Hip-hop is often referred to as the contemporary voice of a generation, yet at its core, the music was always intended to be danced to. Rap music was created with one goal in mind: to get people moving on jam-packed dance floors. While supporters of more revolutionary groups like Public Enemy and A Tribe Called Quest may harp on the genre’s strong social commentary and Afrocentric activism, rap music was created with this goal in mind before these acts rose to popularity.
Therefore, even though the music’s purpose has evolved throughout time, everyone still innately desires to dance. Hip-hop is every bit as violent as it is amusing, with some of the fiercest gangster rappers using some of the funkiest sounds to convey their frightening threats. There is not any celebration like a hip-hop party, whether a dance-off or a brawl breaks out to the same bass-heavy music.
Rap and hip-hop music have been the life of numerous events all around the world and with good reason. They are jam-packed with contagious tunes, enticing hooks, and sing-along lyrics. Hip-hop and rap have a long history of party anthems that will get everyone on the dance floor, ranging from oldies from back in the day to modern smashes.
Here are 25 outstanding rap and hip-hop tunes that will rock the house at any gathering:
1. Snoop Dogg feat. Pharrell – Drop It Like It Is Hot (2004)
With this song, Snoop Dogg achieved his first number-one single on the charts. The most successful rap song of the decade was “Drop it like it’s Hot,” according to American magazine Billboard in December 2009. The popular dance cry has appeared in many hip-hop videos since the 1990s and is an absolute Earworm. The pretty unique beat by Pharrell is a beautiful option for bringing energy to a gathering.
2. Lil Jon & The East Side Boyz feat. Get Low by the Ying Yang Twins, 2002
Even if Beyoncé and Sean Paul were the only people to hear “Get Low” in 2002, it is still regarded as a Party smash and a genuine success. Dance is all about the freak, like many party tunes. The phrase “Get Low” is used to encourage dancers to descend as far as they can. Along with the tempo, Lil Jon’s voice has a significant impact on the song’s success.
3. Missy Elliot – Get Your Freak On (2001)
Timbaland wrote the song “Get Your Freak On” and also produced it. The base is particularly notable. Banghra is a Punjabi-based Indian music genre that Timbaland utilized in this song. In India, banghra is a well-liked musical and dancing style, and the six-note baseline is also well-liked there.
4. 50 Cent – In da Club (2003)
The lead song from 50 Cent’s debut album “Get Rich or Die Tryin’,” “In da Club,” was a massive hit and gave 50 his first U.S. number one. The Billboard Hot 100. It was chosen as the thirteenth-best song of the decade by Rolling Stone. In da Club is great for setting the mood and getting the party started.
5. 2Pac ft. Dr. Dre, Roger Troutman – California Love (1995)
The song “California Love” is one that any hip-hop fan is undoubtedly familiar with. The song served as 2Pac’s post-prison return. He also transferred to Dr. Der’s label, Death Row Records, around this time.
The song serves as a love letter to her native California. The song is a party staple with danceable sounds and enticing words, much like the song’s line, “California knows how to party,” proclaims. It was also one of 2Pac’s most popular tracks, and it spent two weeks at the top of the Billboard charts.
6. House of Pain – Jump Around (1992)
It is difficult to imagine that nobody at originally desired the “Jump Around” beat. It was written originally for his crew by Cypress Hill’s DJ Muggs. They did not care, and Ice Cube turned down the offer as well.
That is how it turned out to be House of Pain’s good fortune. The 100 all-time best hip-hop singles are listed on VH1. The squeaky sound that appears 66 times at the beginning of practically every bar is very memorable. It has recognition value whether people love it or loathe it. The song’s catchy refrain, “Stand up, jump around, and party,” sums up the song’s meaning perfectly.
7. Nelly – Hot In Herre (2002)
When asked to name a Nelly song on the spot, “Hot in Herre” is the response that everyone gives. The Neptunes produced Nelly’s first Billboard chart-topping single, which peaked at number one. In the category of Best Male Rap Solo Performance, Nelly won a Grammy in 2003. The song was also chosen as the 36th best hip-hop song of 2008 by viewers of VH1.
8. Notorious BIG – Hypnotize (1997)
Ironically, rapper Notorious BIG released “Hypnotize” as the lead song off his album Live After Death; however, he tragically passed away one week later in a drive-by shooting. The rapper turned into 5. The highest-charting dead artist ever on the Top 100 US charts. The song was created by rapper Sean Combs, who was then known as Puff Daddy. One of the most well-known party songs of the year, Rise by Herb Alpert from 1979, was among the tracks whose beat he borrowed. The song “Hypnotize” is still a current favorite among partygoers.
9. Terror Squad – Lean Back (2004)
“Lean Back,” a 2004 upbeat hip-hop hit by the Fat Joe gang, is practically hard to listen to without at least nodding your head. American citizens. The song may remain at the top of the Billboard Hot 100 for three weeks in a row.
For an entire month, even, on the R&B charts. The song is about a well-known scene that happens in many clubs: Rappers do not just dance; Fat Joe and his friends do actions that are fit for rappers, such as the Rock-Away.
10. Outkast – Hey Ya! (2003)
The song “Hey Ya! One of the two rappers from Outcast, Andre3000, wrote “. The second of the double album’s two main singles, “Speakerboxxx/The Love Below.”
The song deviates from the norm for a hip-hop single and draws heavily from rock, electro, soul, funk, and pop. Therein may be found the song’s appeal. In practically every nation it was played in, it reached the top of the charts. In the article, Andre3000 talks about his relationship, which satisfies him yet deviates from accepted societal conventions.
11. Can’t Hold Us by Macklemore & Ryan Lewis feat. Ray Dalton (2011)
The song was released in 2011, however, it became popular in 2012. The second single from the first album “The Heist,” “Can’t Hold Us,” has a rhythm and a piano riff that are hard to ignore. It has a lot of power and vigor. The song was extremely popular all over the world and peaked at number one in over 30 nations.
12. Azealia Banks ft. Lazy Jay (2011) – 212
The Belgian DJ Jef Martens and Lazy Jay’s song served as the inspiration for American rapper Azealia Banks’ first single. For Azealia, Lazy Jay reworked the song. The zip code of Manhattan, where Azealia resides, served as the inspiration for the title.
The song brings together hip-hop and house, a powerful combination with lots of party potential. Although the song’s genuine success was limited to the United Kingdom. the song is something to think about.
13. N.E.R.D. – Everyone Nose (All the Girls Standing In The Line For The Bathroom) (2008)
This song, which was greatly influenced by Baltimore club music, features N.E.R.D. Hip-hop and house were combined in numerous ways in this music trend, which started in Baltimore in the 1980s.
14. Timbaland and J.I.D. Keri Hilson – The Way I Are (2007)
Hip-hop and electro components were combined in “The Way I Are” like in some of the previously played songs. The message of the song is to accept people for who they are, regardless of their appearance or social standing. The song was extremely popular all over the world and reached the top of the charts in several regions, including Oceania, Europe, North America, and South America. One of its strongest points is certainly the danceable rhythm.
15. Jay-Z ft. Kanye West – Ni***az in Paris (2011)
Although “Ni***az in Paris,” a song by Jay-Z and Kanye West from their collaborative album “Watch the Throne,” received great accolades from reviewers, notably Kanye’s, the song performed better in the upper-middle of the charts outside of the United States and English-speaking countries. This is unexpected considering that the song won Grammy Awards for Best Rap Performance and Best Rap Song in 2013. Kanye West cited his trips as the source of the song “Paris.”
It is about the difference between Hollywood and the hood when art meets business, he said in an interview. Once again, it is the music that persuades in addition to the superb rap performance by both performers. Rapper Pusha T was defeated in the past by Hit-Boy, who worked on the song’s creation.
16. Black Eyed Peas – I Gotta Feeling (2009)
The song “I Gotta Feeling” enjoyed the most amount of success globally in the year 21. Century, until Pharrell Williams’ “Happy” took its position in 2014. For 14 weeks in a row, the song held the top place on the Billboard Hot 100. The second single from the studio album “The E.N.D.” released in 2009 was this one.
The song was written by the whole Black Eyed Peas band, with David Guetta and Frederick Riesterer serving as producers. The song is a great warm-up to get the party started and is an excellent party anthem. The article’s subject is a night that you anticipate being a fun party night.
17. DMX – X Gon’ Give It to Ya! (2003)
The lead song from the soundtrack to the feature film “Born 2 Die” was “X Gon’ Give It to Ya” by DMX. It was also his most widely played song. It peaked at #13 in the United States’ rap charts, #6 in the United Kingdom, and #23 in Germany. The song resurfaced in 2016 after a lengthy period of silence, during which only ardent hip-hop aficionados were likely aware of it. This year saw the debut of the movie “Deadpool,” and D.M.X.’s song was utilized in the film as well as in the trailer and on television. Commercials. As a result, the song was able to surpass its performance in 2003 and sales rose.
18. Joe Budden — “Pump It Up”
Joe Budden is still regarded as an important character in hip-hop culture despite having just one truly successful song. Some things cannot be disputed.
19. Drake — “In My Feelings”
Although “In My Feelings” is a more recent song in Drake’s discography, it is still unquestionably one of his best “party” songs, as opposed to the club anthems he is more known for. The difference between “In My Feelings” and songs like “All Me,” “I’m On One,” “No New Friends,” or his appearances on any number of other stars’ hits, is that while those songs instruct you to “stand up on the couch and yell the lyrics at the top of your lungs,” “In My Feelings” hits you right in the knees and compels you to bounce like the New Orleans bop Drake sampled.
20. Missy Elliott — “Work It”
It is one thing if a song can get a large audience to join in on the chorus. If the second part of that chorus is in reverse, it is altogether different. Due in large part to the unstoppable “Work It,” which topped the US Billboard Hot 100 for 26 weeks in 2002-2003, Missy’s strongly ’80s-inspired album Under Construction ended up being her most successful album to date.
21. T-Pain — “Bartender” Feat. Akon
T-Pain started the autotune craze. This is T-Pain’s most enjoyable song to use the instrument. One of the greatest party tunes ever is 2+2.
22. DMX — “Party Up (Up In Here)”
“Party Up” is DMX’s most commercially successful US single and a song that everyone is familiar with and will immediately start dancing to as it starts playing. Its appearances in movies, TV shows, advertising, and even championship locker rooms strengthen its standing as one of the most well-known tunes of the 2000s.
23. Jay-Z — “I Just Wanna Love U (Give It 2 Me)”
One could fill this whole list with samples entirely drawn from the Neptunes’ production catalog at the time, but the “bling like the Neptunes’ sound” bar pretty well sums up the entire early 2000s party experience. However, “Give It To Me” stands out as the finest example, since it has one of rap’s biggest performers, an addictive rhythm from the apex of the Neptunes period, and choruses that are sure to have people singing along, including Jay’s notorious Carl Thomas-crooning moment in the first verse.
24. Chief Keef — “Faneto”
Although Keef’s “Don’t Like” was a far more popular hit, “Faneto” was the tune that caused a deck to collapse during a college party, catapulting it into the annals of party music.
25. Ludacris and Mystikal — “Move B***h” Feat. The I-20
Good party music either makes you want to dance or get into a fight. Put this one in the “fight music” category because of its brazen aggression and reckless elbow swinging. The fact that “Move” transitions from a basic party hymn to a protest song shows that true masterpieces never lose their appeal.