The history of rap music, all things considered, doesn't go back too far. The genre came out of New York in the late 1970s and early 1980s, and it was about a decade before it got its footing.

The Grammys finally unveiled the Best Rap Song category for the 46th Grammy Awards in 2004. The first honor went to Eminem for his diamond-selling track "Lose Yourself," marking his ninth Grammy ...

“Gangsta rap” songs like “Boyz-n-the-Hood” were hawked ... Art becomes mainstream when there’s money to be made, and soon corporations began targeting hip-hop’s underground economy ...