NOMINEES:
"Started From The Bottom" - Drake
"Berzerk" - Eminem
"Tom Ford" - Jay Z
"Swimming Pools (Drank)" - Kendrick Lamar
"Thrift Shop" - Macklemore & Ryan Lewis
WHO SHOULD WIN: "Swimming Pools (Drank)" - Kendrick Lamar
Hands down, "Swimming Pools (Drank)" was the best rap song of 2013. While most rappers blindly celebrate drinking and partying to excess, Kendrick Lamar took a different spin for his breakthrough hit, instead highlighting how people get wrapped up in alcohol and the dark places that living that lifestyle can take you. Disguised as something a little more light, "Swimming Pools" really challenges music listeners.
But, the Best Rap Performance Grammy goes to the rapper himself and is awarded for delivery instead of pure songwriting. With that in mind, Lamar's effort here was still the best offering of the year. He seamlessly moves through the verses, rapping at a speed not often heard and with an assured sense of self that is infectious.
The song's hook also resonates with listeners, easily worming its way into your head for days. The bounciness of the pre-chorus to the rocking way of the hook itself, "Swimming Pools (Drank)" is a perfect example of what exactly a rap song can be these days. It's complex, catchy and most importantly... it has something to say.
WHO WILL WIN: "Thrift Shop" - Macklemore & Ryan Lewis
No hate to Drake, Eminem or Jay Z, but their songs are barely in this race. Drake's delivery on "Started From The Bottom" is so lazy, he barely bothers to enunciate. While "Tom Ford" is a solid effort from Hova, the song is just another of hip-hop's excess celebratory tracks and Eminem's "Berzerk" came just as soon as it went and was largely forgettable. This race should really be between Macklemore and Lamar.
There were few hits in 2013 bigger than Macklemore & Ryan Lewis' "Thrift Shop," so it's hard to imagine this award going to anybody else. The Grammys largely like to celebrate not just the best of music but also the year's biggest music. Whether or not you think that's right, it's what occurs. But that doesn't mean "Thrift Shop" is unworthy of a Grammy.
From the funky saxophone in the song's opening to Macklemore's smooth as silk delivery, this track is straight up infectious. Try and get Wanz's hook out of your head. Oh, wait, you can't.
Like Lamar's "Swimming Pools," "Thrift Shop" is an answer to the common hip-hop trope of spending as much as possible and living life with little regard for anything or anyone except yourself, and that's commendable.
Who do you think should win?
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