The D.O.C., Kurtis Blow and Nile Rodgers Honored at Hip-Hop Grandmasters Awards

Las Vegas gave hip-hop’s pioneers their flowers as the Paid in Full Foundation staged its 4th annual Hip-Hop Grandmasters Awards at the Bellagio, celebrating the artists and architects who built the culture from the ground up.

The D.O.C., Kurtis Blow and Nile Rodgers were among the night’s honorees, with Jay Pharoah and Roxanne Shanté hosting the celebration in Sin City.

From Kurtis Blow’s early breakthroughs to The D.O.C.’s work behind West Coast classics and Nile Rodgers’ genre-crossing musicianship, the honorees represent different chapters of the same story – music that moved the world.

The night was about more than trophies. It was a reminder to honor the founders while they can still hear the applause, and to keep their legacy front and center for the next generation.

Your Station, Your Music, Your Culture.

Photo: Gage Skidmore / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0)