How XXL’s Freshman Covers Became Hip-Hop’s Annual Report: Every Class Since 2007

When XXL rolled out a cover in 2007 featuring Lupe Fiasco, Plies and Papoose under the banner “Leaders of the New School,” nobody framed it as a ritual. It landed as a moment, not a franchise. Eighteen years and 18 Freshman magazine covers later, that throwaway line has grown into one of hip-hop‘s most reliable annual rites of passage — a June appointment where careers are whispered into being and a fan-voted wildcard gets the stamp of mainstream attention.

“Leaders of the New School”

The Freshman Class has always been a blend of marketing sleight and cultural thermometer. Some years read like a who’s-who of future superstars; others are more a collage of regional sparks and industry bets. Either way, you can set your calendar to it: every June XXL unveils a dozen names it thinks the culture should care about, with one slot decided by fan ballot.

Look back through the visual history and you see how the franchise has learned to merchandise both identity and narrative. The 2009 cover literally stacks artists into three layered ensemble shots — a literal collage that felt like an attempt to squeeze density into a single frame. By 2011 the concept went playful and literal: Kendrick Lamar and Mac Miller appeared as pupils in a school tableau, a wink to the franchise’s origin story.

That reflex for reinvention shows up again and again. The 2013 spread leaned into comparison, asking whether Travis Scott, ScHoolboy Q and Logic’s cohort might already be G.O.A.T. material. Chance The Rapper turned the package into a style moment in 2014, posing in overalls with no shirt. Color became shorthand for mood in 2016 and 2017: an all-white party one year, an all-black crew against a red-drenched set the next.

Elsewhere, the lists themselves map a decade of where hip-hop was headed. The 2020 cover read like a snapshot of breakout youth: Polo G, Rod Wave, NLE Choppa, Lil Tjay and Mulatto were all on the fold. In 2021 the class included 42 Dugg, Coi Leray, Pooh Shiesty, Flo Milli and Rubi Rose, a mix that reflected the genre’s widening stylistic doorway.

As the format evolved it also broadened geographically and sonically. 2022 spotlighted Nardo Wick, Doechii, Saucy Santana, Babyface Ray and SoFaygo among others; 2023’s roster featured GloRilla, Central Cee, Finesse2Tymes and DC The Don, the latter claiming the 10th spot via votes. The 2024 selection leaned into upstate and regional ripples with names like BigXthaPlug, That Mexican OT, Bossman Dlow and Lay Bankz. Last year’s class included Samara Cyn, Ray Vaughn, YTB Fatt, BabyChiefDoIt, 1900Rugrat and Gelo — a reminder that the pipeline keeps replenishing itself.

Now the 2026 Freshman Class arrives, adding a new set of 12 emergent rappers to that lineage. The ritual remains the same: a careful edit of industry momentum, social virality and regional clout, distilled into a single cover and the accompanying portraits that will circulate across feeds for weeks.

“If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it,”

Speaking to the series’ visual continuity, photographer Travis Shinn has been the steady hand behind the camera for years. His lenses have helped codify the Freshman look, turning the covers into a recognizable annual aesthetic as much as a list.

There’s an odd comfort in the Freshman franchise’s predictability. It rewards memory as much as it spots momentum: scan the covers and you can sketch the arcs — who climbed, who plateaued, who became a household name and who remained a regional favorite. The covers themselves are a parallel history of hip-hop’s shifting taste-makers and fashions.

Take a look through the years and you’ll see the beats of the culture refracted through styling choices, color palettes and lineups — a decade-plus visual ledger that keeps one foot in hype and another in legacy.

Take a look at all of the XXL Freshman covers over the years below.

See Every XXL Freshman Class Over the Years