Cameron Giles, better known by his stage name Cam'ron, is an American rapper. Beginning his career in the early-1990s as Killa Cam, Giles signed with Lance "Un" Rivera's Untertainment, an imprint of Epic Records to release his first two studio albums Confessions of Fire (1998) and S.D.E. (2000); the former received gold certification by the RIAA. After leaving Epic, Giles signed with Roc-A-Fella Records in 2001 to release his third studio album Come Home with Me the following year. It received platinum certification by the RIAA and spawned the singles "Oh Boy" and "Hey Ma", which peaked at numbers four and three respectively on the Billboard Hot 100. His fourth studio album, Purple Haze (2004) was met with similar success and likewise received gold certification by the RIAA.
Rufus Johnson, better known by his stage name Bizarre, is an American rapper, best known for his work with the Detroit-based hip hop group D12.
Ryan Daniel Montgomery, known professionally as Royce da 5'9", is an American rapper. Best known for his association with fellow Detroit rapper Eminem, they became acquainted in 1997 and formed the hip hop duo, Bad Meets Evil the following year. Their 2011 single, "Lighters" peaked at number four on the Billboard Hot 100 and preceded the release of their debut extended play (EP), Hell: The Sequel (2011). The song and its parent EP, which debuted atop the Billboard 200, have yielded Montgomery's furthest commercial success.
Marvin Watson Jr., better known by his stage name Messy Marv, is an American rapper who began his career in the Fillmore District of San Francisco, California. Messy was also known as a collaborator in the rap group Kaalman's Krew.
QBoy is a UK-based rapper, producer, DJ, writer and presenter. He is one of the original few out rappers in hip hop circa 2001 that became pioneers of the new subgenre colloquially known as "homo hop". QBoy is currently a DJ and promoter of popular LGBTQ club night and party 'R & She: The Queens of Hip-Hop & R&B' which hosts events in London, Berlin and New York City.
LGBT representations in hip hop music have existed since the birth of the genre even while enduring blatant discrimination. Due to its adjacency to disco, the earliest days of hip hop had a close relation to LGBT subcultures, and multiple LGBT DJs have played a role in popularizing hip hop. Despite this early involvement, hip hop has long been portrayed as one of the least LGBT-friendly genres of music, with a significant body of the genre containing homophobic views and anti-gay lyrics, with mainstream artists such as Eminem and Tyler, the Creator having used homophobia in their lyrics. Attitudes towards homosexuality in hip hop culture have historically been negative, with slang that uses homosexuality as a punchline such as "sus", "no homo", and "pause" being heard in hip hop lyrics from some of the industry's biggest artists. Since the early 2000s there has been a flourishing community of LGBTQ+ hip hop artists, activists, and performers breaking barriers in the mainstream music industry.
Fredrick Jamel Tipton, better known by his stage name Freddie Gibbs, is an American rapper. He signed with Interscope Records in 2006 and recorded his debut album for the label; however, its release was cancelled and he was dropped from the label due to executive shakeups. Gibbs later signed with Young Jeezy's CTE World in 2011 and released a number of mixtapes through the label, including his highly acclaimed Baby Face Killa (2012).
Mark Julian Felder, more commonly known as Bizzle, is an American Christian hip hop recording artist and entrepreneur.
Brandon Christopher McCartney, professionally known as Lil B and as his alter ego the BasedGod, is an American rapper. McCartney has recorded both solo and with Bay Area group the Pack. His solo work spans several genres, including hip hop, new age, jazz, indie rock and choral music. He describes his work as "based", a term which denotes a lifestyle of positivity and tolerance; and is noted for his extensive use of social media to build an online cult following.
Khalif Libasse Diouf, known by the stage name Kalifa, formerly known by the stage name Le1f, is an American rapper and producer. Diouf also founded the record label Camp & Street, with Boody, DonChristian, and Chaz Requina. Diouf garnered attention for unique musical and performance styles, as well as his role as an openly gay rapper. Following a series of well-received mixtapes and EPs, Diouf's debut studio album, Riot Boi, was released in November 2015.
Mykki Blanco is an American rapper, performance artist, poet and activist. She has collaborated musically with artists including Kanye West, Teyana Taylor, and Blood Orange.
Darien Corey Dash, Jr., known professionally as Dash, is an American rapper. Apart from his solo career, he was a member of Heir Global, alongside former friend and collaborator, Retch. Dash is also an affiliate of ASAP Mob, making his first high-profile appearance on their debut mixtape Lords Never Worry, in 2012. He frequently works with record producer Mordecai Beats, with whom he released the mixtape La Cienega (2012). Da$h has also collaborated with several prominent rappers in the hip-hop industry, including Ab-Soul, Action Bronson, Earl Sweatshirt, Vince Staples, Suicideboys, and Mac Miller.
Cody Rashad Osagie, better known by his stage name Cozz, is an American rapper. He is signed to J. Cole's label Dreamville Records and Interscope Records. His debut studio album Cozz & Effect, was released in October 2014. He has since released other projects, such as his 2016 project Nothin' Personal and in 2018 he released Effected his second Studio Album. He also released his Fortunate EP in 2021.
Damon Coleman, better known by his stage name Omen, is an American rapper and record producer from Chicago, Illinois. He is signed to J. Cole's Dreamville Records and Interscope Records. His debut studio album Elephant Eyes, was released on July 21, 2015.
Hugh Anthony Allison, better known by his stage name Mr. Muthafuckin' eXquire, is an American rapper. Born and raised in Brooklyn, he debuted with the release of his first mixtape, The Big Fat Kill, in 2008. Allison would follow-up with what is considered to be his breakout project, the mixtape Lost in Translation, released by Mishka NYC in 2011. He signed his first major-label record deal with Universal Republic Records, in 2012, which he subsequently left. In 2017, with the release of Allison's fourth EP Brainiac, he launched Chocolate Rabbit, his own record label imprint. His self-titled debut studio album was independently released in 2019.
Dainene Alexia Baldwin, best known by her stage name, Dai Burger (/deɪ/) is an American rapper. She is from Queens in New York City. She has released two studio albums to date.
Travis Miller, best known professionally as Lil Ugly Mane, is an American rapper, singer and record producer from Richmond, Virginia. He has recorded under multiple aliases in various genres since his first known released project in 2005, including Shawn Kemp, Vudmurk and Bedwetter.
Glenda Raniece Proby, better known by her stage names Gizzle and Lady G, is an American rapper and songwriter. Beginning her career as a ghostwriter for Lil' Fizz and Snoop Dogg in 2008, she has since collaborated with a number of prominent artists, namely Puff Daddy and Ty Dolla Sign. She made her debut recording appearance on the former's 2015 single, "You Can Be My Lover" from his mixtape MMM, and released her debut mixtape 7 Days in Atlanta in 2017. Her song "Go Up" was heavily used in marketing for the short-lived gaming service Google Stadia.
Montero Lamar Hill, better known by his stage name Lil Nas X, is an American rapper, singer, and songwriter. He rose to prominence with the release of his 2019 country rap single "Old Town Road," the longest-running number-one song since the U.S. Billboard Hot 100's 1958 inception. Simultaneously he came out as gay, the only artist to do so while having a number-one record.
Raushaan Glasgow, better known by his stage name LSDXOXO, is a Berlin-based musician born in Philadelphia who made a name for himself in New York City as a DJ and producer. Glasgow is well known for his energetic DJ sets, of which manipulate mainstream sounds by craftily layering pop tracks and vocal samples between Baltimore club, ghetto house, hardcore, electro and techno.
