3 Rap and Hip-Hop Grammy Award Winners From 2002 We Still Hold Dear

While rap music has been the dominant art form on the planet for several decades now, the sonic style has also been evolving since the day it was born back in the early 1970s. But art doesn’t evolve on its own; it takes people to push it forward through the years.

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Here below, we wanted to highlight three of those people. At the turn of the 21st century, important songwriters and performers were helping to create the next generation of hip-hop’s lush soundtrack. Indeed, these are three rap Grammy Award winners from 2002 that we still know by heart.

Missy Elliott

In 2023, Missy Elliott made history by becoming the first female rapper to be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. But it was more than two decades before that when Elliott was impressing fans and taking home important trophies. Indeed, in 2002, the creative lyricist took home the Grammy Award for Best Rap Solo Performance for her single, “Get Ur Freak On”. She beat out artists like Afroman, DMX, Jay-Z, and Nelly for the accolade. What a legend!

OutKast

The Atlanta-born rappers OutKast took home two big awards at the 2002 Grammys. Yes, Big Boi and Andre 3000 grabbed trophies for both Best Rap Album for their LP Stankonia and Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group for their iconic single “Ms. Jackson”. For years, it was thought that hip-hop music from the South could never compete with that from New York City or even Los Angeles. But acts like OutKast proved that theory a big time failure over and over.

Eve

While music fans know the names Missy Elliott and OutKast today, the name Eve might not be as readily available or top of mind. But in the 2000s, Eve was an unstoppable force, a star of both films and songs. In 2002, Eve took home the Grammy for Best Rap/Sung Collaboration for her song “Let Me Blow Ya Mind” featuring rocker and pop star Gwen Stefani of No Doubt. Maybe Eve did it right—get in showbiz for a while, win awards, make an impact, and then retreat to normal life.

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