After an astonishing 14 Grammy nominations, Nas has finally picked up his first win as he took the prize for Best Rap Album, beating out Jay Electronica, Freddie Gibbs, D Smoke and Royce 5’9″ for the award.
The rapper’s win may be well overdue, considering he’s widely cited as one of the most influential rap artists of all time, but his 13th studio album King’s Disease finally gained Nas the award he’s been looking for. Considering the competition, it’s no mean feat.
Nas managed to not only beat out D Smoke’s Black Habits, but he also triumphed over Jay Electronica’s A Written Testimony, Royce 5’9″‘s LP The Allegory, but perhaps our favourite hip-hop record of the year, Freddie Gibbs and the Alchemist effort Alfredo.
First nominated back in 1996 for Best Rap Solo Performance category for his song ‘If I Ruled The World (Imagine That)’, Nas finally took the gong on his 14th attempt. While it’s a welcomed prize for the influential rapper, it did suggest that perhaps the Grammys are still struggling to find themselves at the crux of culture.
Last year, Nas performed with Lil Nas X, but he was much happier to be taking the price than performing alongside another artist.
Watch Nas win his first-ever Grammy for Best Rap Album, below.