THE TIP In the summer of 2000, as Nelly was making the world safer for radio-friendly Midwest rap, Chi-town MC Reggie Codell sought to give edgier, underground, landlocked artists an outlet. With his local industry contacts, the 30-year-old opened the Tip, a North Chicago hip-hop hot spot that sells independent records alongside 106 & Park regulars. Codell prizes the production on the ''highly polished yet gritty'' CWAL Ballaz gangsta-rap compilation currently holding the No. 2 spot on the Tip's best-seller list and finds the content ''lyrically superior to most street rap nowadays.'' As if booty bumpin' could ever get old. -- KR
1 GOD'S SON Nas (Ill Will/Columbia)
2 NATION CITY CWAL Ballaz (CWAL Mob Recordings)
3 IT AIN'T SAFE NO MORE, Busta Rhymes (J)
4 ELECTRIC CIRCUS Common (MCA)
5 DAT'S HOW... Da Headbussaz (Hypnotize Minds)
6 GREATEST HITS PsychoDrama (Padded Room)
7 SO MANY PROBLEMS Grind Family (No Guts No Glory)
8 KINGS OF CRUNK Lil Jon & the East Side Boyz (TVT)
9 SNYPAZ Snypaz (Rap-A-Lot)
10 FREE AGENT Ric Jilla (Quicktabuss)
Week ending 1/21/03
