Traditionally, white rappers were not common in hip-hop, with the genre being mostly within the black and urban communities, despite the fact that for the longest time, the white community was the largest consumer of rap music. With a very large consumer base, it was just a matter of time until the consumer became the producer.
Some of the first notable white rappers were the likes of the Beastie Boys, MC Serch, Vanilla Ice, Insane Clown Posse, and a few others, while historically the most popular has been Detroit native Eminem. Eminem rose to the top of the rap game during the late 1990s and has continued well into the 2020s, becoming one of the greatest rappers of all time.
White Rappers
Currently, hip-hop has transformed to have multiple genres and a much larger fanbase and market than in previous years. At the height of this era, numerous white rappers produced some of hip-hop’s biggest songs in the music industry. As rock and roll and pop music have become less popular, rap has become the world’s number-one genre of music.
With hip hop’s popularity, the lineup of rap artists has tremendously grown, and this includes the long list of white rappers, from your commercial and mainstream rap artists to the representers of the subgenres of emo and country rap music.
List of White Rappers
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Eminem
He is probably one of the best-known white rappers in the industry, and they have made a movie about his life titled 8 Mile. His real name is Marshall Bruce Mathers III, popularly known as Eminem. The Detroit rapper has a well-established reputation as one of the most prolific rappers and producers. He’s been on every side of the industry and a major movie star for half a century now.
With more hit singles than we can count, including Lose Yourself, Not Afraid and Stan, Eminem has proven time and time again that he is a master of his craft. Of course, we cannot forget Rap God and Godzilla, featuring Juice WRLD! Eminem was credited with a Guinness World Record in 2020 for rapping an incredible 7.5 words per second in one verse. The true King of Rap
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Jack Harlow
Jack Harlow is an American rapper, singer, and producer from Louisville, Kentucky. Harlow began rapping at the age of 12, making a CD and selling copies to his middle school classmates. His first breakthrough was with his 2020 song What’s Popping, which gained popularity on the social media video app TikTok. The song peaked at number 2 on the US Billboard Hot 100, and he went on to receive a Grammy nomination for it. He released his debut album, That’s What They All Say, in 2020.
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Pitbull
Armondo Christian Perez, professionally known as Pitbull, is an American rapper and businessman. His music features elements of pop rap, reggaeton, and Latin hip-hop. He released his debut album in 2004, titled M.I.A.M.I., and rebranded himself as a pop artist in 2011, releasing Planet Pit. He sold over 25 million studio albums worldwide.
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Logic
Logic kicked off his music journey in 2010 with the mixtape “Young, Broke, and Infamous”. His popularity rapidly increased when he dropped the Young Sinatra mixtapes. Logic’s biggest hit is probably 1-800-273-8255,” featuring Alessia Cara and Khalid. The song is a powerful anthem about suicide prevention.
Logic’s track, “100 Miles and Running,” is so fast that it will get your adrenaline pumping. In under nine seconds, he crammed in 69 words, which is faster than Eminem’s verse in “Rap God”. He truly was (and is now retired) a master flow machine in the world of rap music.
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The Beastie Boys
Although the Beastie Boys started producing music in the 1980s, the band became widely known in the 1990s because of their hip-hop and rap genres. They had originally started as a hardcore punk band, but they eventually evolved into a rap group by the time they released their first album in 1986. The album was an instant classic, thanks in part to its innovative mix of genres and its catchy songs. It propelled the Beastie Boys to immediate stardom.
In subsequent years, the Beastie Boys would go on to release a string of successful albums that cemented their place as one of the most important bands and produced some of the best rap songs of the era. Today, the Beastie Boys are still revered by fans and critics alike, and their music continues to inspire new generations of artists.
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G-Easy
G-Eazy is an American rapper, songwriter, and producer from Oakland. His 2014 album ‘These Things Happen’ peaked at number one on various charts, including a peak at number three on the Billboard 200.
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Yelawolf
Born in Alabama and raised in Tennessee, Yelawolf embodies the swagger of the South, incorporating the flashy sound of the trap into his projects while maintaining a high standard of technical ability. On top of his high energy, Yelawolf has an effortless flow, switching it up on every track as he raps over bombastic, Bling Era-esque production. He knows how to make a crowd move, and that confidence is never missing in his braggadocious music.
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Iggy Azalea
One of Australia’s most noteworthy stars, Iggy Azalea, began her career within the American rap scene during the early 2010s, tied with Atlanta rap legend T.I. Following the release of the EP Change Your Life and her first official single, “Work,” Iggy Azalea released one of music’s biggest hits, “Fancy,” featuring Charli XCX. Following the megahit, Iggy Azalea quickly became one of the top pop stars and one of the most renowned female rappers in music.
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Central Cee
U.K. rapper Central Cee has rapidly established himself as a formidable force within the British musical scene. With his distinctive blend of drill and hip-hop, he has captivated audiences throughout the world. In a relatively short period. Central Cee has managed to amass a loyal following. propelling himself to the forefront of the U.K. rap scene with only two albums. Wild West and 23 But a host of hip-hop’s biggest hits
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Machine Gun Kelly
Following the years of Bone Thugs and Harmony, there was no reputation in hip-hop for the city of Cleveland, at least until Machine Gun Kelly announced his presence with 2011’s “Wild Boy.” Years of growth as a musician have led to the transformation of Machine Gun Kelly. The Ohio native went from once being considered one of the nation’s top rap stars to now being considered one of music’s top rock stars.
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Post Malone
Post Malone is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and record producer born in 1995. He blends genres of hip-hop, R&B, trap, and pop.
Post Malone established his stage name by using a random rap name generator. He gained recognition in 2015 with his debut single “White Iverson”. His song “Sunflower” was the promotional single for the soundtrack to Spider-Man: Into The Spiderverse.
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NF
NF wears his influences on his sleeves—most notably Eminem—but that’s not to say he doesn’t have his sound. He’s a rapper whose strongest attribute is his lyricism, telling vivid and brutally honest stories about his life with a snappy and aggressive delivery that makes him the focus of any track. With multiple songs topping the charts, he’s a rapper whose honesty has never limited his success.
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Rittz
Since his 2013 debut, The Life and Times of Jonny Valiant, Rittz has embraced the glamorous sound of trap music. He’s no stranger to autotune, often using it to give his voice a metallic quality as he raps over chattering hi-hats and looping samples. When he isn’t using autotune, he sounds determined and cold, creating an intriguing contrast between his poppy hits and hard-hitting deep cuts.
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Paul Wall
Paul Wall is an American rapper who is currently affiliated with Swishahouse Records. Throughout Wall’s career, he has dropped several albums under the label as well as collaborated with other rappers signed to the label. He was formerly a musical partner with rapper Chamillionaire. Wall has always been a head-turner in the hip-hop industry.
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Kid Rock
Kid Rock is an American singer, rapper, producer, and actor. Rock’s studio album Devil Without a Cause has sold more than 13 million copies worldwide. He is a five-time Grammy Award nominee and has sold 25 million albums in the US. Rock was Soundscan’s number-one-selling male musician of the 200s, selling 17.6 million albums. He was 17th overall for the decade.
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Brother Ali
With more than a half dozen albums to his name, eight of them critically acclaimed, as well as partner projects and collaborations, Brother Ali has easily pushed his name into the credibility orbit. Folks might know his name from titles like “Not A Day Goes By” and “Uncle Sam Goddamn,” but nobody is going to recognize his real name, Ali Douglas Newman. No question about it, being a hit rap artist requires a name change for stage presence.
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Mac Miller
Another name that made it big as a rap singer but also passed away was Mac Miller, a solid hip-hop name in Pittsburgh. Ironically, his best song hit the top of the charts after he passed. Also having died from a drug overdose, he was a rising star early on, starting as a teenager. However, he isn’t around now to enjoy the fruits of his labor. The business got the best of him.
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House of Pain
House of Pain is an American hip-hop group that released three albums in the 1990s before lead rapper Everlast left to pursue his solo career. The group’s name is a reference to the H.G. Wells novel The Island of Dr. Moreau, a reference carried further by the naming of their 2011 tour “He Who Breaks the Law”.
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R.A. The Rugged Man
R.A. Thornburn, better known by his stage name R.A. the Rugged Man, is an American rapper. He began his career when he was 12 years old. R.A. signed to major label Jive Records at the age of 18. His debut album, ‘Night of the Bloody Apes’, was never released. However, he has worked with the likes of Wu-Tang Clan, Mobb Deep, Kool G Rap, and Notorious B.I.G.
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Macklemore
Macklemore dominated the last decade with hits like “Thrift Shop”, “Can’t Hold Us”, and “Glorious”, defining the sound of mainstream hip-hop in the early 2010s. He’s a smooth rapper with enough confidence to make any track a hit, but his real talent is in his hook-making ability and artist curation, bringing together talents to make some of the most famous and memorable songs in recent history. While some critics may deride him for his over-the-top earnestness, it’s very clear that the Seattle rapper has a deep love for hip-hop culture, and no one can ever take that away from him.
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Necro
Necro has one of the most unique sounds in hip-hop, having coined the term “Death Rap” to describe his blend of horrorcore rap and death metal. His gruesome lyrics of murder and death may not appeal to everyone, but nobody can deny the effort he puts in, with a lengthy catalog of horrorcore albums and a ruthless style he’s maintained for upwards of twenty years.
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Lil Peep
Lil Peep embodied emo rap, putting a dark twist on melodic hip-hop. What made his music so captivating was his vulnerability—being unafraid to speak at length about his struggles with depression and addiction. Peep was never afraid to sing either, with a moody tone that encapsulated all the pain and struggles in his life. Highly influential in his unique way, Peep is cemented as one of the best white rappers of all time.
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The Kid Laroi
The Kid Laroi has come a long way, and not just literally, as he is originally from Australia. The once-rising star has risen to become one of the world’s top rap artists, starting with very little notoriety. With the once-supporting backing of Chicago rap legend Lil Bibby and his Grade A Productions imprint, The Kid Laroi began to make a name for himself in 2020 with a host of hits like “Without You” and “So Done.
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Arrdee
U.K. rapper ArrDee has rapidly emerged as an influential figure within the British rap scene. Bursting onto the hip-hop landscape in 2021, he quickly captured the attention of fans with a distinctive style that effortlessly combines elements of grime, trap, and classic hip-hop. ArrDee’s innovative approach to the genre has pushed boundaries and challenged preconceived notions of what UK rap can be.
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Bhad Bhabie
Known for the famous slogan “Cash Me Outside,” regardless of whether you respect Bhad Bhabie as an artist or not, she has transformed her viral moment into an actual rap career. A rap career that has become very lucrative for the young artist, accumulating over 1 billion streams and YouTube views separately.
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Hoodie Allen
Originating from Long Island, New York, Hoodie Allen’s path in music was not typical, graduating from an Ivy League school only to be followed by entering the tech field. Regardless of his initial path, the talented Hoodie Allen found his calling, officially debuting in 2009 with the Making Waves mixtape. Since 2009 and six full-length albums later, Hoodie Allen has brought hip-hop songs like “No Interruption,” “Surprise Party,” “No Faith in Brooklyn,” and “All About It” with Ed Sheeran.
Conclusion
While this is by no means an exhaustive list of all the white rappers on the hip-hop scene at the moment, this list certainly demonstrates that the genre is not entirely made up of African-American artists. Eminem, for instance, is often considered one of the greatest rappers of all time.
