Over the years, several individuals have somehow equated all of hip-hop to “thug music.” Some commentators believe that hip-hop is limited to bling, expensive cars, lewd dancing, flamboyance, video vixens and profane music that simply add no value. For a certain segment of this beautiful culture and music, this stereotypical notion is unequivocally true. But, there are many positive hip-hop artists- though most are “underground”- who actually utilize their studio time to sow conscious and value-adding music to empower the global community. All hip-hop music is not hardcore and “gangsta” in context. Certain artists over the years have shown the “softer” side of hip-hop music that exhibits love and affection between couples or for a potential mate and that embodies very little or no profanity.
The following list of hip-hop ballads is not an all-inclusive list nor does it represent the top hip-hop ballads; but, these timeless songs do represent some of the best that hip-hop has offered its listeners over the years: