Kendrick Lamar Just Became Grammys Most Decorated Rapper
The rapper claimed his 27th Grammy and secured his place atop rap's all-time winners list
Trevor Noah let hip-hop's most combustible rivalry slip into the Grammys spotlight while hosting the 68th Annual Grammy Award. But it was Kendrick that he was addressing so he wisely stepped back. And why not!
Kendrick Lamar, one of the hottest American rappers collected five trophies out of the 9 nominations he received today at music's biggest night. Surpassing Jay-Z, Lamar has officially become the most awarded rapper in the ceremony's history as the five wins have brought his career to a total to 27 Grammys from 66 nominations, a statistical milestone that now places him alone at the summit of hip-hop's institutional recognition.
The night's haul included Best Rap Album for GNX, Record of the Year for Luther, his collaboration with SZA- which also earned Best Melodic Rap Performance- along with Best Rap Song for TV OFF and Best Rap Performance for Clipse's "Chains & Whips." Five nominations. Five wins. No theatrics required.
It was a familiar pattern. Just one year earlier, Lamar swept all five of his categories with Not Like Us, turning a diss track into a cultural event and leaving little doubt about his standing in contemporary rap. So, it makes total sense that Trevor Noah brought one of hip-hop's most talked-about rivalries onto the Grammy Awards stage, joking that Kendrick Lamar's feud with Drake made him think twice about roasting the rapper during the 68th annual ceremony.
"I actually thought about roasting you, and then I remembered what you can do to light-skinned men from other countries. Yeah, my delegation and I are still recovering from the pain. So I'm just saying congratulations."
Noah then went on to say that hip-hop beefs have "gone to a new level," pointing to the pointed Lamar-Drake feud and the hard-hitting 50 Cent documentary on Diddy in December.
" Like rappers are doing full-on detective work on your life. You beef with Kendrick, and he's investigating you and your crew," said Noah. "You beef with 50 Cent, and he'll make a full-part documentary exposing what a violent creep you've been your whole life. Things have changed. It was so much simpler when all you had to worry about was being shot," Noah added. "Now, they'll hurt your feelings."
Lamar's feelings hardly hurt: The rapper immediately accepted the award for best rap album. He waved off the significance with characteristic restraint. "It's hip hop as usual, man," he said. "I'm not good at talking about myself, but I express it through the music." Then, shifting the focus outward, he reaffirmed his long-held belief in the permanence of the culture itself: "Hip hop is gonna always be right he, we're gonna be in these suits and looking good. God is the glory."