A$AP Rocky Essentials

With Harlem swagger and an omnivorous sound that reflects influences from all over the map, A$AP Rocky arrived on the New York scene in 2011, along with his A$AP Mob crew. Much of it overseen by his late mentor A$AP Yams, the fashion-forward MC’s discography offers an ambitious vision of modern hip-hop, where a wild Skrillex track makes as much sense as a boom-bap posse cut with Kendrick Lamar and Joey Bada$$. And his sticky flow sounds as good pitched down in the DJ Screw homage “Purple Swag” as it does on the more representative “Peso.”