Industry Execs on the Grammys’ Evolving Relationship With Rap and Whether Cardi Can Win It All

On the eve of the 2019 Grammy nominations, four industry leaders gathered for a conversation about what The Recording Academy can do better, respecting the history of hip-hop and whether Cardi will win it all.

Billboard

Amazing Insights regarding the Relationship of Hip-Hop and the Grammy’s…

When the Grammy Awards return to Los Angeles from New York on Feb. 10, the ceremony will signal a momentous occasion: the 30th anniversary of the first Grammy for best rap performance, won by DJ Jazzy Jeff and Will “The Fresh Prince” Smith for “Parents Just Don’t Understand.”

From the beginning, the Grammys have struggled with giving hip-hop its proper due: Smith and DJ Jazzy Jeff boycotted the show when they learned their award presentation wouldn’t be televised. To address such criticisms, The Recording Academy has taken steps that include last year’s addition of a rap nomination review committee. The 2017 nominees and winners came closer to reflecting rap’s established and emerging players, but it’s now approaching 15 years since a rap release — OutKast’s 2003 double LP, Speakerboxxx/The Love Below — won album of the year.

Just before nominations for the 61st Grammy Awards were announced on Dec. 7, Billboard sat down with four industry executives offering their takes on repairing rap’s relationship with the Grammys, the evolution from trend to genre and their favorite moments in hip-hop: iHeartRadio syndicated morning personality Kurt “Big Boy” Alexander; Spotify head of urban music Carl Chery; Sony/ATV Music Publishing senior director Jennifer Drake; and Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada senior A&R executive Erica Grayson.

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