There’s No Doubt Hip-Hop Is Looking Up in 2024

Buy Gunna’s XXL Magazine Cover Issue Here Changes Through Hip-hopHip-hop went through some serious growing pains last year. But a downturn can only mean rap is coming out of its slump. With a new year underway, the popular music genre is looking up in 2024.Words: Paul MearaEditor’s Note: This story appears in the Spring 2024 issue of XXL Magazine, on stands now. It was written and published in the magazine prior to Kendrick Lamar’s “Like That” diss toward Drake being featured on Future and Metro Boomin’s We Don’t Trust You album, which kickstarted the subsequent disses from J. Cole, Drake and Riss Ross. The information included here is a synopsis of the first three months of the year until March of 2024.  Hip-hop celebrated its 50th anniversary last year, and while plenty of incredible tributes and celebrations were dedicated to a culture that humbly started in a South Bronx basement, the genre was in decline. For the first time in 30 years, its viability on the charts and in other metrics hit a lull. In 2023, rap was in a downturn when it came to hitting No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and Billboard 200 charts—both regarding frequency and...