With the 68th Annual Grammy Awards on the horizon and another chaotic year of rap in the books, the submission pool is stacked. There may not have been a headline-grabbing rap beef with Grammy-worthy diss tracks this year, but 2025 still delivered. From breakout rookies like BigXthaPlug to veteran returns like Clipse, plenty of projects had the culture talking.
With so many heavy hitters in play, picking “the best” is nearly impossible—but we narrowed down who we think is getting the nod… and who might get snubbed in the process.
Note: Who we think should be nominated and who we think will be nominated are different things. Some of your favorite pieces, along with ours, might not make it. The game is the game.
Nominees for Best Rap Song
Every year, people say that “lyrical rap is dying.” And every year, some real spitters come through and prove that’s false. While some of these nominees could overlap with Best Rap Performance, the categories are so close that we’re focusing on this one:
Clipse (ft. John Legend), “Birds Don’t Sing”
Gut-wrenching, vulnerable, and intense, the opening track to Clipse’s most recent album, Let God Sort ‘Em Out, shocked everyone on first listen. “Birds Don’t Sing” finds Push and Malice unpacking the grief of losing their parents—a pain everyone will eventually face—which makes it a powerful contender for Best Rap Song.
Tyler the Creator (ft. Sexyy Red, Glorilla, and Lil Wayne), “STICKY”
“STICKY” is an early 2000s lunch table wrap put on wax, in the best way possible. The features are varied, making for a fun and unexpected mix. Wayne comes through with a signature, standout verse. Tyler rounds everything out, and it all comes together for a track with infinite listening potential.
Cardi B, “Outside”
Cardi B has the secret formula to make hits. Everything she touches turns to gold—or even platinum, at times. “Outside” is an example of her brash energy leveled up to a 10, and it rings off anywhere that it’s played.
Offset and JID, “Bodies”
JID and Offset dropped a crazy collab with “Bodies,” and it wouldn’t be a surprising nomination for Best Rap Song. The sample of “Bodies” by Drowning Pool, Offset’s undeniable in-pocket flow, and JID’s technical rhyming and patterns come together for a listen with tons of replay value.
Kendrick Lamar (ft. Lefty Gunplay), “TV Off”
With his hype at an all-time high, Kendrick had the option to play it safe with anything he released at the moment. Except he’s Kendrick Lamar, which means screaming “MUSTARD!” at the top of his lungs and sending the music world into a spiral once again was the option he chose. More than just a gimmick, “TV Off” also features some phenomenal verses that stand out from the pack.
Nominees for Best Rap Album
The Best Rap Album category is always controversial—and the Grammys don’t exactly have the best track record of reflecting what the culture actually thinks (just ask anyone still debating Killer Mike vs. Travis Scott).
This year, you’ve got Playboi Carti, whose raging might be polarizing but undeniably influential, Tyler, the Creator with one of his most introspective projects yet, and the return of Clipse with coke bars and lyrical weight. And then there’s Kendrick—Grammy royalty with another event album in GNX.
This category isn’t just stacked—it’s a clash of fanbases, aesthetics, and what “rap excellence” even means in 2025.
Playboi Carti, ‘MUSIC’
Carti is one of rap’s biggest superstars—and one of its most divisive. His sound is nearly impossible to explain, because it’s so many things at once. That said, the song structure and samples are unique, the features on the album went crazy, and there’s plenty of hits throughout the 30+ tracklist. It’s highly likely MUSIC will get a nod, and if it doesn’t—expect Carti fans to ride at dawn.
JID, ‘God Does Like Ugly’
God Does Like Ugly is JID at his peak (thus far). The wordiness and wittiness that he’s known for are present in abundance, but he also does some of his best work in the slower, more pensive moments of the album. “VCRs” with Vince Staples showcases JID’s enhanced ability to balance both attributes, and the rest of the album is a good mix of the same.
Clipse, ‘Let God Sort ‘Em Out’
To call Clipse’s return “legendary” is no exaggeration. The album rollout? Flawless. The visual presentation? Phenomenal. But the music, somehow, outshone both. Each and every line on Let God Sort ‘Em Out is meticulously handcrafted excellence. For an artist to have a chance against this one, “their credit score gotta be F.I.C.O., I’m talkin’ 850 or bust.”
Kendrick Lamar, ‘GNX’
Every Kendrick album presents its own identity, message, and moment, but GNX takes those attributes to the extreme. Dot’s vocal approach serves as a continual nod to his West Coast origins, and the concept is clear—“either you’re with us or against us.” The album is a masterful blend of anthems, vibes, and the classic Kendrick deep cut (see: “Reincarnated”). As always, it’ll be a very hard out.
Tyler, the Creator, ‘CHROMAKOPIA’
The way Tyler seamlessly shifts in and out of eras is remarkable. CHROMAKOPIA’s militaristic aesthetic, coupled with the project’s subject matter, gives listeners a look into his view of the world, his ideal situations, and how he maneuvers between the two. The instrumentation is a refined version of the Tyler that fans know and love, but the lyrics have a gravity that’s heavier than usual. It’ll almost certainly get a nod for the Best Rap Album.
Nominees for Record of the Year
Since Record of the Year isn’t strictly a rap category, it’s a lot harder for multiple artists from the genre to make the list. That said, some of these undeniable hits have a good chance—especially with Billboard records being completely shattered and things of that nature.
The Weeknd (with Playboi Carti), “TIMELESS”
The banger from his album Hurry Up Tomorrow, The Weekend taps Carti for a futuristic, club-influenced hit. Their styles mesh incredibly well, and somehow the track is both high-energy and nonchalant. With an infectious hook and synth hits, the replayability makes it truly “TIMELESS.”
Doechii, “Anxiety”
Doechii’s unprecedented success at last year’s Grammy Awards will possibly bleed over in this one. “Anxiety” is one of Doechii’s biggest hits, sampling the 2010s classic “Somebody That I Used To Know” by Gotye, and showcasing her vulnerability and subtleties. It wouldn’t be surprising to see this make the Grammy shortlist.
Kendrick Lamar (with SZA), “Luther”
At this point, it’s safe to call “Luther” the standout track of the year. The biggest artist in the world at the time, sampling one of the most respected R&B legends of all time, featuring one of the highest-charting R&B acts of the decade? A recipe for success. Kendrick dropped a bomb on the game with this one, and it impacted mainstream audiences to the tune of 13 consecutive weeks at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Nominees for Album of the Year
Time for the big one—the Grammy Award for Album of the Year. With The Weeknd turning over a new leaf and re-entering the submission pool, the competition got a lot more heated. This is another category that isn’t just hip-hop, so the odds are significantly slimmer, but these artists stand the best chance at getting nominated for the gold.
Kendrick Lamar, ‘GNX’
GNX’s worldwide impact gives it the best chance to be nominated for Album of the Year out of every rap artist that submitted. We know how the award traditionally goes, so it’s definitely not a given, but a Kendrick album this good—at peak-popularity—will definitely be in contention.
Tyler, the Creator, ‘CHROMAKOPIA’
Tyler plays with genres better than a lot of artists in any category. His versatility allows his albums to reach multiple demographics, and the quality of CHROMAKOPIA could make it a contender for Album of the Year.
The Weeknd, ‘Hurry Up Tomorrow’
Abel Tesfaye’s last album as The Weeknd is an intense, jarring, sonically captivating journey detailing his music career thus far. The highs and lows of his lifetime are presented so well in the music that it’s damn near palpable. Mixing in some bangers like “Sau Paulo (ft. Anitta)” and “TIMELESS (w/ Playboi Carti)” makes it one of the strongest albums of the year, and almost surely one that will get a Grammy nomination.
