2Pac just got the recognition that’s been long overdue.
The Recording Academy inducted his legendary double album “All Eyez On Me” into the Grammy Hall of Fame, alongside Eric B. & Rakim’s “Paid In Full” and Funkadelic’s “Maggot Brain” as part of the 52nd class of inductees.
These three albums represent the backbone of Hip-Hop culture, and they’re finally getting their flowers in the most official way possible.
The gala celebrated 14 recordings total, but the Hip-Hop contingent hit different.
Eric B. and Rakim brought that underground energy to the ceremony.
“Everybody has their music, everybody had their time. We had our time. We’re the upperclassmen and it’s a great thing,” Eric B. said.
Rakim added his own perspective on what this recognition means for artists who built Hip-Hop from the ground up.
“The Grammy Hall of Fame is a big thing so, you know, to be part of that, an underground artist, I feel good about that,” he said. These two didn’t just make classic albums; they redefined what lyricism and production could be in Hip-Hop.
E.D.I. Mean, who frequently collaborated with 2Pac, spoke about what the legend would’ve thought about this moment.
“For him, he would be honored. He would be over the moon about it and he would be saying ‘I told you I was a legend,'” he said.
The ceremony also honored Janet Jackson, Selena, Heart, and Radiohead.
The gala served as a fundraiser for the Grammy Museum’s national education programs, but more importantly, it cemented these albums as permanent fixtures in music history.