Either Bentley or Lamborghini would have been my guess, but it turns out that Mercedes-Benz is rap’s luxury car of choice, with Cadillac and Chevrolet rounding out the top three.
Cuepoint conducted an in-depth study of “the science of cars and rap lyrics,” analyzing the entire Rap Genius database in the hunt for hip-hop’s most frequently shouted out vehicle. Mercedes-Benz took the cake in terms of make, while the ‘64 Chevy Impala was the top model.
West Coast rapper The Game has logged the most total car mentions, and Atlanta artist Gucci Mane boasts the most “car songs,” having mentioned luxury rides in a whopping 302 tracks. The study also breaks down which rappers are the most prolific pitchmen for each individual automaker. The Game is the unofficial ambassador for seven car brands, including Chevrolet, Mercedes-Benz, Lamborghini, Porsche, Aston Martin, Maserati and Bugatti. Bentley and Ferrari are represented best by Gucci Mane, Maybach by Rick Ross, Cadillac by Chamillionaire (which is impressive, because the Houston rapper has fallen off the map in recent years), Jaguar by Lil Flip, Audi by Migos, Lexus by Big Tymers, Hummer by Big Tymers and Gucci Mane, Jeep by Nas and BMW by Action Bronson. Quite a few rappers also reference hearses in their songs.
It’s worth noting that the methodology of Cuepoint’s study skews towards modern-day hip-hop. In an interview with Noisey, Rap Genius co-founder Mahbod Moghadam notes that “Rap Genius is more on-point for contemporary hip-hop,” meaning that Cuepoint pulled from a pool made up mostly of modern rap lyrics. Moghadam also appears to have “commented on the Cuepoint study personally, writing “I think you should mention that this list is HEAVILY skewed towards contemporary hip-hop, since the amount of rap lyrics for contemporary artists on genius is far, far more thorough than for older rappers.”
You can check out the complete Cuepoint study here. Drive safe, hip-hop heads.