Kill them successfully
Who is the biggest and best freshman ever? You can decide.
Word: Peter A. Berry, C. Vernon Coleman II, Kyle Eustice and Grant Rindner
Editor’s Note: This story appears in the 2025 summer XXL magazine, now on newsstands and is for sale on the XXL website.
For eighteen years, XXL freshman has been the cornerstone of hip-hop, showing some of the genre’s greatest talents early on. Since 2007, our mission is to carefully find potential stars who can be their own cover for a day. Every year, about 10 artists are printed in the history of XXL freshman year. It is not a precise science, but a lesson in social research.
Overall, Kendrick Lamar, J. Cole, Travis Scott, Playboi Carti, XXXTentacion, Future, Lil Durk, Nipsey Hussle, Lil Uzi Vert, Lil Uzi Vert, 21 Savage, 21 Savage, etc. will be the biggest act of Rap, with more success. Other rappers have continued to gain worship on their own. After that, there have even been some newborns who have passed away and their names continue to live in their main ways. So, who is the largest freshman alumnus of all time? We decided to let the fans decide.
With 194 artists as leaders of the new school, XXL launches the largest and best XXL newborn brackets ever to determine the final Valedictorian. To answer this question, brackets narrowed the list to the top 32 artists, making fans vote for the best freshman ever. Selection criteria include business success, influence, influence and popularity. This means you won’t see every freshman or freshman cover in the brackets, as there are only 32 rappers participating in the competition. The vote will begin on XXL’s Instagram page on July 21. Check out the game here.
Read more: Here’s what every XXL freshman brings to hip-hop
Check out the freshman who is competing for the crown below.
See artists attend the largest and best freshman ever
The 2025 Summer XXL Magazine magazine has artists competing for the largest and best XXL freshman of all time, available for purchase here. The question also includes interviews with Cardo Got Wings, all 12 members and producers of the 2025 freshman class, as well as conversations with Larry June, Aminé, Key Glock, Monaleo, Tech N9ne, N9ne, Nardo Wick, and more, plus work on the 2024 XXL XXL freshman class.
