After hearing the news that popular rapper Common had been cast in the upcoming 4th Terminator movie, Terminator Salvation: The Future Begins, I started to think about all the other successful rappers that have tried their hand at acting. It became evident that some are pretty good at doing both. So here is my Top 10 List of the Best Rappers Turned Actors.
Marshall Mathers is a Grammy and Academy Award-winning rapper, record producer and actor. Having sold over seventy million albums worldwide, Eminem is one of the highest-selling rappers of all time. Turning to acting in 2002′s 8 Mile, Eminem hasn’t resurfaced since. His debut was loosely based on his own life, so that probably helped his critically praised performance. Can he hold his own in other projects? I’d like to find out.
Hit Songs: Forget about Dre, The Real Slim Shady
Clifford Joseph Harris, Jr. is an rapper, songwriter, producer, actor, philanthropist and co-CEO of Grand Hustle Records. With his 2006 performance in ATL and more recently his supporting role in American Gangster, T.I. holds his own on screen. Now if he can just stay out of trouble we might get to see more of him.
Hit Song: Be Easy
Chris Bridges is a Grammy Award-winning rapper. He is also the highest-selling Southern hip hop artist of all time with over 11 million records sold in the United States. Though not very seasoned in the acting profession, Ludacris was surprisingly well regarded in his supporting role in Crash and Hustle & Flow and also his guest role in an 2007 episode of Law & Order. As such, I’ll give him a pass for being involved in Fred Claus. He is cast in the upcoming movies Max Payne and RocknRolla.
Hit Songs: Yeah!, Stand Up.
Tracy Marrow is a Grammy Award winning rapper, actor, and author. He is credited with helping create gangsta rap in the late 1980s and created more controversy in 1993 with the release of the song Cop Killer. After well received performances in New Jack City, Surviving The Game and Trespass he did a stint of straight to DVD and low budget movies. In 2000 he settled into the role of a police officer on the hit TV series, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. He is cast in the upcoming movie Thira.
Hit Songs: Colors, Cop Killer
Lonnie Rashid Lynn, Jr. is a Grammy Award Winning hip hop artist, model and actor. He starred in significant roles in such films as Smokin’ Aces, Street Kings, American Gangster, and Wanted. Not that I followed much of the guy’s music, but Common immediately piqued my interest as a bodyguard in Smokin’ Aces. There’s something about the guy’s voice and delivery that is so cool you can’t turn away. He was also cast as the Green Lantern/John Stewart character in the live adaptation of The Justice League.
Hit Song: Love of My Life
James Todd Smith III is a Grammy Award winning rapper and actor. LL Cool J stands for “Ladies Love Cool James.” He is one of a few hip-hop stars of his era to sustain a successful recording career for more than two decades. He has had starring roles in the movies Any Given Sunday, Deep Blue Sea, Rollerball and The Last Holiday as well as his own long running TV show In the House. As a seasoned actor, LL Cool J easily excels in both fields.
Hit Songs: Radio, Mama Said Knock You Out.
Dante Terrell Smith has been nominated for Golden Globe, Emmy, and Grammy Awards. This is a guy I enjoy in just about anything. In 2002, he played the role of Booth in Topdog/Underdog, a Tony-nominated and Pulitzer-winning Broadway play. He also starred in Monster’s Ball, 16 Blocks, The Italian Job,The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy and Be Kind Rewind. He won critical acclaim for his portrayal of Vivien Thomas in the HBO film Something The Lord Made. His next movie is Cadillac Records as the famed Chuck Berry.
Hit Song: Universal Magnetic.
Dana Elaine Owens is a rapper, singer and actress. Latifah’s work in music, film and television has earned her a Golden Globe award, two Screen Actors Guild Awards, two Image Awards, a Grammy Award, six additional Grammy nominations, an Emmy Award nomination and an Academy Award nomination for the hit movie Chicago.
She’s starred in Set it Off, Jungle Fever, Barbershop, The Bone Collector and The Last Holiday. She also starred in the long running TV series Living Single. She is currently a Cover Girl model and Jenny Craig spokesperson. Her latest movie was The Secret Life of Bees.
Hit Song: Ladies First.
O’Shea Jackson is a rapper, actor, screenwriter and producer. Regarded as one of the greatest hip hop artists of all time he began his career as a founding member of the rap group N.W.A. Much like Ice-T and LL Cool J, Ice Cube has been around for a while and certainly has credibility with fans. He had starring roles in smash hits Boys in the Hood and Friday as well as starring roles in Anaconda, The Players Club, (which he directed), Three Kings and Are We There Yet? He produces movies under his Cube Vision production company. His next movies are The A-Team and the title role in Welcome Back, Kotter which he is also producing.
Hit Songs: No Vaseline, Today was a Good Day
Willard Christopher Smith Jr. was half of the wildly successful hip-hop duo Jazzy Jeff and The Fresh Prince. He was the first rapper to win a Grammy Award. He then made the successful transition to TV in 1990 and starred in the slightly biopic hit sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. He was also the first rapper to receive an Academy Award Nomination and the only rapper to receive 2 nominations.
This is a guy that keeps churning out great movies like Men in Black, Bad Boys, Independence Day, Ali, I,Robot, The Pursuit of Happiness and Hancock. The only bad choice he made in his acting career was turning down the role of Neo in the mega hit movie Matrix to accept the lead role in the flop Wild,Wild West. He is now considered one of the most powerful people in Hollywood and with his wife Jada Pinkett-Smith currently produce TV and movie projects.
Hit Songs: Parents Just Don’t Understand, Git Jigga Wit it.
Contributor: MT
lol @ people saying DMX. You are all retarded.
Mos Def is more of an actor turned rapper. Still incredibly talented.
Andre 3000 should be on the list.
Will Smith I think a no – no just my thoughts
Aside from the top 3, I’m thinking rapperactor… oxymoronisms abound.
Hmm… formatting issue on post… rapper not equal ( !=) actor
smurff…how can you possibly say no to will smith?
regardless of your opinion on his music or his acting, you absolutely cannot (with any amount of sanity) deny the fact that he was/is at the top of both the rapping and acting world at one point or another. that, by definition puts him on this list.
Why no love for Vanilla Ice? He rocked in “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze” heh
I think Will Smith qualifies more as a pop star turned actor. Sing/speaks over urban beats does not a rapper make.
Its get jiggy with it…not get “jigga”
I LOVE Will Smith…. excellent number 1! I do think Marky Mark should have been on there but maybe his rap isn’t exactly what they were talking about!
killer guns – for a crap list. rap sucks, except for public enemy and grandmaster flash. none of these idiots have talent or skillzzz man.
Cant disagree with any of the choices, Marky Mark should be a hon. mention, (he wasnt much of a rapper though)
no DMX= good choice, as his movies have been pretty weak.
Ice Cube in Friday, by far best rapper movie yet.
Would like to see Hollywood use Andre 3000 more, tap into his immense charm and energy. Also, Eve is really attractive and should do more stuff.
Coming this January is the film bio of Notorious B.I.G. and the trailer at youtube makes it look freakin’ sweet.
I think we should take the term ‘best rappers’ with a pinch of salt..
But I jest, I do like Will Smith as an actor
The author clearly isn’t a rap fan. It’s kind of funny reading his descriptions at times.
Mark Wahlberg should definitely be there. Sorry, author, you can’t decide who’s a “real rapper” and who isn’t. If you count Will Smith as a rapper, you have to count Mark. He deserves the #1 spot.
Ludacris is a piece of crap! I used to live in the same county as him (Fayette County GA) and the jerk tried to cut in front of me at the movie theater. I told him I was in line first and he started getting in my face saying “Do you know who the #*($ I am?!) Can’t stand his so-called music either!
Could Weird Al Yankovic qualify as a rapper?
or as an actor????
or as a human being??????????
I knew Will Smith would be #1!!! (Well, being the highest-paid actor in ALL of Hollywood automatically puts him in #1 on many lists
)
To all those saying that “Will Smith didn’t do Rap”:
Rapping is not just “singing ’bout the hood n’ the hos and the bling” or whatever. That’s GANGSTA Rap. Rapping by definition is rhyming. There are many other kinds of rapping.
If you want to talk about extremes, check out MC Frontalot. He rhymes about (wait for it) things that Nerds love. Computers, video games, science, etc.; and he’s considered a rapper.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MC_Frontalot
psychosurfer: Weird Al Yankovic is a parody singer (a bloody GREAT one at that, too), and he sings songs from any genre, including rap, rock, ballads, country, and of course, polka! Even though the cover of his latest album (Straight outta Lynwood) seems to be seriously ‘gangsta’, he’s just yankin your chain all the way. He also happens to be an actor.
As for human being, I’ll have to get back to you on that…!
i wouldnt personally class will smiths music as rap…
but yea
nice list, but the ‘hit songs’ part were incorrect for most of the artists (being an avid hip-hop fan myself).
whoever wrote this obviously does not know a lot about rap/hip-hop
robneiderman: I agree about I Robot – I didn’t enjoy it at all and I was really looking forward to it because the story was excellent.
Oh – and I agree that Marky Mark would be a good addition – he is an excellent actor.
Ice T? really. I find this guy painful to listen to as he stumbles through his lines.
Kreatchure: My opinion of Will Smith as a pop artist rather than a rapper has everything to do with his weak delivery, lack of lyrical originality and overabundance of cheesy metaphors than it does with his subject matter.
Much like how one album does not a rapper make, one film does not an actor make. It seems like it was stretching it quite a bit in the beginning looking for rappers to round out the list of ten.
My friend’s blonde niece said it best about rap. “Rap is just an acronym. It stands for ‘Retards Attempting Poetry.’” lol
I’ve been a HUGE Hip-Hop fan since 1979 (Before most of you were even born).
I can’t believe so many people liked Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch! He had a huge hit with “Good Vibrations” but they were a pop group that opened for The New Kids On The Block (which he was an original member of). Mark Walberg “rapped” some hooks and a little flow but was never a real rapper. I will repeat: I never have and never will consider Mark Walberg a serious rapper.
There are songs on this list that the rappers may have made only appearances on but were not considered their songs. I mentioned those titles because they best epitomized the rappers talents and should be listened to by those not familiar with the artist.
2 Pac is not included here because this list is for current performers only. Otherwise he would be high on the list.
Finally, I will give an honorable mention to Andre 3000 (Andre Benjamin). He won a Grammy and Best Album in 2003 with OutKast. He’s not a very good actor but he’s getting better. Four Brothers (with the infamous Mark Walberg) was his best effort to date.
Thanks for all of your comments!
mos def should be disqualified from this list. his role as ford prefect in the hitchhiker’s guide to the galaxy was a bad choice to begin with, his acting in the movie was awful, and his representation of the character was so far off base from the book that it might as well have been an entirely different character.
I love this list and 100% stand by the addition of Mos Def. Not only is he extremely intelligent, passionate about social causes, witty and a great rapper, his acting performances are incredible. Albiet a small performance, but I loved his role in the movie ‘The Woodsman’ particularly.
jfrater: There is a minor error in the blurb about Will Smith. Where it talks about his hit film “The Pursuit of Happiness”, the actual film was titled “The Pursuit of Happyness”, with a y instead of correctly with an i. Just thought that should be pointed out for credibility.
Can’t beleive there was no mention of Mark Wahlberg. I’d say he should be second to Will Smith.
Pure hip hop no sell out!
Why isn’t TuPac on the list? He was excellent in Poetic Justice, Juice, Bullet, Gang-related, Above the Rim, and Gridlocked. (He also has done many guest appearances on TV shows – my favorite was his appearance on the “Different World” episode when Lena’s friends visit from her hometown.
oh yea common and mos def, i love both of the music
um james c. i dont think 2pac became an actor so he wouldn’t be on this list
Ice T should be on here
Mos def should be number two.
With the exception of Will Smith, and to some degree Mos Def, this is a great list of crappy singers who have produced crappy music and been in crappy movies. It’s too bad the world has so many idiots that raise these morons up onto their pathetic shoulders.
Where is MARK WHALBERG?
Will Smith wins this list hands-down, but Marky Mark has to be #2!
This list is great. I am a fan of hip-hop and movies and with the exception of Luda who is lame this is a great list. anyone that know rap is not a fan of Marky Mark walberg.
2pac’s not on here because he’s dead. MT said it twice.
downhighway61, Spence425 and segue: without doubt many performing artists use other names, but a comparable list to this one is “sports stars turned actors”. The people on that list are: Bob Uecker, Rick Fox, Jason Lee, Alex Karras, Ed Marinaro, Chuck Connors, Merlin Olsen, Vinnie Jones, Carl Weathers, Fred Dryer, Fred Williamson, Jim Brown – lots of shortenings and one nicknames, but no changed names, so far as I can research.
segue: Like Frances Gumm singing “Somewhere over the rainbow” and Marion Morrison in “True Grit”?
astraya (102)That being said, how many people here use a pseudonym?
Vera Lynn -103- : I don’t know what you are talking about, thunderchicken is totally my real name.
thunderchicken (104) I needed a laugh. Thank you for giving it to me.
A laugh, that is.
53. Spence425:
Are you serious? Common isn’t a rapper? Have you ever heard anything other than what gets played on mainstream radio???!! He’s like the best rapper…not R&B, but a rapper who may occasionally ‘rap’ on an R&B song…or an R&B artist may be featured on his ‘rap’ song….
Some of Common’s Grammy Awards/Nominations:
2008: Best Rap Performance by Duo or Group (“Southside”), Won
2008: Best Rap Album (Finding Forever), Nominated
2008: Best Rap Solo Performance (“The People”), Nominated
2006: Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group (“The Corner”), Nominated
2006: Best Rap/Sung Collaboration (“They Say”), Nominated
2006: Best Rap Album (Be), Nominated
2006: Best Rap Solo Performance (“Testify”), Nominated
Also, for whoever said 2Pac didn’t act – ever heard of “Juice” or “Poetic Justice” (w/ Janet Jackson)? Not that I am suggesting his inclusion on the list…just clearing up confusion.
“One day it’ll all make sense.” ~Common (you know, the rapper)
Be Easy the only hit song for T.I.???? WHAT???? That song is good and all but it is nowhere near a HIT song! Especially considering the dozens of other hits he has! 24′s, Rubberband Man, What You Know?, Big ***** Poppin’, Top Back, the list goes on! I personally love “Ready for Whatever” from his current album Paper Trail! Check it out!
what about mark walberg? Horrible rapper but way better actor than T.I.
I agree with mark walberg, If you have seen Rock Star, superb acting.
astraya, I’m not sure what you’re getting at in your last comment. Are you wondering why on the ‘sport star turned actor’ list no one really changed their name?
They have already made a name for themselves. People in sports change their name much less often.
Talent is what makes then famous. (And we all know you don’t have to be talented in the world of acting/music to be famous.)
Also, how many times does this have to be repeated??
MT already gave reasons why Mark Wahlberg and 2Pac are not on the list! Good grief. Someone even asked why Ice-T wasn’t on the list. Good grief.
im sorry ‘pac should be #1 on the list… in life and in death he was a great rapper and a great actor… i cant think of a better rapper or actor then him….TUPAC FO LIFE… THUG LIFE HOMIE WEST SIDE!!!!!!!!!
will smith is my hero. he always will be.
Mark Wahlberg is a legend around Massachusetts(where I am) — most average people that have some run-of-the-mill connection to him visit him. He’s a really cool guy, he’s very adamant about the “don’t ever call me Marky Mark or i’ll break your face, chew up your entrails and do your mother” type of thing.
OK! Although I can’t stand the dude 50 Cent was pretty impressive in that war movie “Home of the Brave”. But more importantly I have to point out being a native of Atlanta, Ga that Ludacris is not.
For Common’s hit song I’d put “I Used To Love H.E.R.”, widely regarded as one of the greatest hip-hop songs of all time.
102. astraya:…segue: Like Frances Gumm singing “Somewhere over the rainbow” and Marion Morrison in “True Grit”?
****
segue scratches Frances and Marion off List she is compiling {skritch-skritch-skritch} looks frantically through notes for replacements…
115. Kriz
You are absolutely right! But as this list shows it is not all inclusive. If it was, what would we have to talk about?
Thanks for all of your comments.
“Mos Def is more of an actor turned rapper”
emmmm no
I wouldn’t call I’Robot or Han*****great movies for Will Smith, but apart from that great list.
Dugg for Will Smith and Ice Cube!
I would like to see Will Smith in The Matrix. He’s proved to be quite a talented actor. Probably could give Neo a slightly more emotion than Keanu.