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Who’s Detroit’s Best Rapper?

Here in the Motor City, we’re known for a lot of things. Pizza comes to mind. But, of course, Detroit also has great music. Detroit is the birthplace of Motown…

Silhouette of rap singer with microphone. Cool rapper with mic in hand singing on concert stage in bright red lights. Hip hop artist performing live on scene in music hall

Getty Images/Gennadiy Kravchenko

Getty Images/Gennadiy Kravchenko

Here in the Motor City, we're known for a lot of things. Pizza comes to mind. But, of course, Detroit also has great music. Detroit is the birthplace of Motown music. It also has a vibrant hip-hop scene. So, who's Detroit's best rapper?

The website Axios.com recently conducted a survey and asked people to vote for their favorite Detroit rapper. The outlet conducted round four of the survey on Aug. 18, 2023. A lot of talented rappers made it to the final round. Some of the rappers on the list that didn't get to No. 1 include Street Lord Juan, Blade Icewood, 42 Dugg, Slum Village, Kash Doll, Sada Baby, Peezy, Icewear Vezzo and more.

So, who is Detroit's best rapper? Well, the top four on the list were Big Sean, Eminem, Boldy James and Danny Brown. The top two were Danny Brown and Eminem. Then, the No. 1 pick, with 61.9% of the votes, was Eminem. Are you surprised Eminem is on top? Eminem, personally, is one of my favorite rappers. I mean, Danny Brown is fantastic, too. Big Sean and Boldy James are all ace, too.

I would probably go with Eminem for my top pick. He was one of the first artists that I ever played on the radio. It was a rock station, but because we were near Detroit, we played "Lose Yourself" and several of Eminem's big singles. People would call us up and ask, "Why are you playing hip-hop on a rock station?" But, Eminem was super popular, so it worked. I also feel like his music video for "My Name Is" is one of the most influential hip-hop music videos. Oh, and Mom's Spaghetti is really a thing, if you weren't aware. It's available in Detroit. Also, I hear it's delicious. Find Axios.com's full survey here and see if you agree with the results.

Anne Erickson started her radio career shortly after graduating from Michigan State University and has worked on-air in Detroit, Flint, Toledo, Lansing and beyond. As someone who absolutely loves rock, metal and alt music, she instantly fell in love with radio and hasn’t looked back. When she’s not working, Anne makes her own music with her band, Upon Wings, and she also loves cheering on her favorite Detroit and Michigan sports teams, especially Lions and MSU football. Anne is also an award-winning journalist, and her byline has run in a variety of national publications. You can also hear her weekends on WRIF.