There's a lot of artists who I prefer over Lupe, but I can't really bring empirical evidence that would put them above Lupe other than for subjective reasons.
Anyways up next

If you're a fan of multi syllabic rhyming than look no further, this guy's rhyme patterns (lol) are top notch and he's easily one of the best multi syllabic rhymers in rap next to guys like Pun, Diabolic, Az, Em, sadly he's overlooked by most Hip Hop heads.
He also has one of the best flows that is incredibly smooth and his wordplay is phenemonal, in his first album and second one (which was originally a mixtape that got pushed into an album) he has hints of being a battle mc in him by mostly focusing on clever wordplay, he switches it up on Sono and becomes more of a "conscious" rapper.
Despite him being a top notch mc, he's definitely not for everyone and some may label him as whiney (especially on MOTU), where he constantly critiques the mainstream of being sellouts and lacking original talent. Though he had a point at the time as the mainstream was filled with Jiggy crap, where rappers like P diddy were reigning supreme, just before Eminem really took the nation by storm. Following later albums, most notably SONO, he switches up his style to being introspective (perhaps a bit too much) and talks about various topics like religion, the state of Hip Hop, the black community.
He definitely outshines the production in his albums, though none of them are really stellar to begin with, MOTU having a jazzy sound reminiscing of NY during the Illmatic era. This was off course before the midwest had ny sort of real influence yet, or had a particular sound to them. Project Fetus is his first solo "album", but it feels more like a really put together mixtape, with a bag of rhymes that'll keep you satisfied if you're the type that likes to listen to a rapper shred a beat or believe technicalities>content. His album Sono, is where he really switches up his style and goes full conscious route, but still rips the beats without any hesitation or regard for others.
He has a decent sobering delivery which works well for many of the tracks most notably Decepticons, where he speaks about his past life and betrayals he may have encountered. Though the beats are inconsistant in Sono, some where great, but some have you scratching your head why he picked that beat for said song. Regardless he's also another mc that can make a beat work through mic skills alone, and outshines the beats 90 percent of the time