When the new millennium hit, what was your state of mind? For many, the time was marked with worry. Would Y2K really wipe out government and banking issues? Would things really change that much in the world? (It turns out that yes they would.)
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But for a brief time in February of 2000, there was a night to forget your troubles and worries and bask in the glow of music and pageantry. Here below, we wanted to revisit that time. More specifically, we wanted to highlight three Grammy Award-winning rappers from 2000 that we still often revisit today!
Eminem
From the end of the 1990s onward, it was Eminem’s world. At least when it came to rap music, that is. The controversial, eyebrow-raising lyricist sold millions of albums and generated even more opinions about his work. But in 2000, it was all just getting started for the Detroit rapper. He won the Grammy for Best Rap Solo Performance for his song “My Name Is” and he capped that off with the award for Best Rap Album for The Slim Shady LP.
The Roots
When rap music first began, it was all about the DJ. The turntables and the record samples were the spark that kicked the genre off. So when the Philadelphia-born live hip-hop band The Roots hit the scene, people wondered if the group would work. Well, Questlove and the band proved to have staying power and awards juice. The Roots won the Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group for their song about being on the road, “You Got Me”, featuring Erykah Badu and Eve.
TLC
The Atlanta-born trio TLC was known for their sharp tongues, catchy songs, and magnetic attitude. But because of the Grammy Awards’ penchant for strange category stacking, TLC won trophies for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal and Best R&B Song for “No Scrubs”. The group also won Best R&B Album for the LP that song was on, FanMail. It’s unclear how many people would categorize TLC as R&B, but it’s great they won the awards!
Photo by Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic
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