Kendrick Lamar at the Grammy Awards in Los Angeles. (Image courtesy: AFP)
Kendrick Lamar won the Grammy for Best Rap Album for
To Pimp a Butterfly on February 15 in Los Angeles, raising expectations of a strong night for the politically charged artist.
Mr Lamar is also in contention for the most prestigious Album of the Year for
To Pimp a Butterfly, a meditative look at the state of black America interspersed with jazz and spoken word.
The win was his fifth of the night so far on 11 nominations - a tribute to the popularity of Mr Lamar, who controversially came away empty-handed two years ago.
Receiving the award from rap legend Ice Cube, the 28-year-old Mr Lamar hailed the growing recognition for the genre.
"This is for hip-hop," Mr Lamar said. "We will live forever, believe that." (Also Read:
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To Pimp a Butterfly, which runs nearly 80 minutes, revolves both around the rapper's struggles as he adapts to fame and his look at race relations.
Mr Lamar captured the national mood at a time of heightened concern over fatal shootings of African Americans by police in controversial circumstances, with the song
Alright, which became an unofficial anthem of the Black Lives Matter protest movement.