This changing of the guard coincided with the splintering of the Re-Up Gang, a crew that dominated the streets and message boards alike with a trilogy of releases that stamped them as mixtape Gods and standard-bearers for street rap.

However, this shift toward a spirit of independence also altered how people consume music, as well as how fans differentiate a mixtape and an album, a line that would forever be blurred after 2008, the year when online media, independent blog sites and curators replaced the streets and the mixtape DJ as the arbiters of what was credible, niche and cool. In contrast to the late 90s and early aughts, when massive marketing and promotional campaigns signaled the impending release of a major label album months ahead of schedule, the past decade has been defined by a more streamlined, D-I-Y approach, with even the biggest and most bankable stars in music shunning the industry red-tape and opting to deliver music whenever and however they felt like it. With the evolution of technology, the internet and the music industry as a whole, the process and pretenses under which artists record and release their music in 2018 is as fluid as ever. The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of any other agency, organization, employer or company.

Hell hath no fury the clipse zip