Kendrick Lamar Wins Best Rap Album at the 2023 Grammy Awards
Kendrick Lamar wins Best Rap Album for Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers at the 2023 Grammy Awards.
On Sunday (Feb. 5), Kendrick Lamar took home the golden gramophone in one of hip-hop’s most desirable categories and was presented with the prestigious award by the ever-charismatic Cardi B. K-Dot’s Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers won the honor. The project was up against albums that offered incredibly stiff competition including DJ Khaled‘s God Did, Pusha T‘s It’s Almost Dry, Future‘s I Never Liked You, Jack Harlow‘s Come Home the Kids Miss You.
In accepting the award inside the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, the former XXL Freshman thanked his family, his fans and hip-hop culture as a whole.
“First and foremost, I want to thank my family for giving me the courage and, you know, the vulnerability to share these stories and share my truth with this album,” he said.
He shared that Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers was the “toughest record” he ever had to make.
Touted by many as Kenny’s most experimental album to date, the exquisite double LP debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 albums chart and moved 295,000 units in its first week.
Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers not only tackles a litany of the critical issues American society has faced over the past few years but also finds the Pulitzer Prize-winning MC laying down raps that offer a sense of vulnerability beyond what hip-hop has seen from Kendrick Lamar. Even the host of this year’s ceremony, comedian Trevor Noah, referred to Kenny’s award-winning opus as a “therapy session” that happened to be nominated as Album of the Year.
The win for Best Rap Album finds Kendrick earning his third Grammy Award of the night bringing his total Grammy wins to 17 after. Kenny and his track “The Heart Part 5” were presented with awards for Best Rap Performance and Best Rap Song during Sunday’s pre-Grammy awards ceremony.
Last year’s Grammy Award winner for Best Rap Album went to Tyler, The Creator for his work on the 2021 album, Call Me If You Get Lost. Since the California-bred artist wasn’t in attendance at the music industry’s biggest award show in 2022, iconic songwriter-producer Jimmy “Jam” Harris accepted the award on his behalf. Call Me If You Get Lost earned Tyler his second Grammy Award for Best Rap Album following a win in 2019 for his LP, Igor.
The 2023 Grammy Awards returned to Los Angeles this year after taking place at Las Vegas’ MGM Grand Garden Arena in 2022. The ceremony is broadcasting live both on the Paramount+ streaming service and on terrestrial TV via CBS.
Major flowers out to Kendrick Lamar and his album Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers for walking away with the 2023 Grammy Award for Best Rap Album.