>unironically not saying Kanye West
Gosh, you people will never learn it seems.
7 platinum solo albums, 21 Grammys (8 nominations for this year's), and responsible for the two biggest schisms in hip-hop since supergroups like NWA and Wu-Tang became popular. Rolling Stone calls [i]808's & Heartbreak[/i] one of the most ground breaking albums ever released. The man whose worked with everyone from Paul Wall, Rick Rubin, Paul McCartney, Bon Iver, Daft Punk, El DeBarge, John Mayer, Coldplay, Adam Levine, Raekwon, Common, Mos Def, Janet Jackson, Mase, Three 6 Mafia, Nas, Q-Tip, Snoop Dogg, Jadakiss, RZA, Elton John, and so many more.
He's literally the definitive artist of the genre.