@Heriberto Vega

Audio

Welcome to WXVED: the hotspot for the coolest rap in the UK and across the world. Plugged into their own frequencies, these trailblazers explore the boundaries of melody and flow as they define hip-hop’s new landscapes. WXVED is always changing shape, so if you hear something you like, add it to your library.

If you’re after just the hits, this is where you’ll find them: a handpicked selection of hip-hop's biggest songs of the past few years. Our editors update this playlist regularly, so if you hear something you like, add it to your library.

To experience hip-hop in Spatial Audio with Dolby Atmos is to step inside the song. The samples, the beats, the sound of an MC’s voice and flow—all of that can be heard in its own space, and with stunning clarity. It’s a 3D listening experience where sound comes to you from all directions—the next leap forward in the evolution of recorded music. This handpicked playlist offers a revealing new look at hip-hop, placing the artistry in every song on full display.

All due respect, but there are times it feels like the dancers in hip-hop videos are working harder than the artists. Because like all serious dance, great hip-hop choreography is as demanding as any sport. Chosen by Apple Fitness+ Dance instructors LaShawn, Ben, and Jhon and our editors, these hip-hop and R&B tunes were selected to track to a dance-centric workout. The style and eras vary—old-school, contemporary, hardcore rap, Latin jams, and radio-friendly R&B—but the mood and energy remain up throughout. And while they made it with exercise in mind, nobody’s saying you can’t take it with you after your workout’s done.

Druggy, raw, slick, and surreal, Future’s singular sound helped to redefine 2010s street rap as something strange and almost avant-garde. Imagine trap as modern psychedelia, though still naggingly melodic. Future has a way of bending his voice into soulful, often sad shapes that are half-rapped and half-sung—epitomized by his 2017 blockbuster “Mask Off.” His unwavering self-assurance continues to define his work as he settles into middle age. Rather than mellowing with the years, he remains outspoken and unapologetic about his rock-star lifestyle and chemical excesses, as heard on 2022’s “WAIT FOR YOU” alongside Drake and Tems, and 2024’s addled “Like That” with Kendrick Lamar and Metro Boomin. Showing unusual staying power across the shifting sands of smaller trends and wider eras alike, Future has lost none of his heavyweight status in the years since his groggy, grandiose breakthrough—whether he’s casually dropping labyrinthine mixtapes or commanding superstar cameos.