Hip-hop has always had a love-hate relationship with the Grammys. In fact, the prestigious award show that’s catered to honoring the music industry’s most talented composers, songwriters and musicians turned a blind eye to rap for years. Some might say the Recording Academy has considered hip-hop the outcast of music in general, seldom recognizing the genre for what it truly represents: a cultural movement that goes against the status quo.
The Grammy Awards didn’t debut its first hip-hop category, Best Rap Performance, until 1989, even though the genre was born in 1973—the ceremony itself began in 1959. The Best Rap Performance award was also famously not televised, causing many of hip-hop’s biggest names to express outrage at the Academy’s decision. Despite being nominated, and ultimately winning the award, Will Smith (who was still known as the Fresh Prince at the time) & DJ Jazzy Jeff chose not to attend the ceremony, marking the first boycott of its kind in hip-hop.
Since then, there have been countless examples of rappers speaking out against the annual awards ceremony. Nicki Minaj’s 2023 gripe with how her hit single “Super Freaky Girl” was recategorized is further proof, though it was snubbed altogether once the nominees came out. The Barbie Queen still has never taken home a single golden gramophone despite being one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed rappers of all time.
Then there are others who go so far as hosting the Grammys. Queen Latifah was the first rapper to do so in 2005, and one of the select few who got inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five’s “The Message” was the first rap recording to receive this honor in 2020. Aside from the Queen and Flash, certain members of the hip-hop community have been collecting Grammys like Thanos sought to collect all of the Infinity Stones.
In doing so, this has led to a friendly feud amongst greats for the most Grammy wins by a rapper. With 89 nominations in total, Jay-Z is tied for first place for winning 25 Grammy awards. Ye is not too far behind at 76 nominations and with 24 wins.
Take a look at which rappers have come out on top with the most golden gramophones.