While countless end-of-year lists circulate each December, few captured hip hop’s devotion to lyricism like the Genius “2025 In Review.” Despite narratives suggesting otherwise, the data show that 2025 was a strong year for both legacy and modern hip hop. More than half of Genius’s top artists were hip-hop acts, including Kendrick Lamar, Drake, Eminem, Playboi Carti, and Kanye West.
Kendrick Lamar claimed the top lyric of the year with a moment from “Not Like Us,” the viral opening line “Ayy, Mustard on the beat, ho,” as the song surpassed 17 million page views on Genius. The track further cemented Kendrick’s continued dominance with fans and lyric seekers.
Clipse also made a major impact with their comeback album Let God Sort Em Out, their first release since 2009, produced by Pharrell. The group earned both the Top Verse and Top Annotation of the Year. Malice’s verse on “F.I.C.O.” took Verse of the Year for its layered numerical wordplay tied to street narratives and pop culture references.
Clipse’s “The Birds Don’t Sing” delivered the top annotation, with Malice sharing the deeply personal meaning behind the line referencing his late father’s phone password, underscoring how storytelling continues to drive hip hop’s cultural power.