Hip Hop artists don't often find success outside of their own genre. For the ones that did venture into other musical territories, a select group defied the traditional boundaries of rap and pushed the culture forward as a result. For example, Kanye West's 808s & Heartbreak marked a significant departure from his previous work via elements of electronic music and auto-tuned singing. The album's groundbreaking style influenced — and continues to influence — a generation of artists and producers.
Similarly, Donald Glover, who performs as Childish Gambino, made waves when he eschewed rapping on his album Awaken, My Love! which leaned heavily into funk and soul a la Funkadelic and Prince. This offering earned critical acclaim, and the project’s hit single, "Redbone," became a cultural phenomenon.
Another notable example is OutKast's André 3000, whose work on The Love Below part of the group's double album Speakerboxxx/The Love Below embraced elements of funk, jazz, and pop. The album received widespread critical acclaim and commercial success, and songs like "Hey Ya" became timeless hits. Since then, André stepped out of the box even further by creating a woodwind-focused body of work for his official solo debut.
Below lies 13 artists that exemplified how Hip Hop artists can break genre barriers with success. By stepping outside of their presumed comfort zones, they expanded their artistic horizons and contributed to the evolution of music as a whole.
1. Tickets To My Downfall – Machine Gun Kelly
Initially, Machine Gun Kelly, who now goes as the simpler mgk, burst onto the scene with hard-hitting raps about life in Cleveland – this was especially the case with his debut album, Lace Up. Over time, he gradually expanded further into other styles like punk, which fans would experience traces of during live performances.
Following Bloom and Hotel Diablo, mgk surprised the masses with Tickets To My Downfall, an album that was completely devoid of rap. In its place was a pop-punk experience with collaborations alongside the likes of Halsey and Iann Dior. He later spoke on his decision to experiment in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, attributing it largely to the COVID-19 quarantine while stressing that he “never departed, left or switched” from Hip Hop.
2. 808s and Heartbreak – Kanye West
Prior to 808s and Heartbreak, Kanye West was on top of the world after delivering the chart-topping Graduation, which served as a closing trilogy behind the equally acclaimed The College Dropout and Late Registration projects. Soon after, tragedy struck with the death of his mother, Donda West. Ye also endured the highly publicized break-up with Alexis Phifer. Those losses, along with his struggles with stardom, lead to the groundbreaking 808s, along with singles like “Love Lockdown” and “Heartless.”
“It's a little bit of auto-tune and a whole lot of f**ked up life,” Ye told MTV about the project, which mainly consisted of electronic and synth-pop elements. “This album was therapeutic – it’s lonely at the top.” He also stated that he looked “to people outside of my genre for competition.”
3. Speakerboxxx/The Love Below – André 3000 (OutKast)
Following the success of Stankonia and what was essentially a greatest hits album, André 3000 (who was already showing heavy eclecticism by this point), found himself pulling away from the usual constraints of rap. What culminated from his creativity was a blend of pop, jazz, and funk, along with more singing and live instrumentation.
“I didn’t want to rap on the songs, I wanted the flow to be more melodic,” André told XXL. “It didn’t start in the studio because if you have a bunch of people around, they’re coming from the party and I’m in there singing falsetto ... those vibes didn’t match. So, I found places to sing without feedback, which was a solo pursuit.”
As a result, the resulting Speakerboxxx/The Love Below was effectively his and Big Boi’s solo efforts joined together. As the entire product received universal acclaim, the talk was heavily positive regarding André’s decision to go in an entirely different direction for his contribution. It would be remiss to add that André’s long-awaited solo LP, New Blue Sun, would replace vocals entirely for a jazzy, ambient offering led by his use of wind instruments.
4. IGOR – Tyler, the Creator
Following the Hip Hop and neo-soul-oriented Flower Boy, Tyler, the Creator decided to push the envelope further with IGOR, a conceptual effort that heavily utilized synthesized R&B and funk throughout. The album’s love triangle narrative and themes of heartbreak and loss – along with notable contributions from the likes of Jack White, La Roux, Slowthai, and Santigold – further added to its overall uniqueness from the norm.
IGOR was a resounding success that topped the Billboard 200 and earned a double-platinum certification. “The IGOR s**t plays a thin line between goofy, and funny, and art,” Tyler explained to GQ. “I always have to be careful so it doesn't f**k everyone's perception up. It's art and an idea.”
5. Circles – Mac Miller
Circles was the sixth and final studio album by Mac Miller, which was released posthumously. The album, which Miller was working on before his untimely death, was intended as a companion piece to its immediate predecessor, Swimming. Collaborator Jon Brion went on to complete the production of Circles based on prior work and conversations with the late rapper.
As a whole, Circles showcased a blend of different styles, including funk, soft rock, pop, folk, and R&B. The project featured "Blue World," produced with assistance from Disclosure’s Guy Lawrence, and "Good News," a laid-back, airy vibe that really didn’t fit any particular genre.
6. Let’s Start Here. – Lil Yachty
Lil Yachty might’ve delivered the most surprising offering on this list. Following the usual blend of trap and pop heard on previous projects like Teenage Emotions, the Atlanta-based star made a pivot with Let’s Start Here., an album primarily based around psychedelic rock. Avant-garde talents like Fousheé, Diana Gordon, and Teezo Touchdown contributed to the genre-bending effort.
Speaking to Billboard about Let’s Start Here., Yachty stated, “It was a lot of self-assessing and being very real about not being happy with where I was musically, knowing I’m better than where I am. Because the s**t I was making did not add up to the s**t I listened to.” The QC star also explained how he wanted to be “remembered” and “respected.”
7. Honestly, Nevermind – Drake
While considered a musical chameleon for his experimentation with a variety of genres, Drake’s Honestly, Nevermind still seemed largely unexpected by the masses. Following Certified Lover Boy, the Canadian star’s seventh studio LP was a dancefloor-ready effort that borrowed heavily from house, Jersey club, amapiano, and Baltimore club. Popular producers within those fields, including Gordo and Black Coffee, contributed to the album’s electronic-focused sound.
While it received positive reviews, Drake found himself defending the record from rap purists and critics of his frequent experimentation. “
It’s all good if you don’t get it yet. It’s all good. That’s what we do. That’s what we do. We wait for you to catch up,” he could be heard saying in a video shared on social media. “We’re in here, though. We’re caught up already. On to the next. My goodness.”
8. Awaken, My Love! – Childish Gambino
To be clear, as Childish Gambino, Donald Glover stepped outside of his rapping origins prior to the release of Awaken, My Love! On Because The Internet, he could be heard singing on select cuts, and the second half of his STN MTN / Kauai mixtape was a journey into alternative R&B. Nonetheless, Awaken, My Love! was a full-on mix of soul, funk, and rock that was completely devoid of rapping. Songs like “Me And Your Mama” and “Redbone” received critical acclaim for their psychedelic, melodic vibes, and a series of tribalesque performances in support of the project further added to its creativity.
Humorously enough, his main reason for creating the album was rather trivial. “I am naturally, like, petty. Like, extremely petty. Awaken, My Love! was literally because somebody was like, ‘Oh, he can’t make a hit.’” Gambino explained during an appearance on “The Shop.” “And I was like, ‘Oh, not only will I make a hit, I won’t make a video for it.’”
9. Rebirth – Lil Wayne
At a time when he was, in fact, the biggest artist in music, Lil Wayne decided to embrace his rock star persona literally. Following the earth-shattering Tha Carter III and subsequent rap releases like his We Are Young Money compilation, Weezy unveiled the more alternative Rebirth, which was by rock and punk offerings like “Prom Queen” and the Nicki Minaj-assisted “Knockout.”
It should be noted that Rebirth did contain some Hip-Hop songs, including the wildly popular “Drop The World” collaboration with Eminem. As far as why he picked up a guitar in the first place, Wayne explained how he became so good at rap that he became “tired of it.” “I don’t want to be the best rapper in the world,” he said to Rolling Stone. “I want to be the best. Period. Now. My favorite rapper hasn’t done what I’m doing.”
10. Body Count – Body Count (Ice-T)
Body Count is a heavy metal/hardcore punk band led by rapper Ice-T and guitarist Ernie C. Known for its socially and politically charged themes, the band made a significant impact on the music scene with a wealth of albums and live performances. Fans first got a taste of the group on Ice-T's O.G. Original Gangster album. “Rock and roll is truly Black music. It was created by Chuck Berry, Little Richard,” the veteran emcee stated on the aptly titled “Body Count.” “As far as I'm concerned, music is music.”
On the group’s self-titled debut LP lay its most infamous track, "Cop Killer," which sparked a firestorm of controversy upon its release. The backlash was so severe that Ice-T and his record label eventually decided to remove "Cop Killer" from the album and replace it with a reworked version of "Freedom of Speech,” a song that originally appeared on Ice-T's The Iceberg/Freedom of Speech... Just Watch What You Say!
11. Seeing Sounds – N.E.R.D. (Pharrell Williams)
The Neptunes (the duo of Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo) and longtime friend and collaborator Shay Haley were already experimenting outside of Hip Hop from N.E.R.D.’s inception. Their debut album, In Search Of... was even re-released after the group switched out its original electronic styling for a more rock-focused effort with Spymob.
Arguably, N.E.R.D. mastered their genre-less vibes on their third official effort, Seeing Sounds, an album named for Pharrell’s synesthesia self-diagnosis. While tracks like “Everyone Nose (All the Girls Standing in the Line for the Bathroom)” steered somewhat in Hip Hop's direction, others, including "Sooner or Later" and “Love Bomb,” were bursts of energy in the vein of U2 or Coldplay.
12. Leave It All Behind – Foreign Exchange (Phonte)
After Little Brother’s Phonte linked up with Dutch producer Nicolay to form Foreign Exchange, their first body of work was the Hip Hop-heavy Connected – a project that received plenty of help from Von Pea, Oddisee, Little Brother member Rapper Big Pooh, and more. For Foreign Exchange’s follow-up, Leave It All Behind, the duo switched to a full-on soul offering that saw Phonte breaking out his best vocal chops, something that he previously teased via his popular Percy Miracles alter-ego.
“At the end of the day, I’m a studio rat. I just love creating,” he said to American Songwriter. “I just want to make music, that’s all I want to do, that’s really it.” The success of Leave It All Behind was big enough that it led to an expansion of FE Music, a label that’s since helped with the careers of Zo!, BeMyFiasco, Darien Brockington, and more.
13. The Dana Owens Album – Queen Latifah
Queen Latifah proved her abilities outside of rap (specifically with R&B) long before the arrival of her fifth studio LP. Regardless, The Dana Owens Album was a big departure from previous releases with sounds of jazz and soul. In addition, the project contained covers of songs like Al Green’s “Simply Beautiful,” Billy Strayhorm’s “Lush Life,” Barbara Lewis’ “Hello Stranger,” and Bill Withers’ “The Same Love That Made Me Laugh.”
The Dana Owens Album was a huge success that earned a top 20 placement on the Billboard 200 and a gold certification. It also received a Best Jazz Vocal Album nomination at the Grammys.