The sophomore jinx is a feared slump both for artists and fans alike. When an album has a certain degree of success, in terms of quality, expectations are raised exponentially for the second go-round. For some artists, this is welcomed pressure in that it forces them to craft an even tighter and more polished sound. For others, it is a recipe for disaster that ultimately results in them falling flat on their faces.

Several factors contribute to the sophomore jinx, from internal to external sources. An artist may become complacent from the positive reception of the debut, the label may rush out a second effort in order to strike while the iron’s hot (word to X), and others may just be unable to handle the pressure to perform. With J. Cole’s sophomore effort just around the corner, and fans all over the world hoping he lives up to the buzz surrounding Born Sinner, we think it might be useful to look at five other albums that were able to avoid the dreaded sophomore slump. Each album differs in context and most of them were not as commercially successful as their predecessors, but they are still triumphs because they show artists rising above the pressure and maintaining their integrity.

Nas – It Was Written (1996)

Nas had released what would go on to be widely-considered one of the greatest albums in hip-hop history with Illmatic two years prior. It Was Written moved away from the raw sound of Nas’ debut in favor of a slightly more mainstream reach. Because of this, the album was initially panned by critics as a departure from what made Nas great. In hindsight, most of those criticisms fell by the wayside and It Was Written went on to be considered one of Nasir’s best efforts.

Eminem – The Marshall Mathers LP (2000)

Marshall Mathers had taken the rap game by storm in 1999 with the success of the Slim Shady LP. For his sophomore effort, Em decided to forgo much of the cartoonish imagery from his debut in favor of  darker, more introspective lyrical content. Despite the fact that the album’s misogynistic content garnered massive scrutiny by activists, the Marshall Mathers LP proved to be a hit with fans and critics alike and is considered by many to be Eminem’s best.

Brother Ali – The Undisputed Truth (2007)

Following a poorly-circulated album three years earlier with Rites of Passage, Ali delivered his proper Rhymesayers debut in Shadows on the Sun in 2003. Shadows was widely-praised and four years later Ali would follow-up with the Undisputed Truth. Produced entirely by Ant of Atmosphere, the album shifted its focus from the battle raps and introspection found on Ali’s debut to a more global, political view. “Uncle Sam Goddamn” was extremely critical of the US government and ultimately got Ali kicked off a 2007 tour sponsored by Verizon. Ali addressed the situation on “Second Time Around,” saying, “Verizon dissed me too, ‘cause I was too political.”

Outkast – ATLiens (1996)

In 1993, Big Boi and Andre 3000 took a $15,000 advance from LaFace Records and recorded Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik. The album encompassed the southern youth lifestyle at the time and was largely praised by critics. For their sophomore effort, Outkast expanded on their sound, creating much broader, spacier sounds. ATLiens also branched out lyrically, with more introspection from both men. While it didn’t propel them into mainstream fame (that would happen next with Stankonia), the album was more polished and mature and stands out as a pillar in the group’s catalog.

Clipse – Hell Hath No Fury (2006)

It took four years of label hell for Malice and Pusha to capitalize on their platinum-selling Lord Willin album. After a trio of mixtapes under their belt, they returned to the rap game with an angry, laser-focused product. With production handled entirely by the Neptunes, the Thorton brothers unleashed tales of coke, industry frustrations and some occasional stunting just for good measure. While Hell Hath No Fury failed to live up to the commercial success of their debut, it more than made up for with lyricism and consistency. The album is regarded by most — including Pusha T himself — as the Clipse’s masterpiece.

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Andre 3000 has never been known to spit a whack verse. Ever since Outkast’s debut album Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik, Andre 3000 a.k.a Dre or 3 Stacks has been spitting vicious flows, changing up his style over the years, but remaining one of the premier lyricists in the game. His storytelling prowess in particular is unique and unmatched. Check out his ten best verses below.

10.) UGK – International Players Anthem

This is a track that everyone is familiar with: the “International Players Anthem.” Out of everyone on this track, I think Dre had the best verse–no disrespect to the late great Pimp C. He spits this verse as if he were having a conversation with his homies, and they were trying to convince him to not get married. It all meshed well, and Dre did his thing with this one!

9.) Goodie Mob feat. – Thought Process

As Andre closes out the opening track of Goodie Mob’s debut album Soul Food (1995), he speaks on the daily struggles and issues in this world. He goes on to explain that he was only living for the day, and not the future. Andre 3000 did a great job of capturing this audience with this intriguing verse.

8.) Andre 3000 – A Life In The Day of Benjamin Andre

This is a verse that summarized his whole career. It was the outro of the only work that could be chalked up as a solo project– The Love Below (2003). He discusses his relations with Erykah Badu, Outkast, cars, and everything else that he hadexperienced throughout his adult life. Although we never got the completed version of this track, it still remains as one of his best verses.

7.) Outkast – ATLiens

One of the most timeless Outkast tracks of all time. The hook is a classic, but Andre’s verse takes the track to another level.

6.) Outkast – Da Art of Storytellin’ (Part 1)

Here, Dre tells the story of a girl he knew named Sasha: He was close friends with her, but they ended up getting older and grew apart. He later found out that Sasha was with a man who was treating her wrong. Dre hoped that one day he would see Sasha again, but she was found dead, seven months pregnant. It’s not just the drama of the story, but the way that Andre phrases it that makes this one of the best story tracks of all time. “It’s like that now, you better gon get the hump up out ya back now. It’s bout 4, 5 cats off in my ‘Lac now.”

5.) Big Boi feat. Andre 3000– Royal Flush

Now this track was only about 3 minutes long, but Andre shines through a full two of them. Dre pretty much drove the car on this one, and Big Boi and Rae (also featured) took the backseat.

4.) Outkast – Return Of The G

After taking the hiatus from weed and alcohol before ATLiens, Andre changed his style of dress, which led to people questioning his sexuality. With this verse, he addressed everything that was going on, as well as all that is buried in the word “gangster.”

3.) Outkast – D.E.E.P.

People often forget this track when they refer to Andre’s greatest verses, but listen: the way he slaughtered this beat was just unfair! He came in with a tongue twisting flow and witty bars and didn’t stop:“D.E.E.P., you want to go D.E.E.P., I’ll take ya D.E.E.P., you know you f*cked up when you let my mind creep.”

2.) Outkast – Babylon

In the first verse of this track, Andre 3000 speaks on how his mother was on heavy drugs when she was pregnant with him. Although his first verse was only 40 seconds deep, he spoke about a lot in that short period of time. “I came into this world high as a bird, from second hand cocaine powder. I know it sounds absurd. I never tooted it, but its in my veins.”

1. ) Outkast – Elevators

This is Andre 3000′s greatest lyrical performance of all time. The way he tells the story of seeing someone from high school was amazing. At the time, Outkast wasn’t as rich as everyone thought they were. They had a hit album, but they were still going through the same daily struggles as everyone else. “True, I got more fans than the average man, but not enough loot to last me ’til the end of the week. I live by the beat, like you live check to check.”

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