Rap renegade turned billionaire business baron Jay-Z has been anointed the No. 1 rapper of all time by two renowned music publications.
Meanwhile, Nicki Minaj is being hailed by Rolling Stone and Vibe magazines as the best female emcee who ever lived.
The “Top 50 Greatest Rappers of All Time” list was compiled as part of a collaborative effort between Rolling Stone and Vibe to commemorate hip-hop’s 50th-anniversary celebration which will take up the entirety of 2023.
Predictably, the list incited unrest, debates, arguments and even insults on social media.
Some of the marquee names that span the top 50 include Ye West, André 3000, Ice Cube, LL Cool J, Rakim, Lauryn Hill and Black Thought.
On Wednesday afternoon, Feb. 8, 2023, the two mags unveiled the Top 10 list that includes Minaj, Snoop Dogg, Christopher “Notorious B.I.G.” Wallace, while Tupac Shakur, Eminem, Kendrick Lamar and Nas make up the top 5 along with Jay-Z at the top.
To rationalize putting Hov at the top of the all-time list, Rolling Stone enumerated the ways the husband of megastar Beyoncé and father of three put his unique fingerprint on music. It cited commercial success, critical acclaim, cultural impact and entrepreneurial greatness, along with Jay-Z’s “regal-scented rhymes that speak to the struggle.”
The magazine also said Jay had the numbers to back up their choice, including 14 No. 1 Billboard albums and 140 million record sales that eventually led to 24 Grammy wins. Jay-Z also earned his supremacy through “longevity, the breadth of his accomplishments, and what he’s meant to hip-hop from a musical, cultural and financial standpoint for the last three decades,” Rolling Stone wrote.
