2022 in hip-hop

Events

January

• On January 1, Kodak Black was arrested in Pompano Beach, Florida, on trespassing charges.
• On January 2, Traxamillion died at the age of 42.
• On January 9, Earl Swavey was fatally shot at the age of 26.
• On January 11, Justin Johnson and Shondale Barnett, Young Dolph's killers, were arrested in Indiana; the same day, Cornelius Smith, another of Dolph's killers, was indicted on a first-degree murder charge.
• On January 13, CPO Boss Hogg died at the age of 52.
• On January 14, Sad Frosty died at the age of 24. That same day, rap group Brockhampton announced that they were splitting up after a performance at Coachella 2022.
• On January 26, NBA YoungBoy's Texas home was raided by SWAT team.

February

• On February 9, it was announced that Snoop Dogg would be the new owner of Death Row Records.
• On February 12, Blueface was arrested for gun possession in Hollywood, California. The same day, Kodak Black was shot after a fight at a Justin Bieber party in Los Angeles, California.
• On February 13, Dr. Dre, Eminem, Kendrick Lamar, Mary J. Blige, and Snoop Dogg performed at the Super Bowl LVI halftime show at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California. 50 Cent and Anderson.Paak also made appearances during the performance.
• On February 23, South African-native rapper, singer, and songwriter Riky Rick died by suicide at the age of 34.
• On February 26, American rapper Snootie Wild died after being shot in Houston, Texas, at the age of 36. The same day, True Bleeda was shot and killed in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

March

• On March 6, DJ Dimplez, South African native hip hop DJ and producer died.

April

• On April 3, Baby Keem and Kendrick Lamar won the Best Rap Performance for their song "Family Ties" at the 64th Annual Grammy Awards. Kanye West won both Best Rap Song and Best Melodic Rap Performance for his two respective songs, "Jail" featuring Jay-Z, and "Hurricane" featuring The Weeknd and Lil Baby. Tyler, the Creator won the Grammy for Best Rap Album with Call Me If You Get Lost.
• On April 4, Tory Lanez was re-arrested for violating a court order regarding a 2020 shooting incident with Megan Thee Stallion.
• On April 17, DJ Kay Slay died at the age of 55 due to COVID-19 complications.
• On April 20, ASAP Rocky was arrested in Los Angeles, California, in connection to a shooting.

May

• On May 2, Rod Wave was arrested for battery in St. Petersburg, Florida.
• On May 9, Young Thug, Gunna, and 26 others associated with YSL were arrested for R.I.C.O. and conspiracy charges in Fulton County, Atlanta, Georgia.
• On May 13, Lil Keed died at the age of 24 due to kidney failure.
• On May 14, the Ukrainian rap group Kalush Orchestra won the Eurovision Song Contest 2022 with their song Stefania with 631 points in Turin.
• On May 29, Sidhu Moose Wala was shot and killed at the age of 28 in Mansa, Punjab, India.

June

• On June 2, the trial against Eric Holder Jr. for the murder of Nipsey Hussle began after Holder was arrested on April 2, 2019.
• On June 5, Atlanta-based rapper Trouble was shot and killed at the age of 34. It was also reported that Washington DC–based rapper 23 Rackz was also fatally shot.
• On June 14, XXL released their 2022 Freshman Class, including Nardo Wick, Doechii, SoFaygo, Babyface Ray, Kali, KayCyy, Cochise, Big30, KenTheMan, Big Scarr, Saucy Santana, and BabyTron.
• On June 22, Lil Tjay was shot in Edgewater, New Jersey.
• On June 29, R. Kelly was sentenced to 30 years in prison.

July

• On July 6, Eric Holder Jr. was convicted on first-degree murder charges for the murder of Nipsey Hussle after Holder’s trial had started on June 2.
• On July 27, JayDaYoungan was shot and killed at the age of 24.

August

• On August 1, The Pharcyde's long anticipated reunion on Fatlip's Torpor album gets spoiled by controversy over group naming rights.
• On August 6, Young Slo-Be was shot and killed at the age of 29.
• On August 15, Nipsey Hussle received a Hollywood Walk of Fame star posthumously, on what would have been his 37th birthday.
• On August 18, Dr. Dre and Jimmy Iovine opened a new high school in Leimert Park, California.

September

• On September 4, Pat Stay was fatally stabbed at the age of 36 in downtown Halifax, Nova Scotia.
• On September 12, PnB Rock was fatally shot at the age of 30 at a Roscoe's Chicken and Waffles restaurant in Los Angeles, California.
• On September 28, Coolio died from a heart attack at the age of 59.
• On September 29, Freddie Lee Trone was arrested for the murder of PnB Rock in Vegas, Nevada">Vegas (Doja Cat song)">Vegas, Nevada, along with 2 other people.

October

• On October 26, Tory Lanez was placed on house arrest after an altercation with August Alsina.

November

• On November 1, Takeoff was fatally shot in Houston, Texas, at the age of 28.
• On November 5, Eminem was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. He was presented by Dr. Dre, and had special guest appearances by Aerosmith lead vocalist Steven Tyler and Ed Sheeran during his performance.
• On November 15, Blueface was arrested for attempted murder.

December

• On December 12, the trial began for Tory Lanez against Megan Thee Stallion after allegedly shooting her in the foot in July 2020.
• On December 14, Gunna was released from prison after being arrested in May 2022.
• On December 22, Big Scarr died in his hometown of Memphis, Tennessee, at the age of 22 from a drug overdose.
• On December 23, Tory Lanez was convicted on all charges for the shooting of Megan Thee Stallion after his trial began on December 12. Lanez faces a maximum prison sentence of 22 years and eight months.

Released albums

August

Highest-charting songs

United States

United Kingdom