Kendrick Lamar becomes the first rapper to receive a Pulitzer Prize, the most prestigious award for journalistic excellence and major contributions to culture.

Created in 1917, the Pulitzer Prizes only added the Music category to their list in 1943. Until now, only classical or jazz works had been acclaimed, except in 2016 for the musical show Hamilton ( which combines rap and music and which we speak again very soon).

It's for his DAMN album, that Kendrick was distinguished: the jury considered it to be a "collection of virtuosic pieces, united by their textual authenticity and rhythmic dynamism that portray shocking images, and capture the complexity of modern life of African Americans. "

The Pulitzer Prize's Music category jury was this year Regina Carter violinist, Paul Cremo, Farah Jasmine Griffin, director of the Metropolitan Opera, professor of English, comparative literature and African-American studies at Columbia University, David Hadju, music critic for The Nation, and composer David Lang.

Not all jurors had listened to DAMN. before the deliberations but, according to a statement from Hadju to the BBC, "after listening, there was no disagreement".