List of hip hop albums considered to be influential

This list provides a guide to the most important hip hop albums, as determined by their presence on compiled lists of significant albums: see the "Lists consulted" section for full details. Inclusion on a list is indicated by numbering after each release. The brief accompanying notes offer an explanation as to why each album has been considered important. The organization of the list is by date of release, ranging from Run-D.M.C.'s eponymous debut in 1984 to Jay-Z's 2001 album, The Blueprint.

Since for the period of 1979–1983, hip hop was a music for 12" singles rather than albums, the absence of old school hip hop from the list has been compensated for by providing it with its own section of notable releases. Notable compilations of songs which contain important hip hop breaks (short percussive interludes used as the rhythmic basis for a hip hop song) are also included.

The break, the instrumental portion of a record (of any genre, though perhaps most often funk or rock) that emphasizes the percussive pattern, has been the fundamental unit of much of hip hop music. The collections below collect the original songs that contain some of the most popular breaks in hip hop.

Lists 1–5 are exclusively hip hop publications by writers respected in the field. 6–9 are essentially rock publications, though with some breadth of coverage, obviously; 6–7 are American, 8–9, British. 10 is a British dance music magazine that none-the-less had hip hop accounting for more than a fifth of its list. Albums that appear on any four lists or more have been included.

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