Photo: Kevin Winter/Getty
The2023 Grammyscelebrated hip-hop’s 50th anniversary Sunday in the best way possible — with those who shaped the genre, and those who continue to shape the genre, all joining forces on one stage.
Before the special performance took place,Dr. Drewas honored with the inaugural Dr. Dre Global Impact Award. He spoke candidly about his influence in the genre, as well as the influence that the genre has had on him in turn.
“Hip-hop became a lifeline for me as a teenager growing up in Compton,” said the 57-year-old rapper and music producer, calling it an “entry point to do something I really love” and stressing how proud he was that it would “inspire the next generation.”
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“For five decades, hip-hop has not only been a defining force in music, but a major influence on our culture,” Harvey Mason Jr., CEO of the Recording Academy, shared when the performance was initially announced.
“Its contributions to art, fashion, sport, politics, and society cannot be overstated. I’m so proud that we are honoring it in such a spectacular way on the Grammy stage. It is just the beginning of our yearlong celebration of this essential genre of music.”
Hip-hop’s 50th anniversary will be celebrated on Aug. 11, the same day DJ Kool Herc held a back-to-school party at the Bronx’s Sedgwick Avenue in 1973.
LL Cool J touched about the upcoming event before the tribute began, telling the audience: “We wish we could have included every single hip-hop artist from 1973 to 2023, but that’s to be continued at a later date and time.”
The Recording Academy has specifically celebrated the genre since 1989, when it presented DJ Jazzy Jeff and The Fresh Prince (Will Smith) with the first-ever award for best rap performance, and invited them to perform the following year following theirboycott in 1989.
Before the 2023 Grammy Award for best rap album went to Kendrick Lamar’sMr. Morale & the Big Stepperson Sunday, Pusha-T, one of the nominees in the prestigious category for his albumIt’s Almost Dry,told PEOPLE in Decemberthat he first learned about his nomination from his wife,Virginia Williams.
“Hearing it back, and just bringing it back to the Grammy nomination, when I listened back to it, I’m like, ‘Man, I actually did make the best rap album of the year,’ " Pusha said. “Like, pure-rap album, most eventful rap album of the year. When I say rap — and I’m talking about the actual art — I actually, lyrically, murdered it.”
The 2023Grammy Awardsare airing live on CBS and Paramount+ Sunday night from the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles.
source: people.com
