Today, Kendrick Lamar became the 1st artist that was not a non-classical artist or jazz artist to win a Pulitzer Prize in the history of the award.
Kendrick won the Pulitzer for DAMN.
In the the words of the Pulitzer Prize Board:
A virtuosic song collection… [DAMN], unified by its vernacular authenticity and rhythmic dynamism that offers affecting vignettes capturing the complexity of modern African-American life.”
While the Pulitzer Prize Board does not have any general guidelines for what makes a piece of music “distinguished,” Kendrick’s award is a monumental decision for modern hip-hop/rap music culture.
Now, the institutional music community can no longer ignore the genre of rap.
We salute you for that Kendrick.
Also, this is probably old news, but if you haven’t done it already, make sure you listen to DAMN back-to-front to reveal yet another stroke of Kendrick Lamar’s genius.
Congratulations to @kendricklamar, @dangerookipawaa and @Interscope! #Pulitzer pic.twitter.com/fFQBYnoW9F
— The Pulitzer Prizes (@PulitzerPrizes) April 16, 2018