100 Fun Facts About 2000s Hip Hop

Which 2002 film gave Eminem the first hip hop song to win the Oscar for Best Original Song?

Eminem skipped the ceremony because he assumed he would lose and was asleep at home when 'Lose Yourself' won; co-producer Luis Resto accepted the statue for him.

How many times was 50 Cent shot on May 24, 2000, an incident that became central to his legend?

The shooting happened almost three years before his major-label debut arrived and made him the most talked-about newcomer in rap.

Jay-Z's album The Blueprint was released on which now-infamous date?

Despite arriving on the day of the attacks, it still moved more than 427,000 copies in its first week and debuted at number one.

Eminem's guest verse, the only feature on Jay-Z's The Blueprint, came on which track?

The album's beats came mostly from Kanye West, Just Blaze and Bink, and it later became the first 21st-century recording added to the National Recording Registry.

Which Nas album contained 'Ether', his 2001 answer to Jay-Z's 'Takeover'?

The title signalled a return to the form of his 1994 debut Illmatic, and the album revived a career that had sagged after Nastradamus.

Kanye West's debut single, recorded with his jaw wired shut after a 2002 crash, samples which Chaka Khan song?

The vocal sample is pitch-shifted and sped up, and 'Through the Wire' takes its title from a pun on the original's name.

Which OutKast release won the 2004 Album of the Year Grammy, only the second hip hop album to do so?

Lauryn Hill had been the first, five years earlier; the double album was later certified diamond for five million double-disc units in the US.

Which 2000 OutKast single was inspired partly by André 3000's relationship with Erykah Badu and her mother?

Badu later said her mother embraced it, buying a licence plate, a mug and a headband with the title on them.

Tha Carter III (2008) was the decade's last rap album to hit what first-week US sales milestone?

It shifted 1,005,545 copies in its opening week and went on to win Best Rap Album at the 2009 Grammys.

Nelly's 'Hot in Herre' (2002) won the first-ever Grammy handed out in which category?

The song, which spent seven weeks at number one, samples Chuck Brown's 1979 go-go single 'Bustin' Loose'.

In the 'Dilemma' video (2002), Kelly Rowland tries to text Nelly using what kind of app on her Nokia?

The scene became a running internet joke years later; the software was the Symbian Sheet app on a Nokia 9210 Communicator, often misremembered as Microsoft Excel.

Who is the featured artist on Snoop Dogg's 'Drop It Like It's Hot' (2004)?

Billboard later named it the most popular rap song of the entire decade.

Dr. Dre's album 2001 was released in November of which year?

It was originally going to be called Chronic 2000 until a trademark tangle with Death Row Records forced the change; 'Forgot About Dre' with Eminem won a Grammy in 2001.

Chamillionaire's 'Ridin'' (2006) won a Grammy and inspired which 'Weird Al' Yankovic parody?

The original was the best-selling ringtone of 2006 with 3.2 million sales, making Chamillionaire the first multi-platinum Mastertone artist.

Which 2003 Lil Jon & the East Side Boyz single featuring the Ying Yang Twins peaked at No. 2 on the Hot 100?

It first appeared on the 2002 album Kings of Crunk and later landed at number 99 on VH1's 100 Greatest Songs of Hip-Hop.

Which Atlanta group's snap single 'Laffy Taffy' hit number one in January 2006?

Its ringtone was certified triple platinum, three million units, against a mere gold for the single itself.

Soulja Boy produced 'Crank That' (2007) on a demo copy of which software?

He used only the program's most basic stock sounds; the record spent seven weeks at number one and was nominated for Best Rap Song.

Faheem Najm's Auto-Tune-heavy stage name is short for what phrase?

He chose it because of the hardships of growing up in the Florida capital, and went on to become the face of Auto-Tune vocals in the late 2000s.

Jay-Z's 'D.O.A. (Death of Auto-Tune)' was partly inspired by hearing the effect in an ad for which fast-food chain?

Produced by No I.D., the track won Jay-Z the 2010 Grammy for Best Rap Solo Performance.

Drake released his breakthrough mixtape So Far Gone in February 2009 under which label of his own?

'Best I Ever Had' climbed to number two on the Hot 100 and its video was directed by Kanye West.

Rick Ross took his stage name from a real person with whom he has no connection. Who?

In 2008 The Smoking Gun linked his social security number to an 18-month stint as a Florida correctional officer, which he first denied and then admitted.

Who were the duo behind Gnarls Barkley's 'Crazy', the first UK No. 1 on downloads alone?

The pair deleted the physical single while it was still number one so people would not get sick of it; it was the UK's best seller of the year anyway.

Which late producer handled the tracks on Common's 2005 album Be that Kanye West didn't?

It was Common's first album for Geffen and picked up four Grammy nominations, including Best Rap Album.

Lupe Fiasco's 2006 debut single 'Kick, Push' told a love story set in which subculture?

It picked up two Grammy nominations, and his follow-up single 'Daydreamin'' with Jill Scott actually won one.

The Game's 2005 debut, executive produced by Dr. Dre and 50 Cent, carried what title?

It sold 586,000 copies in its first week and remains The Game's biggest album; his relationship with G-Unit collapsed soon afterward.

DMX was the first artist to have how many albums in a row debut at number one on the Billboard 200?

The run began with It's Dark and Hell Is Hot in 1998 and included ...And Then There Was X and The Great Depression.

Federal agents raided which record label in 2003 over alleged money laundering for Kenneth 'Supreme' McGriff?

The label was renamed The Inc. later that year, and founders Irv and Chris Gotti were acquitted of all charges in December 2005.

Which Harlem collective, founded by Cam'ron and Jim Jones, released Diplomatic Immunity in 2003?

Juelz Santana joined two years after the founding; the group's lead single 'Dipset Anthem' was produced by the Heatmakerz.

Cam'ron's 2002 hits 'Oh Boy' and 'Hey Ma' came from which album, released on Roc-A-Fella?

'Oh Boy' was produced by Just Blaze and 'Hey Ma' reached number three on the Hot 100, his highest peak.

Which Nas album, his first for Def Jam in 2006, carried a title that angered Southern rappers?

The title track was produced by will.i.am, and the album also featured 'Black Republican', his first collaboration with Jay-Z after their feud.

Lil' Kim's 2005 perjury conviction concerned a 2001 shooting outside which New York radio station?

Her time in prison was chronicled by the BET series Countdown to Lockdown, the highest-rated premiere in the network's history at the time.

Run-DMC's Jam Master Jay was shot dead in October 2002 at his studio in which part of New York?

The case stayed open for more than two decades; two men were finally convicted of the murder in February 2024.

D12 rapper Proof, Eminem's close friend, was shot dead in April 2006 at a club in which city?

The club sat on 8 Mile Road; Proof had appeared in the film of the same name as battle rapper Lil' Tic, opposite Eminem's B-Rabbit.

Madvillain, whose only album was Madvillainy (2004), paired Madlib with which masked rapper?

Its 22 songs mostly run under three minutes with no hooks, and it peaked at only number 179 on the Billboard 200 while becoming a cult classic.

BET's countdown show 106 & Park premiered on September 11, 2000, with which pair of original hosts?

The pair fronted the show until July 2005; its Freestyle Friday battles became a launchpad for aspiring rappers.

Which album won Best Rap Album at the 2007 Grammys?

Ludacris shaved off his signature cornrows for the album, and its lead single 'Money Maker' also won Best Rap Song.

How many downloads did Eminem's 'Crack a Bottle' (2009) sell in its record-breaking first week?

The record it beat belonged to T.I. and Rihanna's 'Live Your Life'; the album, produced almost entirely by Dr. Dre, went on to win Best Rap Album.

Which Missy Elliott single sat at number two for ten weeks behind Eminem's 'Lose Yourself' in 2002-03?

The Timbaland production tied a chart record for weeks stuck at number two and won Missy her third straight Grammy for Best Female Rap Solo Performance.

Which 2005 E-40 and Keak da Sneak hit, produced by Lil Jon, took hyphy national?

It was the first hip hop single to premiere online before its release, debuting on the MySpace homepage.

50 Cent earned around $100 million in 2007 when Coca-Cola bought Glacéau, maker of which product?

The partnership had produced a flavour named Formula 50; Coca-Cola paid $4.1 billion for the company.

Which Ja Rule single with Ashanti topped the Hot 100 in early 2002, giving Ashanti her first number one?

The beat came from 7 Aurelius, who had thrown it away before Ja Rule dug it back out; it topped the chart in early 2002.

How many copies did Kanye West's Graduation sell in its first week head-to-head with 50 Cent's Curtis in September 2007?

Curtis sold 691,000 the same week; 50 Cent had said he would quit solo recording if he lost, then walked it back citing contract obligations.

Which 2009 Jay-Z single with Alicia Keys was his first Hot 100 number one as a lead artist?

Producer Al Shux built it on a piano sample from The Moments' 'Love on a Two-Way Street'; it won two Grammys.

Where did The Marshall Mathers LP's first-week US sales of 1.76 million rank at the time in the SoundScan era?

Only NSYNC's No Strings Attached had opened bigger; Eminem later performed 'Stan' with Elton John at the 2001 Grammys, where the album won Best Rap Album.

Which OutKast video restaged a famous 1964 Ed Sullivan Show appearance with André 3000 playing every band member?

The song became the first on iTunes to reach one million downloads and won Best Urban/Alternative Performance at the 2004 Grammys.

Which T.I. single set a Hot 100 record in 2008 by leaping from number 71 straight to number one?

The 70-place jump broke the mark set by Maroon 5's 'Makes Me Wonder'; it came from his album Paper Trail.

Kanye West's 808s & Heartbreak (2008) takes the first part of its title from what?

The Roland TR-808 and Auto-Tune dominate the record, which West made after his mother's death and a broken engagement, partly in Honolulu.

Producer Timbaland got his stage name from which member of Jodeci, who named him after a boot brand?

The Norfolk, Virginia native produced Missy Elliott's biggest 2000s hits and later scored his own with Shock Value in 2007.

Which duo did Billboard rank number one on its list of the top producers of the 2000s?

The Virginia Beach pair had also won the Grammy for Producer of the Year in 2004 and ran the Star Trak label.

Which Kid Cudi debut single hit number three on the Hot 100 in 2009 after a Crookers remix took off in clubs?

The remix hit number two in the UK, and the original was later certified diamond in the US.

Which award was Taylor Swift accepting at the 2009 MTV VMAs when Kanye West took the microphone from her?

West insisted Beyoncé's 'Single Ladies' clip deserved it; when Beyoncé won Video of the Year later that night, she called Swift back to finish her speech.

Danger Mouse's The Grey Album combined Jay-Z's The Black Album vocals with music from which band?

EMI ordered it pulled, prompting the 'Grey Tuesday' protest on 24 February 2004 when websites offered it free for a day.

Three 6 Mafia won the Best Original Song Oscar for the theme to which 2005 film?

"It's Hard out Here for a Pimp" later ranked 80th on VH1's 100 Greatest Songs of Hip Hop.

What was the title of 50 Cent's unreleased 2000 album, originally intended as his debut?

Legal troubles and an industry blackballing followed, until Eminem's Shady Records signed him in 2002 and Get Rich or Die Tryin' arrived in 2003.

Eminem's 2000 single "Stan" samples the opening lines of which Dido song?

Despite topping charts in twelve countries, "Stan" peaked at only number 51 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Which 2003 single gave Twista, Kanye West and Jamie Foxx their first Hot 100 number one?

It samples Luther Vandross's cover of "A House Is Not a Home", earning Burt Bacharach and Hal David writing credits.

Which producer made the beat for Terror Squad's 2004 number one "Lean Back"?

Fat Joe and Remy Ma handled the vocals, and the club anthem held the Hot 100 top spot for three weeks.

Which singer features on Eve's "Let Me Blow Ya Mind", the first Best Rap/Sung Collaboration Grammy winner?

The 2001 single peaked at number two in the US and topped charts in Ireland, Norway and Switzerland.

Kanye West's "Gold Digger" (2005) samples which Ray Charles recording?

The beat was originally meant for Shawnna's debut album, and the single set a then-record for weekly downloads.

Which singer, who died two weeks before its release, is featured on Lil Wayne's "Lollipop" (2008)?

It became only the eighth song to reach number one after the death of a credited artist and later went diamond.

Which 2003 single set a Billboard record as the most listened-to song in radio history in one week?

It spent nine weeks at number one and blocked R. Kelly's 'Ignition (Remix)' from the top spot for five of them.

How many US copies did Get Rich or Die Tryin' sell in its first week in February 2003?

It was rushed out a week early to beat bootleggers, then sold another 822,000 the following week on its way to becoming the best-selling album of 2003.

Which 2003 single, produced by Kanye West, became Ludacris's first Hot 100 number one?

Shawnna handles the call-and-response chorus, and the Dave Meyers video features a giant beer bottle and an oversized sneaker Ludacris ends up wearing.

Nelly's 'Country Grammar (Hot Shit)' took its melody and chorus from what kind of source?

The rhyme is 'Down Down Baby'. On the clean version the chorus line 'street sweeper baby cocked' becomes 'boom boom baby', since a Street Sweeper is a shotgun.

Which Black Album single peaked at only number 30, far below its two top-ten siblings?

Its beat borrows from Mountain, Billy Squier and Wilson Pickett, and the hook nods to an Ice-T song of the same name.

Which duo's 2002 debut single 'Grindin'' was built on a famously sparse drum-and-woodblock beat?

The minimal style predated 'Drop It Like It's Hot' by two years; it led off the album Lord Willin' and peaked at number 30.

The album version of Mike Jones's 'Still Tippin'' samples which piece of classical music?

That version is actually a remix; the original Swishahouse cut had a Chamillionaire verse that was replaced by Paul Wall's after a falling-out.

Which pop star sang the uncredited chorus on the Black Eyed Peas' 'Where Is the Love?' (2003)?

His label Jive feared overexposure during the Justified campaign, so he sang on the record but stayed out of the video and off the credits.

M.I.A.'s 'Paper Planes' (2008) samples which band's 1982 song 'Straight to Hell'?

Diplo suggested the sample, and M.I.A. says she cut her vocal in a single take; MTV censored the gunshot sounds in the video.

Kanye West's 'Stronger' video, shot partly in Tokyo, was inspired by which 1988 anime film?

West first heard Daft Punk on tour in 2006 and spent months rewriting his verses over the sample; the duo later joined him to perform it at the Grammys.

Which 2004 EP paired Jay-Z with Linkin Park and produced the Grammy-winning 'Numb/Encore'?

MTV originally planned to mash up just one or two songs; the six-track result was recorded over four days in July and debuted at number one.

Which Philadelphia hip hop band became the house band for Late Night with Jimmy Fallon in 2009?

Formed in 1987 by Black Thought and Questlove, the group followed Fallon to The Tonight Show in 2014 and is still there.

Who produced Lil Wayne's 'A Milli' (2008) and later Beyoncé's similar-sounding 'Diva'?

The track won Best Rap Solo Performance at the 2009 Grammys, and its beat became the decade's most freestyled-over instrumental.

Juvenile's 'Slow Motion' (2004) gave which record label its first ever Hot 100 number one?

Guest Soulja Slim had been killed the previous November, making it the seventh song to reach number one posthumously for a credited artist.

Shyne, jailed for a 1999 nightclub shooting, later became a politician in which country?

He converted to Orthodox Judaism in prison, was deported after his release in 2009, and went on to lead his country's opposition in parliament.

Ol' Dirty Bastard collapsed and died in November 2004 at the studio of which fellow Wu-Tang member?

He died two days before his 36th birthday; an autopsy found a lethal mix of cocaine and the painkiller tramadol.

Big Pun, who died in February 2000, was the first solo Latino rapper to achieve what?

Capital Punishment also earned a Best Rap Album nomination. He died of a heart attack at 28, two days after pulling out of a Saturday Night Live appearance.

Which hip hop album was the best-selling album in the world in 2002?

It has sold around 27 million copies worldwide, making it the best-selling hip hop album of all time, and 'Without Me' won the Grammy for Best Music Video.

'Big Pimpin'', Jay-Z's 2000 hit with UGK, samples a 1957 recording from which country?

The song is 'Khosara Khosara' by Abdel Halim Hafez. The composer's heirs sued in 2007, and Jay-Z later testified he had no idea the track contained a sample.

UGK's 'Int'l Players Anthem' (2007) video is built around which event in André 3000's life?

He turns up in a red kilt and is mocked by Bun B and friends for rushing into it. The beat, by DJ Paul and Juicy J, was first used by Project Pat in 2002.

Which rapper hosted MTV's car-makeover show Pimp My Ride from 2004 to 2007?

West Coast Customs did the rebuilds for the first four seasons, and Chamillionaire filled in as host for a single episode.

Which London rapper's self-produced debut Boy in da Corner won the 2003 Mercury Prize?

He was only the second rapper to win the award, and the record is widely credited with carrying grime out of east London to the rest of the world.

Which hip hop group features on Gorillaz's 2005 Grammy-winning single 'Feel Good Inc.'?

The Long Island trio had been finishing The Grind Date when Damon Albarn sent over tracks; the song won Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals.

How many separate music videos were made for Kanye West's 'Jesus Walks' (2004)?

The track samples the ARC Choir's 'Walk with Me', reportedly took six months to find its second verse, and won the Grammy for Best Rap Song.

Jay-Z kept his 2007 album American Gangster off which store, refusing to sell it track by track?

He argued that films are not sold scene by scene, so the concept album would not be sold as singles; it finally reached the store in 2011.

Kanye West's 'Touch the Sky' (2005) slows down a sample of which Curtis Mayfield song?

Just Blaze, not West, built the beat; the track also gave a then little-known Lupe Fiasco his first big guest spot.

Lil' Kim's 2001 number one 'Lady Marmalade' was recorded for which film's soundtrack?

Alongside Christina Aguilera, Mýa and Pink, it held the top spot for five weeks and was only the ninth song to hit number one for two different acts.

Which 2003 album was Bow Wow's first release after he dropped 'Lil'' from his stage name?

Snoop Dogg gave him the name after spotting him performing at age six in 1993; the rename coincided with leaving So So Def for Columbia.

A January 2007 police raid on DJ Drama's Atlanta studio seized roughly how many mixtapes?

Drama and Don Cannon were booked on racketeering charges, and hard drives holding his first official album were taken along with four vehicles.

Jay-Z sold the rights to his Rocawear brand to Iconix in 2007 for roughly how much?

Damon Dash had sold his stake for a reported $22.5 million less than two years earlier, leaving Jay-Z as sole owner when the big cheque arrived.

Jay-Z opened his 2008 Glastonbury headline set with a cover of which Oasis song?

Noel Gallagher had complained that hip hop had no place at a guitar festival; Jay-Z's reply was that 'we don't play guitars, Noel, but hip hop has put in its work'.

Kanye West said George Bush 'doesn't care about black people' on live TV after which 2005 disaster?

He went off script during a televised relief benefit. In 2010 he apologised, saying he had not had the grounds to call the president a racist.

Which Jay-Z song did he and Nas perform together in October 2005 to mark the end of their feud?

The choice was pointed: the 1996 track leans on a sample of Nas's 'The World Is Yours'. Nas signed to Jay-Z's Def Jam soon after.

Whose album kept Kanye West's The College Dropout stuck at number two on the Billboard 200 in 2004?

Feels Like Home held the debut off for two straight weeks even though it opened with 441,000 copies.

T.I. first reached the Hot 100 as a guest on which Atlanta rapper's 2003 single 'Never Scared'?

It was his first album after leaving No Limit, and 'Shake Ya Ass' peaked at number 13 with its hook sung by a singer left uncredited on most pressings.

Which Mystikal album, home to 'Shake Ya Ass', topped the Billboard 200 in 2000?

It was his first album after leaving No Limit. 'Shake Ya Ass' peaked at number 13 with an uncredited Pharrell Williams singing the hook.

Asher Roth's 'I Love College' (2009) originally sampled which Weezer song before being reworked?

Rivers Cuomo reportedly refused to clear it, so producer Ben H. Allen rebuilt the track; it still samples MC Lyte's '10% Dis'.

Which TV commentator branded Jadakiss a 'smear merchant' over a 9/11 line in 'Why' (2004)?

The Havoc-produced protest song features Anthony Hamilton on the hook and samples 'Mandrake' by the prog band Gong.

Fabolous first rapped under a longer name that referenced which fashion line?

The misspelling was an accident he kept. DJ Clue signed him after a live performance on his Hot 97 show, leading to 2001's Ghetto Fabolous.

Which Big Boi-run label released Bubba Sparxxx's 2006 album The Charm and its hit 'Ms. New Booty'?

The Ying Yang Twins collaboration hit number seven, higher than his 2001 Timbaland-backed breakthrough 'Ugly', and was his last major-label release.