Don’t Count Out Rap At The Grammys

Getty Image / Derrick Rossignol Billboard‘s recent rule changes sparked a concerned discussion after they resulted in a two-week absence of rap music in the Hot 100 chart’s top 40 for the first time in almost three decades. “Is hip-hop dead?” became a familiar refrain among the culture’s commentators, as they wondered what a lack of top 40 hits meant for the genre in the mainstream. But today, as the nominations for the 68th Annual Grammy Awards were announced, one thing became clear: You just can’t count rap out, even if it hasn’t had any new streaming hits for a while. This isn’t the f