These guys all have personal styles that influence and infect each other, but sometimes it also feels like they’re locked in a neverending battle to see who can come up with the most baffling, out-of-nowhere forms of self-presentation without losing their grassroots street support. Look at some of the city’s biggest rap stars at the moment: Middle-aged bad-joke craftsman 2 Chainz, soul-baring Auto-Tune gurgler Future, yammering helium-voiced button-pusher Young Thug.
