First a Pulitzer and now this.
Kendrick Lamar has done what no other rap artist has: With his four wins tonight, the “luther” rapper passed Jay-Z as the most-honored hip-hip artist in Grammy history.
With tonight’s trophies for Best Rap Album for GNX, Best Rap Song for “tv off” and Best Melodic Rap Performance for “luther” (with SZA) and Best Rap Performance for being featured on “Chains & Whips,” Lamar has now won 26 Grammys, surpassing Jay-Z’ has won’s 25. He is nominated for a total of nine awards this year, meaning additional wins in the big categories — Song of the Year, Record of the Year and Album of the Year — categories could raise his total count.
There were other records in the offing initially: Lamar could have tied Michael Jackson & Santana’s record for the most Grammys won in one night — Jackson won 8 awards at the 1984 Grammys, Santana won 8 awards at the 2000 Grammys. Though Lamar is nominated for nine awards tonight, two of those nominations are in the same category. Lamar ultimately won’t surpass the aforementioned records, as he didn’t clinch Best Pop Duo/Group Performance with “30 for 30” (that went to Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande’s “Defying Gravity.”)
The 2018 Pulitzer Prize winner could also become the first male artist to win consecutive Grammys in the Record of the Year category and the first rapper to win consecutively as well as the first rapper to win twice (he won last year for “Not Like Us”).
Either Lamar or fellow Album of the Year nominees Tyler, the Creator could become the first solo male rapper to win in the category.
Lamar has won at least one Grammy in three of the past four years. And in 2025, he won five golden gramophones.