taken female rap to the next level.”
Missy Elliott
“I don’t think [any female rappers], on a personal level, will ever be as great as Missy Elliott. And I think that if you put down hits, whatever generations, whether Missy Elliott got No. 1s or not, I don’t care. But videos, nobody beat her videos. Her videos were next level. “Get Your Freak On.“”
Kendrick Lamar
“At the end of the day the way that music is these days, there is a lot of trap based stuff, there is a lot of diverse stuff. Drake has his own sound, Kendrick Lamar does too.”