| Grammy Award for Best Rap Album | |
|---|---|
 Michael by Killer Mike is the most recent recipient | |
| Awarded for | Quality albums with rapping |
| Country | United States |
| Presented by | National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences |
| First awarded | 1996 |
| Last awarded | Killer Mike, Michael (2024) |
| Most awards | Eminem (6) |
| Website | grammy.com |
The Grammy Award for Best Rap Album is an award presented to recording artists for quality albums with rapping at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards.[1] Honors in several categories are presented at the ceremony annually by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to "honor artistic achievement, technical proficiency and overall excellence in the recording industry, without regard to album sales or chart position".[2]
In 1995, the Academy announced the addition of the award category Best Rap Album.[3] The first award was presented to the group Naughty by Nature at the 38th Grammy Awards the following year. According to the category description guide for the 52nd Grammy Awards, the award is presented for "albums containing at least 51% playing time of tracks with newly recorded rapped performances".[4] Award recipients often include the producers, engineers, and/or mixers associated with the nominated work in addition to the recording artists.[5]
As of 2023, Eminem holds the record for the most wins in this category, with six. Lauryn Hill was the first female artist to win in this category, when she won in 1997 with the Fugees. The duo Outkast and rapper Tyler, The Creator have both received the award twice. Jay-Z holds the record for the most nominations, with eleven. Drake became the first non-American winner in this category when he won in 2013. The Roots have received the most nominations without a win, with five. Eminem and West are the only artists to win the award in consecutive years, with Eminem achieving the feat twice. In 2016, Drake's If You're Reading This It's Too Late became the first mixtape to get nominated for the award, and in 2017, Chance the Rapper's Coloring Book became the first mixtape to win the award. Cardi B became the first solo female rapper to win for Invasion of Privacy.[6]
- ^ "Grammy Awards at a Glance". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on March 9, 2012. Retrieved April 29, 2010.
- ^ "Overview". National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences. Archived from the original on January 3, 2011. Retrieved April 29, 2010.
- ^ Lambropoulos, Dinos (May 25, 1995). "Grammy Awards will stay in Los Angeles". The Daily Gazette. Schenectady, New York. p. C6. Archived from the original on February 6, 2023. Retrieved October 22, 2010.
- ^ "52nd OEP Category Description Guide" (PDF). National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences. p. 3. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 27, 2009. Retrieved February 14, 2011.
- ^ "Grammy Award Winners". National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences. Archived from the original on January 3, 2010. Retrieved February 16, 2011. Note: User must select the "Rap" category as the genre under the search feature.
- ^ "Cardi B becomes first solo female artist to win Best Rap Album at Grammys". Entertainment Weekly. February 10, 2019. Archived from the original on February 11, 2019. Retrieved February 10, 2019.