There have been a lot of great singles this year, but not many great albums (in all genres). That being said, my three favorite rap albums so far (See if you can find my Tribe Called Quest reference):
(For beats)Daz Dillinger-The Dog Pound Gangsta LP (His rhyming is worse than usual, it never really was that great, but he is a VERY, VERY underrated producer, and these beats, especially "Rocc Wit Daz", brought back memories of mid 90's G-Funk)
(For rhymes)Felt 2-A Tribute to Lisa Bonet (Slug and Murs, together again, could make the shittiest beats work because they're so fun to listen to together. They play off each other like a duo should, but hold their own individually, especially on "Morris Day")
(For life)Krayzie Bone-Gemini: Good Vs. Evil ("Let's Live", "Lockdown Love", and "I Remember" were three of the best positive raps Krayzie's put down in a career of anger and bad attitudes, the last song a great tribute to Bone Thugs as a group)