Kool G Rap and Grand Puba were the honorees at the Paid in Full Foundation’s 2025 Hip Hop Grandmaster Awards celebration. The third annual fundraising gala on Saturday (Oct. 18) also included two inaugural award presentations: the Quincy Jones Award given to funk icon George Clinton and the Contributor Award, presented to pioneers Kool Rock Ski of the Fat Boys and Jalil Hutchins of Whodini.

After accepting his award, Grand Puba said, “Amazing! This was the BET, VH1 and the Grammy Awards all rolled into one. It’s the biggest honor I could have ever imagined.”

Held in Las Vegas at the Bellagio Resort & Casino, the PIFF gala drew a mix of music artists and other celebs. Among the attendees were Dr. Dre, Nas, Ludacris, Kenneth “Babyface” Edmonds, Gayle King, Fab 5 Freddy, Rakim, Scarface and

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