His beats are crazy soulful . His lyrics are lacking but the producing makes up for that. I think he is one of the best but not THE best. Alchimest, Premier, Havoc and Just Blaze are better then him. Also I think Heatmakerz are keepin it fresh. Still Kanye is bringing summin new to hip-hop and is bringing some of the better beats latley. And with talk of him getting his own label things can only get better.