Top Five Chicago Artist of 2014

Chicago continues to be a city that has a thriving rap scene. Many have shown why we should be paying attention, putting out good projects, hitting stages across the city and the county and staying relevant. Ch City Hip Hop puts together a list of five artist who've continued to stay consistent, dropping records, albums and mixtapes, that made us pay attention.

With our top five we have something special for the readers in the form of a giveaway. We're giving away tickets to an advance screening of Chris Rock's upcoming movie "Top Five" that will be held in Chicago, so scroll down checkout our top five and see how to get tickets below.

King Louie

Louie kicked of the year delivering the last of what he was offering from his 2013 mixtape, "Drilluminati 2", with the title tracks' video. Looking back, he hinted at the name of his next project with the release of the song and video for "Tony" from the previous project, which is still a song to put on repeat. Heading up to the release of his 2014 mixtape King Louie had no singles leading up to it, but garnered much attention in the first weeks of being liberated. The "Tony" mixtape held the very popular "B.O.N., having released the video same date as the mixtape, that continues to be crowd pleaser during live performances. "Till I Meet Selena", "Live And Die In Chicago", and "Fuck N*gga", all picked up steam as time went on, with the addition of videos, brought more life these songs. With his own project out, we continued to hear songs he was featured on throughout the year. King Louie has continued to keep our attention by staying consistent.

Tink

Before the recent liberated records during Timbaland's interview with The Breakfast Club, Tink began the year with a new single and then the release of "Winter's Dairy 2". Many critics praised her ability to rap and sing on this mixtape with a stand out song being "Treat Me Like Somebody", plus trading raps with Lil' Herb on "Talkin' Bout". Throughout the year she kept busy collaborating with different artist and keeping her voice in the listeners ears, and flexing her lyrical ability on songs like "ABC Fantasies". About toward the mid year we heard of her working with Timbaland and news broke of her signing with his company, which was partnered with Epic. We soon got to hear what her and Timbaland collaboration sounded like on a record with Jay Z and Rick Ross, and then a record called "Around The Clock". There's been a anticipation for Tink that has kept the our ears open to her music.

Mick Jenkins

A artist who brings detailed lyrics with substance to the forefront, Mick Jenkins' year started off with a buzz continuing from the previous 2013 releases. Jenkins released the "Martyrs" before 14' which is a multi layered record, that gain even more attention with the video release. Leading up to his album release he drops a couple loose sleepers like "Forever" with Alex Wiley, and was featured on a number of songs. Mid year he aligned himself with Cinematic Music Group who holds artist such as Big KRIT, Smoke DZA, Joey Bada$$ and more. "Who Else" and "Jazz" visual were this years' featured songs and videos leading to the release of his album."The Water[s]" release, though long awaited, held much praised for it multiple entendres, emotional settings, deep mood, and messages. The addition of videos to songs like "Jazz", "Martyrs" leading into 14', and the latest "Dehydration" all caught notice with detailed story lines that are noted as some of the best visual this year.

Saba

A more known member of the PIVOT Gang, Saba started off 2014 with the first single from his album with "Westside Bound". He soon followed up with the single "401K", which gave personal experiences of dealing with harsh realities, plus two fan favorites "Burnout", and "Butter", which brought heavy attention and anticipation for "ComfortZone". Saba took his project to different cities, hitting many stages, building on his current audience. "Burnout", one of the more popular songs from his album, got a visual addition continuing the momentum of the record. One thing to note is the handling of many of the songs production, show his ability to drive multiple aspects of his own music.

Alex Wiley

High energy through flow with creative concepts. Wiley's year began with the release of four new songs, one of which he took on Master P's "Me Em Say UGH" with just as much energy. The Closed Sessions signee kept fan interest with one of his best singles "Own Man" which featured Mick Jenkins, and the follow up "Vibration". He has some of the most vocal fans who always seem to rally behind his releases. One to stray away from simple videos, he provides visual with striking display, some trippy induced visuals, others simply colorful scenes that hold the attention. Alex Wiley brought a celebration in the form of a mixtape called "Village Party" where every one was invited. The project produced many reviews with many holding it in high regard. Wiley's releases haven't ended, as he's recently dropped "Lil Stoner Boi" and "Booty Club (Goin Dumb)" which holds a hilarious story behind its creation.

Enter to win tickets to see an advance screening, held December 8th at 7pm, of Chris Rock's new movie "Top Five". Give us your top five picks of 2014 for a chance to win.

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(Contest Closed)

Winners will be randomly choosen. The location will be available to the winners of contest. Winners will receive reserved seats with a plus one.

Winners: Eloy Ramirez, Omar Cooper, Rob O'Brien, Antonio Turner and Andrew Chavez.