For the entire first half of 2023, hip-hop was unable to generate an album that topped the Billboard 200 chart. However, while the genre had a bit of a rough time sales-wise, it still boasted many of the most impressive LPs of any genre this year.
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With many of its most iconic stars releasing projects, such as Travis Scott, Drake, Nas, and more, rap music was able to weather the storm of a down year, while rightfully honoring its widely-publicized 50-year anniversary.
This became particularly evident last Friday (November 10), when the Recording Academy unveiled the nominees for the Best Rap Album category. Full of diverse, robust LPs from artists of several different generations in rap, you really can’t go wrong when choosing a winner. Learn more about the five albums nominated below.
Her Loss, Drake & 21 Savage
Coming into Her Loss, released in November 2022, Drake and 21 Savage had crafted nothing but bangers in their few collaborative singles. Whether it was “Sneakin'” (2016), “Mr. Right Now” (2020), “Knife Talk” (2021), or “Jimmy Cooks” (2022), the duo showed a growing chemistry and an impressive synergy.
So, when Her Loss arrived less than five months after Drake’s solo LP Honestly, Nevermind (which includes “Jimmy Cooks”), it became immediately clear how potent of a tag team the two rappers had formed. With easygoing radio hits like “Rich Flex” and “Treacherous Twins” and moody, melodic cuts like “Hours In Silence” and “Privileged Rappers,” Drake and 21 Savage put together one of the best collaborative albums in recent memory for mainstream hip-hop.
On top of being nominated for Best Rap Album, Her Loss had two different songs become Grammy nominees as well. “Rich Flex” is nominated for Best Rap Song and Best Rap Performance, while “Spin Bout U” is nominated for Best Melodic Rap Performance. If Drake and 21 Savage win in any of these categories, they will earn their sixth and second Grammys respectively.
Michael, Killer Mike
Released in June, Atlanta icon Killer Mike’s new album Michael served as his first full-length solo effort in 11 years. To capitalize on this moment, he recruited a litany of marquee names to make guest appearances. This included André 3000, Future, CeeLo Green, Young Thug, 2 Chainz, Ty Dolla $ign, and more, as well as T.I., J.I.D., and Young Nudy for the deluxe edition.
When speaking on the LP in a recent interview with Variety, Mike called it “an origin story to the superhero Killer Mike,” as opposed to his previous work with the duo Run the Jewels, which he likened to a superhero group effort like the X-Men.
On top of Michael‘s Best Rap Album nomination, Killer Mike is also a nominee in the Best Rap Song and Best Rap Performance categories thanks to the song “Scientists & Engineers” featuring Eryn Allen Kane and fellow ATL natives André 3000 and Future. These are his first nominations ever as a lead artist, and any victory would give him his second Grammy trophy overall.
Heroes & Villains, Metro Boomin
After emerging in the mid-2010s as one of the best trap-rap producers in the industry, Metro Boomin began making a name for himself as an executive producer. Overseeing the instrumentation for LPs like Without Warning by 21 Savage and Offset (2017) and Double or Nothing by Big Sean (2017), Metro Boomin paved himself a way to put out a project of his own.
In 2018, he released his debut solo album Not All Heroes Wear Capes, where he produced all the songs and brought on MCs like Drake, Travis Scott, Gucci Mane, 21 Savage, Young Thug, Gunna, and more to do the rapping. Then, he delivered the sequel four years later titled Heroes & Villains, which came out in December 2022.
Heroes & Villains contains even more standout performances from high-profile acts, whether it be “Superhero” with Future and Chris Brown, “Creepin” with The Weeknd and 21 Savage (later adding Diddy to the remix), or “Trance” with Travis Scott and Young Thug.
On top of his Best Rap Album nomination, Metro Boomin is a nominee for Producer of the year, Non-Classcial. A win in either category would earn Metro Boomin his first ever Grammy award.
[RELATED: A Look at the Best Rap Song Nominees for the 2024 Grammys]
King’s Disease III, Nas
Nas’ King’s Disease album series has become a Best Rap Album nominee factory. For the 2021 Grammys, the first rendition of the series was not only nominated in the category, but it took home the trophy for Best Rap Album. Then, after Nas put out King’s Disease II in August 2021, it earned a Best Rap Album nomination at the 2022 Grammys. That time, though, it ended up losing to Tyler, The Creator’s Call Me If You Get Lost.
Now, though, for the third time in four years, Nas has earned another nomination in the Best Rap Album category. Consisting of 17 songs with zero feature appearances, King’s Disease III further hones in on the dynamic relationship between Nas and his executive producer Hit-Boy (who has executive produced Nas’ last six full-length projects).
On top of the Best Rap Album nomination, King’s Disease III helped Hit-Boy become a nominee in the Producer of the year, Non-Classcial category. If declared the winner for Best Rap Album, Nas would earn his second Grammy overall. This would certainly be a cathartic accomplishment for the New York legend, considering he’s lost the Best Rap Album award three times prior.
UTOPIA, Travis Scott
Returning from a nearly five year hiatus between LPs, Travis Scott reminded fans of his star-power with UTOPIA, which arrived on July 28. Showcasing his tremendous ear for production, his underrated ability to rap proficiently over multi-faceted beats, and his elite industry friendships, Scott’s latest work is some of the best in his entire career.
Whether it was “Meltdown” with Drake, “Skitzo” with Young Thug, or “I Know ?”, the UTOPIA track list presented a variety of ideas and approaches to hip-hop, uniting youthful audiences with Scott fans of old.
If crowned the winner, this would be Travis Scott’s first ever Grammy award. This would be a redemptive moment for him, as many fans disagreed with him losing the 2019 Best Rap Album Grammy to Cardi B and her album Invasion of Privacy.
