Good artists master their genre. Great artists defy it. When the musical categories are as diametrically opposed as hip-hop and country, the defiance becomes even more impressive.
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From awards and accolades to the ease with which they’ve slipped into a new musical realm, these hip-hop artists have proven that their artistry extends beyond preset categories and definitions.
Honorable Mention: Beyoncé
R&B, hip-hop, pop, country—Beyoncé is all genres. The Queen Bey returned to her Texan roots with her March 2024 album ‘Cowboy Carter.’ The singer infused her eighth studio album with country influences and artists alike, including collaborations with Dolly Parton, Willie Nelson, and banjoist Rhiannon Giddens. She dropped the first two singles off the record, “Texas Hold ‘Em” and “16 Carriages,” immediately following a 2024 Super Bowl commercial announcing her upcoming release.
“The joy of creating music is that there are no rules,” Beyoncé said in a press statement (via Billboard). “The more I see the world evolving the more I felt a deeper connection to purity. With artificial intelligence and digital filters and programming, I wanted to go back to real instruments, and I used very old ones. I didn’t want some layers of instruments like strings, especially guitars, and organs perfectly in tune. I kept some songs raw and leaned into folk.”
Lil Nas X
Rapper and songwriter Lil Nas X made waves in the musical community with his hip-hop/country crossover debut “Old Town Road.” The song features country-inspired imagery like horses, bull riding, Wrangler jeans, and the Marlboro Man. It became an instant success, spending a whopping 19 weeks on the Billboard Hot 100 chart — the longest number-one song in the chart’s history. The rapper signed with Columbia Records following his initial success.
Despite the track’s clear connection to the country genre, Billboard pulled “Old Town Road” from the Hot Country Songs chart in March 2019. The controversial move sparked conversations around racism within the country music industry. Lil Nas X continued to inspire larger social dialogue when he came out as gay at the June 2019 Glastonbury Festival, making him the first artist to do so while their record is charting at number one.
Jelly Roll
Jelly Roll’s career is a prime example of defying the odds and, in turn, definition. The Nashville artist spent most of his late teens and early adult years in and out of jail. He spent his sentences writing hip-hop songs, drawing inspiration from Southern rap groups like Three 6 Mafia. While he achieved minor success from a 2010 hip-hop track called “Pop Another Pill,” his big break would come a decade later in 2020 after he released an acoustic ballad called “Save Me.”
The singer’s distinctive twang made him a hit in the country world, and he quickly began raking in accolades for his new sound. Jelly Roll performed at the historic Grand Ole Opry for the first time in 2021. Two years later, in 2023, he won three CMT Music Awards for Male Video of the Year, Male Breakthrough Video of the Year, and Digital-First Performance of the Year.
Snoop Dogg
Snoop Dogg first publicly ventured into country music in the late 2000s, but his love of the genre existed long before that. He dedicated his ninth studio album, Ego Trippin, to Johnny Cash, whom the rapper called his “main man” and “a real American gangster.” The album features a cover of Everlast’s track “My Medicine,” on which Snoop Dogg collaborated with another country music legend (and fellow pot lover) Willie Nelson.
Nelson and Snoop Dogg reunited several years later for Nelson’s 2012 track “Roll Me Up and Smoke Me When I Die.” The performance garnered Snoop Dogg a CMA nomination for Vocal Event of the Year, though he lost to Kenny Chesney and Tim McGraw’s “Feel Like a Rock Star.” Snoop Dogg joined Nelson onstage to perform “Roll Me Up” at the country icon’s 90th birthday celebration in April 2023.
(Photo by JC Olivera/WireImage)
