Killer Mike declares ‘Michael’ the perfect evolution of 50 years of Hip Hop
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With his new album, Michael, Killer Mike scored three nominations ahead of the 2024 Grammys — Best Rap Album along with Best Rap Performance and Best Rap Song for “SCIENTISTS & ENGINEERS.” While the LP, which was released in June, did not round out the competition for the Album of the Year category, he has not allowed the snub to diminish the impact of his work.
“It’s the album of the year. It’s beyond amazing,” he told HipHopDX in an interview published on Dec. 23. He confidently declared that every Black man would also be willing to co-sign his declaration. His comment is not solely rooted in ego; Mike believes the 14-track project was a substantive offering that spoke to his core audience.
“On Michael you’ve heard your own experiences in this life, you know what I mean… If you’re [a] working-class man… There’s songs on there that talk about the love, the solidarity of women, from your mother to your aunts to your wife,” he explained. “There’s songs on there that, for the first time, celebrate the junkie and not the person that has the person addicted. It’s ‘SOMETHING FOR JUNKIES’ with me and Fabo. Nobody’s ever heard that kind of record before.”
The “A.D.I.D.A.S.” rapper would further proclaim that “This album has pushed the emotions of masculinity past where rap prior had” and acknowledged Black women in a meaningful way as opposed to the over-sexualized trope that has become commonplace in rap lyrics.
“I absolutely have the album of the year, and if you’re a Black man, a working-class man, or the women who love them, you should lay your ears on it,” added the entrepreneur and philanthropist. “As rap turns 50 years old, this is the music rap was expected to evolve into.”
Mike, along with Ludacris, Big Boi, Jermaine Dupri, T.I., Jeezy and several other artists who have contributed to Atlanta’s prominence in Hip Hop were all part of a commemorative performance during the Falcons Nov. 26 game. The event marked one of several that have honored the genre’s lasting cultural legacy this year.
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