*Winners Bold & Italicized*
1996
Original Nominees and Winner
2Pac – Me Against the World
Bone Thugs-n-Harmony – E 1999 Eternal
Ol' Dirty Bastard – Return to the 36 Chambers: The Dirty Version
Skee-Lo – I Wish
Naughty By Nature - Poverty's Paradise
1997
Original Nominees and Winner
2Pac – All Eyez On Me
A Tribe Called Quest – Beats, Rhymes & Life
Coolio – Gangsta's Paradise
LL Cool J – Mr. Smith
Fugees - The Score
1998
Original Nominees and Winner
Missy Elliott – Supa Dupa Fly
Wyclef Jean – Wyclef Jean Presents The Carnival
The Notorious B.I.G. – Life After Death
Wu-Tang Clan – Wu-Tang Forever
Puff Daddy & The Family - No Way Out
1999
Original Nominees and Winner
A Tribe Called Quest – The Love Movement
Big Punisher – Capital Punishment
Jermaine Dupri – Life in 1472
Mase – Harlem World
Jay Z - Vol 2...A Hard Knock Life
2000
Original Nominees and Winner
Busta Rhymes – E.L.E. (Extinction Level Event): The Final World Front
Missy Elliott – Da Real World
Nas – I Am…
The Roots – Things Fall Apart
Eminem - The Slim Shady LP
2001
Original Nominees and Winner
DMX – ...And Then There Was X
Dr. Dre – 2001
Jay-Z – Vol. 3... Life and Times of S. Carter
Nelly – Country Grammar
Eminem - The Marshall Mathers LP
2002
Original Nominees and Winner
Eve – Scorpion
Ja Rule – Pain Is Love
Jay-Z – The Blueprint
Ludacris – Back for the First Time
OutKast - Stankonia
2003
Original Nominees and Winner
Ludacris – Word of Mouf
Mystikal – Tarantula
Nelly – Nellyville
Petey Pablo – Diary of a Sinner: 1st Entry
Eminem - The Eminem Show
2004
Original Nominees and Winner
50 Cent – Get Rich or Die Tryin'
Missy Elliott – Under Construction
Jay-Z – The Blueprint 2: The Gift & the Curse
The Roots – Phrenology
OutKast - Speakerboxxx/The Love Below
2005
Original Nominees and Winner
Beastie Boys – To the 5 Boroughs
Jay-Z – The Black Album
LL Cool J – The DEFinition
Nelly – Suit
Kanye West - The College Dropout
2006
Original Nominees and Winner
50 Cent – The Massacre
Common – Be
Missy Elliott – The Cookbook
Eminem – Encore
Kanye West - Late Registration
2007
Original Nominees and Winner
Lupe Fiasco – Lupe Fiasco's Food & Liquor
Pharrell – In My Mind
The Roots – Game Theory
T.I. – King
Ludacris - Release Therapy
2008
Original Nominations and Winner
Common – Finding Forever
Jay-Z – Kingdom Come
Nas – Hip Hop Is Dead
T.I. – T.I. vs. T.I.P.
Kanye West - Graduation
2009
Original Nominations and Winner
Jay-Z – American Gangster
Lupe Fiasco – Lupe Fiasco's The Cool
Nas – Untitled
T.I. – Paper Trail
Lil Wayne - Tha Carter III
2010
Original Nominations and Winner
Common – Universal Mind Control
Flo Rida – R.O.O.T.S.
Mos Def – The Ecstatic
Q-Tip – The Renaissance
Eminem - Relapse
2011
Original Nominations and Winner
B.o.B – B.o.B Presents: The Adventures of Bobby Ray
Drake – Thank Me Later
Jay-Z – The Blueprint 3
The Roots – How I Got Over
Eminem - Recovery
2012
Original Nominations and Winner
Lupe Fiasco – Lasers
Jay-Z and Kanye West – Watch the Throne
Nicki Minaj – Pink Friday
Lil Wayne – Tha Carter IV
Kanye West - My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy
2013
Original Nominations and Winner
2 Chainz – Based on a T.R.U. Story
Lupe Fiasco – Food & Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album Pt. 1
Nas – Life Is Good
Rick Ross – God Forgives, I Don't
The Roots – Undun
Drake - Take Care
2014
Original Nominations and Winner
Drake – Nothing Was the Same
Jay-Z – Magna Carta Holy Grail
Kendrick Lamar – Good Kid, M.A.A.D City
Kanye West – Yeezus
Macklemore and Ryan Lewis - The Heist
2015
Original Nominations
Iggy Azalea – The New Classic
Common – Nobody's Smiling
Eminem – The Marshall Mathers LP 2
Childish Gambino – Because the Internet
Wiz Khalifa – Blacc Hollywood
ScHoolboy Q – Oxymoron