Kendrick Lamar is the first hip-hop artist to win a Pulitzer Prize.

He was praised for "capturing the complexity of modern African-American life."
 
Political statements aren't new for hip-hop.

Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five’s “The Message” describes the stress of inner city poverty.
 
N.W.A. focused on police brutality with songs like “Straight Outta Compton.”
 
Even Beyonce supported the “Black Lives Matter” movement during her Super Bowl performance.