Hip-Hop's 50 Greatest Animated GIFs

The funniest byte-sized rap moments.

A while back, we dropped A History of the 50 Greatest Animated GIFs of All Time—a feature that explored and explained the history of one of the Internet's most endlessly entertaining features. But since that post focused on GIFs from all across the Internet, it didn't cover a niche area we can't seem to get enough of: Hip-Hop GIFs! Since most GIFs don't provide any info, context, or set-up, they require the user to be familiar with the situation as they laugh at the punchline to a joke they already know. In other words, they're custom-made for the hip-hop nation. That's why Complex is proud to present Hip-Hop's Greatest Animated GIFs of All Time.

Chingo Bling Says "Eff You!"

First and foremost, fuck you. Yeah you, Complex commenter. We know, we forgot some awesome GIF that "everybody" (read: you and your boys) loves. We'll be the first to admit that this list won't cover every GIF ever, and that's because it's not supposed to. It's our favorite GIFs. And anyone who has a problem with that can shit on us in the comments. We promise not to cry.

ODB Roar

R.I.P. ODB. Brooklyn Zoo!

Wavy

A wavy Biggaveli reminds us why the rap game needs him. Free Max B.

GTFOH!

And to think, this dude once got a recording contract from a legitimate label to put out an actual album. It hurts our soul, it does.

Boom!

This was taken from a recent Nike ad but it's obviously an instant classic. BOOM!

Ayo!

You ever post something somewhere and forget to write #Pause? Yeah, well, do that shit on a forum and everyone will be ready to put you on blast with this little gem. That's why we always remind everyone to use protection. #Pause

Dame Dash Sigh

Pretty sure this is exactly what Dame did when he heard Biggs got arrested.

Pharrell Wink

What can we say? Ladies love Skateboard P. So why try and charm a shorty when responding online when you can have P do it for you? Also...pause on this whole blurb.

Snoop Dogg Bounce

Whenever the bank sends us that email letting us know our direct deposit went though, we wish we could respond with this GIF.

Chicken Noodle Soup Kid

Making fun of white people's inability to get funky with it is always a surefire way to get easy laughs. The fact that the clip is from a Kidz Bop ad, the kid looks like he's 12, and he's doing the "Chicken Noodle Soup" dance makes it all the more awesome.

KRS-One's LOL

LOL, smiley face, LOL, smiley face. How awkward is KRS-One when he's cheesing?

Diddy's Ballin!

Jim Jones tryna balance money on his head is a perfect example of why we were so happy when Dip Set reunited.

2Pac's Thug Passion

Just about every GIF on here is from the Aughts, but we're happy to have this classic Pac moment as he fiends for a chick he can't have. It's pretty much what we do every day at work while putting together posts like these. R.I.P. Tupac Shakur.

Joe Budden Pumps It Up

We're guessing Crooked I, Royce Da 5'9", and Joell Ortiz probably didn't see this before they decided to form a group with Joey so that they could make "real hip-hop."

The Ski Mask Way

The gulliest GIF on here, we reserve the right to post this anytime anyone on a sneakerhead forum stunts with pics of exclusive kicks we don't have. You've been warned.

Math vs. Dose

Wanna see someone get decked without having to hear a bunch of forgettable raps? Here's the GIF for you.

Jay-Z Ehhhh

Jay's "Ehhhh" isn't the funniest GIF, but it's the perfect response after someone hits you with a corny comeback or says something that's suspect.

Rick Ross Bounce

Rick Ross will never be Biggie to us, but there's no denying that his headbop being played on an infinite loop is kind of...hypnotizing (#Pause).

Drake Quits

When you read Drake's lips it looks like he could be saying, "I knew it." But we can't help but think he said, "I quit!" given his body language, which suggests dude was fuckin' pissed for being shunned by MTV. But damn Drake, didn't you get the memo? Justin Bieber is unstoppable.

DAMNNNNN!!

One of countless classic moments from Friday.

WTF Cudi?

Cudi needs a timeout because this kind of behavior is unacceptable.

The Dame Dash Dance

You know we had to have the Dame Dash dance. After all, his dancing and pouring champagne on models was as integral to the Roc-A-Fella dynasty as Jay-Z's rapping. Well, maybe not that integral. We sure found it amusing, though.

The Diddy Bop

When it comes to Diddy, this is what it looks like when you're fucking with them white folks. For any of your friends, if you ever catch them doing this dance it probably means they fucked your girl or did some other super disrespectful shit.

Lil Wayne Spills His Drank

Honestly, we're kind of surprised everyone loves this GIF. If you really wanted to make Wayne look bad all you have to do is post this.

Roc Boys Salute

Of Diddy's many music video cameos, his "Roc Boys" appearance is the best one. And mostly because of this epic celebration handshake.

Cam'Ron "C'mon, Son" Face

Cam'ron made this face when someone asked if he was still a member of Dipset, a crew he founded. We use this face when Bow Wow says his latest mixtape had a million downloads.

Drake's First Stiffy

Taken from a scene in Degassi where Drake's paralyzed character Jimmy Brooks notices that he can wiggle his toes again, this scene was meant to be uplifting. But taken out of context and into a one-second clip, it looks like Drake just hit puberty. Mazel tov, little buddy!

Nicki Minaj's Face

*Blankest stare*

C'mon, Son!

Everyone from 50 Cent to Trey Songz to Ghostface has done a "C'mon, son!" promo, but none tops the original version by the term's creator, Ed Lover. So while Staples has The Easy Button, hip-hop fans have the "C'mon, son!" GIF.

Cudi Jerking It

The funniest part about this whole thing is the very last shot of Cudi's grill, which makes it look like he just...ah, fuck it. Pause this whole thing.

Rick Ross Dancing

Watching Ross dance reminds us why Rozay has a better chance at becoming Big Meech than he does of becoming M.C. Hammer.

Busta Busts Through

Most GIFs are based on clips from videos you've seen a bunch of times before, but this GIF was created using a scene from some horrible movie Busta made with Xzibit that we never bothered to watch. Still, it's funny to see Busta unleash the dungeon dragon and punch some dude through the glass.

T.I. Plays Tony Yayo

Could this be the real reason why G-Unit dissed T.I. on "You So Tough?"

Kanye's Hands

Ye don't need your pussy bitch, he got bigger problems. He's locked in a custody battle for his inner child and he's starting to go a little crazy.

Dip Set Champagne Shower

Given that they popularized phrases like "Pause" and "No Homo," they should know that pouring champagne on another man is a no-no unless you just won a chip.

Obama Brushes The Dirt Off His Shoulder

In one brief brush-off, then-Senator Obama took the high road in addressing political opponents who were attacking him during his 2008 Presidential Election run. And you never thought that hip-hop would take it this far!

50 Cent SMH

Here's the kind of thing we'd hit people with when they try to make dumbass arguments like "Ja Rule's gonna make a comeback!"

Hammer vs. Materazzi

For better or worse, the Hammer dance will always be an immortal part of hip-hop culture. Meanwhile, the most epic part of the 2006 World Cup was probably when French soccer star Zinedine Zidane headbutted Marco Materazzi. Put them together and you get one bizarre GIF.

Eff Yo Thread!

This is what Cam'ron does to anyone who mentions his pause-worthy debut album cover.

Jigga Bop

The fact that one of the greatest rappers of our time has a headbop that's way more awkward than than a 40-year-old British comedian's headbop, has us convinced that Hov's just pretending to like Chris Martin's music in order to broaden his appeal and maybe get it poppin' with Gwyneth.

Drake Falls (Stage)

We feel bad for Drake, and not just because he missed a lot of performances thanks to this spill. We feel bad because we hear tearing your ACL hurts a lot, so re-tearing it probably hurts a lot more. But then again, that's what makes it so funny! That's the thing about Drizzy—his whole existence is GIF-worthy. To wit: this GIF is funny, but the next one....

Drake Falls (Degrassi)

...is drop-dead hilarious. What's that old saying about how art imitates life? Yeah, that counts even if said "art" is Degrassi.

Rosa Acosta Splits

Some (mostly the French) say the Mona Lisa is beautiful. Well, we never took art history, but to us, a GIF of Ms. Acosta stretching has got to be one of the most beautiful images ever captured.

Hat Spin

Every time we watch this clip and see dude's hat in the air we think to ourselves, in the immortal words of Chris Rock, "They spinning! They spinning!"

Scarface's Wink

Scarface has never seemed to really care about commercial appeal and upbeat music, choosing to make dark and gloomy songs instead. That's why his fourth wall-breaking wink in the very NSFW "High Notes" video was so out of character, so spontaneous, and ultimately, so hilarious.

Nelly's Tip Drill

Stylin' On You

Even as Niks spends his days collecting coins at a toll booth or mopping bathroom floors, he can always immerse himself in the warm memories of becoming the first rapper to ever get punched in the face on camera. All you aspiring Smack DVD rappers who still rhyme about having guns bigger than lawn mowers, watch for the hook.

Rick Ross Gets Excited

The majority of GIFs have no setup—only a money shot. This one has an extensive setup. But it's worth the wait. Trust us.

50 Cent's Laughs And Drives Off

50's "Laugh Off" is the perfect response to any and everything. Someone says something funny, you can respond with this. Someone says something corny, you can still respond with this. Someone responds with this? You can respond with the backwards version. And then they can respond with the Kermit/Bert version. Next thing you know, you're in an infinite loop of hilarity—which is exactly what GIFs are supposed to be.

U Mad!

Cam'ron beating O'Reilly at his own game (political theater disguised as intellectual debate) is a moment the hip-hop nation shares in its absurd glory. Even if the caption wasn't there (though it's effective) none of us would need to be reminded of what Cam said to O'Reilly. More importantly, when you shut someone down for whatever reason online, this is the ultimate nail in the coffin.

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