As we all know, artists like Chance The Rapper, Post Malone, Drake, Travis Scott, and A$AP Rocky are musical geniuses, but have you ever wondered if there was more to your favorite rappers?

Some of the most creative, refreshing music is floating around us in the form of full-length digital mixtapes. The best part? It's free and downloadable if you know where to look.

Apple Music and Spotify have made it easy to find obscure songs, but some music just can't be featured on these apps, and it all boils down to copyright issues. Thankfully, music publishing platforms like Soundcloud, LiveMixtapes and — my personal favorite — Datpiff exist to satisfy your urban street music needs.

A pro of this is that mixtapes feel more underground when they aren't on widely-known music platforms. Spotify Community

Urban Dictionary describes a mixtape as, "a selection of audio recordings taken from various musical groups and placed on one media (cassette, cd, mp3 playlist). It is often given as a gift to friends and used in the courting rituals of teenagers."

Back in the early days of rap music (late '70s and early '80s), DJ-mixed compilations of fresh tracks weaved with rapped lyrics erupted in clubs and parties, and these glorious mixes were a sensation among the younger population.

Yes, women were DJs too. Giphy

The earliest '90s kids are cool enough to have experienced the tail end of the Walkman cassette player trend, but what about the rest of us?

I hope I'm not the only one that has been convinced by this Giphy to go to my local thrift store to purchase a Walkman. Giphy

Nowadays, we have apps on our phones and sites on our computers for our music addictions. This makes the mixtapes easier to access and allows for us to play the music louder than it would play if listened to through old school headphones.

They keep tunes sounding fresh, attract new fans, give people something to talk about and provide a platform for artists to collaborate with big names in the industry. Also, mixtapes are sometimes (most of the time) more fun than albums.

Some highly-rated mixtapes to help kick-start your mixtape love:

Acid Rap — Chance The Rapper

August 26th — Post Malone

The Presentation — Drake

Part Time (songs that didn't make it to "AstroWorld") & Travis Scott Vs La Flame: The Wrath of Scott — Travis Scott

Best of A$AP Rocky — A$AP Rocky