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Macklemore and Ryan Lewis took home four Grammys at last month’s biggest music awards ceremony. Three in rap categories, despite most of the general population categorizing the duo as having a more pop-inclined sound.

But according to New York Times contributor Jon Caramanica, they’re not doing anything new. 

From the New York Times:

“…Macklemore’s breakthrough is merely the mass-market debut of a phenomenon that’s been happening for some time — white rappers performing for predominantly white audiences. The crisis of hip-hop’s whitening flares up every couple of years when a white rapper experiences a great deal of success, but the sort of success Macklemore has achieved has been fundamentally different from those who preceded him in form and scale. This has been happening for years in subcultural spaces, where it’s been less of a threat to the genre’s center.”

Read more at New York Times

Caramanica argues that the emergence of white rappers was once a niche market, but Macklemore’s overwhelming success has undoubtedly made it easier for white musicians to enter a market that is mostly occupied by African American artists.

Thoughts on Caramanica’s opinions?

Has Macklemore paved the way for other white artists to garner success from genres mostly occupied by blacks?

Sound off below!