Xzibit Essentials

West Coast rapper Xzibit has a barrelling baritone, a pugnacious, growling demeanour, and a craft-conscious pen game. On "Paparazzi", from his 1996 debut album, At the Speed of Life, X took an aggressive stance on sycophantic rappers, deriding money-and-fame obsessions with dense bars over melancholy strings. Saafir and Ras Kass join X on the classic "3 Card Molly", a furious exercise of lyrical prowess, its deep punchlines matched by its menacing energy. Xzibit was a star by the time he joined Eminem for Dr. Dre's 1999 banger "What's the Difference", a jaunty, horn-driven slab of braggadocio.