Kendrick Lamar first rapper to win Pulitzer Prize for music
The 30-year-old Californian has become the first non-classical or jazz artist to collect the award.
Kendrick Lamar has become the first rapper to win the Pulitzer Prize for music, in what is seen as a cultural milestone.
The historic announcement marks a turning point for the award, which has traditionally gone to classical artists.
Called the “voice of a generation”, 30-year-old Kendrick Lamar mixes hip-hop with poetry and political protest.
His common subjects of race, police brutality and perseverance made his songs the anthem of the Black Lives Matter movement in the United States.
His album Damn, released in April 2017, has been praised for bridging hip hop with high art.
Al Jazeera’s Heidi Zhou-Castro reports from Washington, DC.
Published On 17 Apr 2018