3 Rap Grammy Award Winners From 1997 We Won’t Soon Forget

By 1997, rap music was taking over the world. Falling away were the rock songs and rock bands that had excited so many young people throughout the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s. Now, in the 1990s, it was a new musical style that was influencing the globe.

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Here below, we wanted to highlight three hip-hop acts that took home Grammy Awards in 1997. At a real turning point in music and popular culture, these were the people helping to make a shift. Indeed, these are three rap Grammy Award winners from 1997 we still know by heart.

LL Cool J

LL Cool J is one of the most significant figures in rap music history. What he did in the 1980s to popularize the genre will be studied throughout history. And in 1997 he was recognized for yet another contribution to rap music. He took home the Grammy Award that year for his single, “Hey Lover”, from his LP, Mr. Smith. LL has always been smooth, likable. And that vibe has always helped him garner attention. It happened in the late 1990s and it’s happening still today.

Bone Thugs-N-Harmony

When you think about folk music or even gothic folk music, often artists who carried around acoustic guitars come to mind. But in the mid-90s, the Cleveland, Ohio-born rap group Bone Thugs-N-Harmony were making their own form of gothic folk music. Indeed, the collective’s rap songs helped to reshape the way people thought of the genre. With so much vocal harmony that they almost sounded like a Bizarro Beach Boys, Bone Thugs won the Grammy for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group for their now-iconic track, “Tha Crossroads”.

The Fugees

The Fugees were at the center of the universe in the mid-1990s. They were one of (if not the) coolest musical groups on the planet. Blending island vibes with real authentic American rap music, The Fugees were something new. And it was all centered on the trio’s dynamo, Lauryn Hill. She could sing like Whitney Houston and rap like Tupac Shakur. She could have been a movie star, a Queen of some dignified land, or your artistic idol. Thanks to all that, The Fugees took home the trophy for Best Rap Album in 1997 for their brilliant LP, The Score.

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