Hip-Hop Hooray! Nike-Commissioned Rap Gets Grammy Nom

"Better Than I've Ever Been," a tune Nike commissioned rappers Kanye West, Nas and KRS-One, alongside producer Rick Rubin, to create in an effort to promote the 25th anniversary of its Air Force 1 sneaker, earned a Grammy nomination for "best rap performance by a duo or group," according to Holly Sanders of the N.Y. POST. It marks the first time a song "commissioned and distributed by an advertiser" received a Grammy nomination.  While the track never appeared on a studio album, its music video received "plenty of play" on YouTube,  BET, MTV and VH1.  The song, which was available exclusively on Apple's iTunes, also got some radio play.  While the Air Force 1 is mentioned in one line of the song, Cornerstone Founder & co-President Rob Stone, whose company produced the song, said, "We never wanted this to be perceived as a Nike commercial" (N.Y. POST, 12/19).

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