Rapsody sat down for an interview with Power 105.1’s The Breakfast Club Friday morning to discuss getting a Grammy nomination for her newest album, Laila’s Wisdom. The North Carolina native expressed how happy and emotional she was to find out that she was nominated for “Best Rap Album” against some of the hottest artists in hip hop. The lyricist will compete against Jay-Z’s 4:44, Tyler the Creator’s Flower Boy, Kendrick Lamar’s DAMN and Migos‘ Culture.
“I was in L.A. for the second day of touring – it was 5:30 in the morning,” Rapsody explains about getting the call about the Grammy nomination. “I heard my phone ring and it was [9th wonder] saying congratulations. I just sat up and I thought about it for a minute.” Rapsody goes on to talk about a call she got from Roc Nation when she started to get emotional about the Grammy nod. “Them tears started coming. My whole journey just flashed through my eyes. I wasn’t expecting it,” the 35-year-old MC said.
Rapsody went on to explain how she felt like she didn’t have a high powered single like some of her competitors but did have dope music. Rap called her album a “slow burn” that would really grab more attention as it aged a little, but the Grammy’s felt otherwise, giving her the “Best Rap Album” nomination in a year that seemed very competitive for new albums.
Rapsody admits that she felt jaded about award shows and felt that they were just popularity contests which many artists in Hip-Hop have argued every year the awards come around. But with this Grammy nomination, a new faith has been restored in the rapper that artists who just make good music can compete against the elite figures in the industry.
“The way I looked at the Grammy’s I felt a lot of the top artists get nominated off popularity,” Rapsody told DJ Envy, Angela Yee, and Charlamagne tha God. “Let’s make it about the music and make the playing field even.”
We find out the winner of “Best Rap Album” on Sunday, January 28 on CBS.
