10 of the most Famous Rappers

Rapper 50 Cent in concert sporting Bling-Bling. Photo by Alex Const. Wikimedia Commons.

10 of the most Famous Rappers

Rap as a genre began at block parties in New York City in the early 1970s, when DJs began isolating the percussion breaks of funk, soul, and disco songs and extending them. MCs tasked with introducing the DJs and keeping the crowd energized would talk between songs, joking and generally interacting with the audience.

Over time, it became common for the MCs (or rappers, as they soon became known) to talk and rhyme over and in sync with the music. Initially dismissed as a fad, rap music proved its commercial viability in 1979 with the release of The Sugarhill Gang’s “Rapper’s Delight,” and then again in 1980 with Kurtis Blow’s “The Breaks,” a Top 5 hit that eventually went gold.

Nowadays, rap has become a genre that is common with the millennials and gen-zs. That being said, here are 10 of the most famous rappers of all time. Enjoy!

1. Tupac

Drawing Tupac. Photo by Gringolivier. Wikimedia Commons.

Tupac Amaru Shakur also known by his stage names 2Pac and Makaveli, was an American rapper and actor. He is considered by many to be one of the greatest rappers of all time. Much of Shakur’s work has been noted for addressing contemporary social issues that plagued inner cities, and he is considered a symbol of resistance and activism against inequality.

Shakur was born in the Harlem neighborhood of New York City but relocated to the San Francisco Bay Area in 1988. He later moved to Los Angeles in 1993 to further pursue his music career. By the time he released his debut album 2Pacalypse Now in 1991, he had become a central figure in West Coast hip hop, introducing social issues in the genre at a time when gangster rap was dominant in the mainstream.

2. Kendrick Lamar

Kendrick Lamar Duckworth is an American rapper, songwriter, and record producer. He is regarded as one of the most skillful and successful hip-hop artists of his generation.

Raised in Compton, California, Lamar embarked on his musical career as a teenager under the stage name K-Dot, releasing a mixtape that garnered local attention and led to his signing with indie record label Top Dawg Entertainment (TDE). He began to gain recognition in 2010, after his first retail release, Overly Dedicated.

The following year, he independently released his first studio album, Section.80, which included his debut single, “HiiiPoWeR”. By that time, he had amassed a large online following and collaborated with several prominent hip hop artists, including The Game, Busta Rhymes, and Snoop Dogg.

3. Eminem

Marshall Bruce Mathers III, known professionally as Eminem, is an American rapper, songwriter, record producer, record executive, film producer, and actor. He is consistently cited as one of the greatest and most influential rappers of all time and was labeled the “King of Hip Hop” by Rolling Stone magazine. In addition to his solo career, Eminem was a member of the hip-hop group D12.

He is also known for his collaborations with fellow Detroit-based rapper Royce da 5’9″; the two are collectively known as Bad Meets Evil. He has won numerous awards including fifteen Grammy Awards, eight American Music Awards, seventeen Billboard Music Awards, an Academy Award and an MTV Europe Music Award for Global Icon Award.

4. Snoop Dogg

Snoop Dogg Pre-Grammy Party on February 5th at the Hollywood Palladium. Photo by Connie Lodge. Wikimedia Commons.

Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr., known professionally as Snoop Dogg, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, producer, media personality, entrepreneur, and actor.

His music career began in 1992 when he was discovered by Dr. Dre and featured on Dre’s solo debut, “Deep Cover”, and then on Dre’s solo debut album, The Chronic. He has since sold over 23 million albums in the United States and 35 million albums worldwide. Snoop has 17 Grammy nominations without a win.

5. Nas

Nasir bin Olu Dara Jones, better known as Nas, is an American rapper, songwriter, record producer and actor. He is the son of jazz musician Olu Dara. Since 1994, Nas has released eight consecutive platinum and multi-platinum albums and sold over 25 million records worldwide.

Aside from rapping and acting, Nas is an entrepreneur through his own record label, retail sneaker store, and magazine publishing.

6. Jay-Z

Jay-Z at a concert in 2006. Photo by i am guilty. Wikimedia Commons.

Shawn Corey Carter, known professionally as Jay-Z, is an American rapper, songwriter, producer, entrepreneur, and record executive. Considered among the best rappers of all time, he is regarded as one of the world’s most significant cultural icons and has been a global figure in popular culture for over two decades.

Born and raised in New York City, Jay-Z first began his musical career after founding the record label Roc-A-Fella Records in 1995. He has won a total of 22 Grammy Awards, the most by a rapper, and holds the record for the most number-one albums by a solo artist on the Billboard 200, with 14.

7. Kanye West

Kanye Omari West is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, entrepreneur, and fashion designer. His musical career has been marked by dramatic changes in styles, incorporating an eclectic range of influences including soul, baroque pop, electro, indie rock, synth-pop, industrial, and gospel.

Over the course of his career, West has been responsible for cultural movements and progressions within mainstream hip hop and popular music at large. He has won a total of 21 Grammy Awards, making him one of the most awarded artists of all time and the most Grammy-awarded artist of his generation.

8. Cole

Jermaine Lamarr Cole is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and record producer. Born on a military base in Germany but raised in Fayetteville, North Carolina, Cole initially gained recognition as a rapper following the release of his debut mixtape, The Come Up, in early 2007.

Intent on further pursuing a solo career as a rapper, he went on to release two additional mixtapes. Self-taught on piano, Cole also acts as a producer alongside his hip-hop career, producing singles for artists.

9. Lil Wayne

lil wayne photographed by Chris Allmeid. Wikimedia Commons.

Dwayne Michael Carter Jr., known professionally as Lil Wayne, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record executive, entrepreneur, and actor. His career began in 1995, at the age of 12, when he was discovered by Birdman and joined Cash Money Records as the youngest member of the label.

Lil Wayne has sold over 110 million records worldwide, including more than 15 million albums and 37 million digital tracks in the United States, making him one of the best-selling artists of all time.

10. Drake

Aubrey Drake Graham, who records under the mononym Drake, is a Canadian singer, songwriter, and actor. He was born in Toronto, Ontario.

He first garnered recognition for his role as Jimmy Brooks on the television series Degrassi: The Next Generation. He later rose to prominence as a rapper, releasing several mixtapes like Room for Improvement. Drake has been the most consistent top rapper in the game.