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Pre-Magna Carta Holy Grail Edition

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After weeks of getting beaten over the head with high-profile releases, commercial hip-hop took a collective post-Kanye, pre-Hov breather this week. The underground made the most of this opportunity, and some of our favorite artists dropped really incredible rhymes. Below, the lines of the week.

5. “If fair is fair I'm the air/Not next to the king, but what you breathe/You may not see, but believe me I'm there” — Ab-Soul, 'Whalé' lyrics
Soulo rejoins the list this week with a punning line that plays on “heir” and “air.” Unlike Lil Wayne, Ab-Soul thankfully knows the difference between the two.

4. “Bitch, if you get in here, you can't smoke blunts/My flow sick, they say my pockets got the mumps” — Curren$y, 'Showroom 2' lyrics
Spitta's fealty to rolling papers continues to amaze. Here, he lays down the law for everyone in his camp, including female visitors.

3. “I'm blowing stacks, collecting gats with sniper scopes and shoulder straps/That'll rip through your Ryan Seacrest sequined vest/And I'm just getting my feet wet” — Celph Titled, 'Shotcallaz' lyrics
Alliteration is one of our favorite devices, and this excerpt has enough “s” sounds to, um, shake a stick at. Extra points for the dig at Seacrest!

2. “You overheard me taking and thought I was embellishing/You envisioned my bezel and considered embezzlement” – YC the Cynic, 'Molotovs at Poseidon' lyrics
Sometimes in hip-hop, the feeling of the word matters as much as or more than the literal meaning. YC blazes through “em” and “en” prefixes with such speed and expertise that we were left enveloped with embryonic happiness.

1. “Sean can spit, niggas/Sean can split niggas/Chrome to you unknown, nondescript niggas” — Sean Price, 'Psycho Killa' lyrics
Sean P is one of our favorite artists, mostly for his continual surprises. On this Boaz tune, he manages to work in the word “nondescript” into his verse, which left us incredibly pleased.