This year, Valentines Day and All-Star weekend meet in New York for a Yu-Gi-Oh match to the death, but that doesn’t mean it’s all ballers and companions looking for a come up. In the world of Hip Hop, there’s still those couples that manage to come together despite the entire world being at their proverbial finger tips.
That’s admirable considering everything involved, but also sobering. Having all the things you think you want just might not be everything. We mean, Jay did ask you how many times he can eat at Mr. Chows, right?
So in honor of those who decided to put their pimp hands down and come together for a greater cause we’ve put together a dossier of ten Hip Hop power couples with real love and deep rolodexes, well, among other things.
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Jay Z and Beyonce
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Jay Z: One of the greatest emcees alive / Founder of international entertainment company Roc Nation
Beyonce: Arguably the greatest living entertainer in Pop music / Ms. Carter tour one of the highest grossing tours of the decade with around $229 million sales
Allegedly having a combined net worth of $1 billion dollars, Jay Z and Beyonce have become the standard by which most relationships in Hip Hop(and society in general) are judged. The pairing of these two made total sense since they began collaborating musically over a decade ago. The two also essentially held one of the highest grossing tours of 2014 through their On The Run tour. According to recent news, the two are rumored to be working on an album together which should set the industry ablaze if ever released.
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John Legend and Chrissy Teigen
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John Legend: Nine Grammy Awards singer/songwriter / Acclaimed philanthropist
Chrissy Teigen: 2010 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue Rookie of The Year and featured model for 50th Anniversary issue / Guest contributor for E!, Extra and MTV among others.
When not making headlines for revealing lude escapades at The White House, John Legend and Chrissy Teigen have grown to become one of Hollywood’s elite “it” couples. As the G.O.O.D. Music artist adds more and more into his legacy daily, the former Sports Illustrated swimsuit covergirl has made herself into her own personality. She’s also a pretty cool foodie. It’s been a good year for Legend, who recently opened this year’s Grammy Award ceremonies alongside Beyonce and Common for their Oscar nominated song “Glory.”
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T.I. and Tiny
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T.I.: Grand Hustle Records general responsible for the rise of B.O.B. and Iggy Azalea / The Kang of the South
Tiny: Former member of 90s R&B group Xscape / Grammy Award winning songwriter of TLC classic “No Scrubs”
Though the couple had been pretty well known in Hip Hop for sometime, both T.I. and Tiny become this generation’s Huxtables thanks to their VH1 reality series T.I. & Tiny: The Family Hustle. One of the network’s number one shows, T.I. proved to be an average guy with a caring family despite a pretty dark past. On the flipside, Tiny showed her hustle outside of someone known for writing one hit single and time with Jermaine Dupri’s girl group. She also managed to earn her own spin-off with friend and personal hairdresser Shekinah Anderson Tiny and Shekinah’s Weave Trip.
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Swizz Beatz and Alicia Keys
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Swizz Beatz: Grammy Award winning producer / Acclaimed designer, painter and creative director
Alicia Keys: 15 Grammy Awards / Over 35 million albums sold
Since the reign of The Ruff Ryders has long passed, Swizzy has managed to keep himself busy with numerous ventures ranging from automotive design to a stint with controversial download site Megaupload. That eye for lifestyle earned him recently a high position at Reebok Vice President of Sports Style Marketing, Design, and Brand Music Development. Since breaking out with her groundbreaking debut Songs In A Minor, Keys has been regarded as one of the greatest to grace R&B.
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Pharrell and Helen Lasichanh
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Pharrell: Iconic music producer / Fashion game changer
Helen Lasichanh: Modern fashion style icon
Besides having over a decade worth of hits with Chad Hugo as the Neptunes, Pharrell has done pretty well for himself on the solo tip. From running 2013 alongside Robin Thicke and T.I. with “Blurred Lines” to dominating the following year with viral sensation “Happy,” the N.E.R.D. frontman is pop music’s backbone. Lets not forget many successful forays into fashion. His wife Helen Lasichanh also has become a modern fashionista if the recent Grammy ceremonies have anything to say.
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Kanye West and Kim Kardashian
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Kanye West: Music, fashion, and design Mogul / Mr. West is the arbiter by which both Raps-as-art and Rants-as-art are judged.
Kim Kardashian: The socialite catapulted herself into the public consciousness with “Keeping Up With The Kardashian” / “Kim Kardashian: Hollywood” is worth an estimated $200 million dollars.
These two seem like some sort of odd couple, but there’s more than meets the eye here. They are both heartachingly wealthy at this point. With Mr. West being the creator of music that changes landscapes and Kim being his born-to-be muse. See, he loves beauty and Kim is beautiful. So despite her penchant for interesting selfie choices, they’re pretty much a match made in heaven.
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Big Sean and Ariana Grande
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Big Sean: G.O.O.D Music emcee, ad-lib king and budding superstar.
Ariana Grande: The likely successor to Mariah Carey / Disney princess turned Pop heiress.
These two have been causing a stir. Partially because Ariana Grande´ looks like everyone’s quintessential little sister, and partly because she’s the follow up to Sean’s doused-in-flames relationship with Naya Rivera. There’s no doubt, though, as budding stars go, these two are rocketing to the top. And with Big Seans’ Dark Sky Paradise set to possibly be the best work of his career, these two can definitely raise their power quotient in the future.
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Tyga and Kylie
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Tyga: Newly Independent / #1 Singles / Reebok shoe contract / Hip Hop Cash Prince
Kylie: The heir apparent to the Kim Kardashian throne
These two have been embroiled in media controversies for most of their careers since, well, Tyga (and everything else) have been getting into with Cash Money. Then there’s his sort-of underage girlfriend Kylie, with her pouty lips and not being able to get into clubs. This is problematic because Tyga’s a club rapper and yet somehow these two soldier on.
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Meek Mill and Nicki Minaj
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Meek Mill: Signed to Maybach Music / Hip Hop Cash Prince.
Nicki Minaj: Voted Complex’s emcee of 2014 / Superstar emcee / Massively influential brand / #1 Albums
It’s interesting to have a significant other that can outrap you, but Meek Mill is in that rarified air. His ongoing dalliance with Onika has been well televised. First the split from long time boyfriend Safaree freed her up to fall in love, and as Meek swooped in for the kill, Nicki ran into his waiting arms. A classic snooze you lose story, and things are still fairly young, but as long as these two stay together they may be able to rise to the top of the Rap game will they’ll fight the final boss: Jay & Bey.
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Elliott Wilson and Danyel Smith
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Elliott Wilson: Arguably the worlds most well known Rap journalist / Lineage at Ego Trip, XXL, Rap Radar, HRD CVR and others.
Danyel Smith: Editor-In-Chief at Billboard / Roots at Vibe, Time, XXL / Co Founder HRD CVR
The power couple of the Rap music world is most assuredly the combo of Elliot Wilson and Danyel Smith. They’ve broken some of the biggest stories in Rap history. They’ve also captained the ship at more than their fair share of stories institutions. Their nose for a story as well as what’s to come it also fairly unmatched. Plus, between them they pretty much have access to everyone and anyone.
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Andre Grant is an NYC native turned L.A. transplant that has contributed to a few different properties on the web and is now the Features Editor for HipHopDX. He’s also trying to live it to the limit and love it a lot. Follow him on Twitter @drejones.
Ural Garrett is an Los Angeles-based journalist and HipHopDX’s Senior Features Writer. When not covering music, video games, films and the community at large, he’s in the kitchen baking like Anita. Follow him on Twitter @Uralg.
