20 Rap Crews And Their Signature Cars

By Jake Paine

Since Big Bank Hank's Lincoln Continental and sunroof Cadillac on "Rapper's Delight," your favorite Hip-Hop star usually has a car (or two) associated with his or her persona. Through the decades, there has been everything from the embarrassing (Sir Mix-A-Lot's "Hooptie" and Devin The Dude's "Lacville '79") to the sensuous (UGK's "F**k My Car"), but it's all been rooted in a strong and direct love of automobiles. Nowadays, it's gotten to the point where car names are incorporated into top Hip-Hop labels, and car companies are using an assortment of rap endorsements (who could possibly forget the '03 limited edition Funkmaster Flex Ford Expedition?)

Whether it's the car you drive or the car you dream of, chances are, Hip-Hop had a hand in your choice. We looked at 20 specific vehicles and the Rap crews who helped make them famous (or infamous). So park your pink Ranges, slide up your Lambo doors, and put it on cruise control through some Rap-endorsed rides throughout the ages.

RELATED: 20 Dangerous Driving Maneuvers We've Learned From Watching Rap Music Videos
RELATED: The 50 Coolest Cars in Rap Video History

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Jake Paine has been writing professionally since 2002. He was previously Editor-In-Chief at HipHopDX.com for more than five years. He loves old cars, old souls, and old soul.

Key Members: Big Boi, Andre 3000, Big Gipp, Cee-Lo, Khujo Goodie, Cool Breeze, Slim Calhoun, Bubba Sparxxx, T-Mo, Witchdoctor
Proof: Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik
Buy It Now: $9,500

Big Boi and Andre 3000 brought the value and awareness up of those late '70s box Sevilles. The same cars that featured custom Gucci-designed models also had the wire spoke wheels, wide whitewall tires, and buttery leather interior that prominently cruised Decatur streets in OutKast videos ("ATLiens") and Big Boi's MTV Cribs episode.

Sleepy Brown of Organized Noize also related when he made the 2006 single, "Me, My Baby & My Cadillac," along with a lot of love from Goodie Mob, Cool Breeze, and Slimm Calhoun. Although Eldorados and Fleetwoods are highly respectable, the Stankonia Studios clique saluted these mid-size Caddies with class and style.

Key Members: Posdnous, Q-Tip, Mike B, Phife Dawg, Monie Love, Dave, Dres, Ali Shaheed,
Proof: Q-Tip Jetta Photoshoot
Buy It Now: $3,500

Hip-Hop's hippies of the early '90s were sampling some records from the Woodstock-era rock and soul bands. But they also embraced the populist transportation closely associated with the peace, love, and "d.a.i.s.y." age. Still a youthful and in-demand Volkwagen model today, the Jetta was becoming increasingly championed in the hip-hop community by folks like Special Ed and MC Lyte. However, when Q-Tip posed beside two customized and tuned-up Jettas, it matched his lyrics on the grand Jungle Brothers entrance, "The Jam."

But like "Busta's Lament," on 1996's "Phony Rappers," Tip made fun of his modest days, admitting that he previously spit his verses "from a busted-ass Jetta." Even if he's rolling with the Lamborghini-wielding G.O.O.D. Music these days, Q-Tip, along with Phife Dawg, Posdnous, Queen Latifah, and The JBeez come to mind whenever a mid-'80s box Jetta in a crazy color comes through extra clean.

Key Members: Cam'ron, Jim Jones, Freekey Zekey, Juelz Santana, JR Writer, 40 Cal, Duke Da God
Proof: Cam'ron's Pink Range Rover/eBay
Buy It Now: $16,900

Dipset was always about flashy sophistication. To match expansive wardrobes in an assortment of bright colors, Cam'ron, Jim Jones, Juelz Santana, and company favored the Range Rover. As their then-labelmate insisted, the superior 4.6-engined model was the essential, but The Diplomats differed on opinion when it came to rims and candy shells.

Cam'ron famously sported a pink English SUV, which, in later years, ended up on eBay. These cars, referenced on "Dipset Anthem" and "Hey Ma," were status symbols in a New York City that was still closely associated with club culture. It was the ultimate vehicle to make a grand entrance and a discreet getaway at once. Like custom Caddies and Lincolns belonging to the gangsters of '60s and '70s Harlem, these highly personalized cars let the blocks know when neighborhood celebrities were moving around town.

Key Members: E-40, B-Legit, D-Shot, Suga T
Proof: The album covers to "Down And Dirty" and "Money And Muscle"
Buy It Now: $2,650

Any cars that the artists from Vallejo, Calif., also known as The Click, drove instantly had more credibility. 40 Water's personal 1970 Oldsmobile Cutlass was the kind of car that could steal the sideshow and look extra mannish coming down the block. Why do you think they were used on two of The Click's album covers?

Like Dr. Dre's customizations to his own '64 Impala between 1992 and 1999, this is a muscle car that looked different through the years, going from "cocaine white" to "money green." Despite Oldsmobile going out of business years ago, 40 Water and his crew continue to rep the former GM brand as recently as this year's track "What We Been Doin." The third-gen Cutlass boasted the 442 or the Ram Air models, which modestly were rated at 350 horsepower. Those engines had these cars turning 14-second quarter-miles from the factory.

Key Members: DMX, Swizz Beatz, Drag-On, Eve, The LOX,
Proof: DMX "Ruff Ryders Anthem" video.
Buy It Now: $2,550

The Ruff Ryders introduced themselves as just that: rough riders, both literally and figuratively. Although DMX's many roadside legal issues have been in a bevy of sportscars, Yonkers' first hip-hop star came to mainstream form surrounded by wheelies, burnouts, and a series of stunts that made videos from X ("Ruff Ryders Anthem" and "Where The Hood At"), Drag-On ("Spit These Bars"), and others eye-grabbing to gearheads and hip-hop heads alike.

Years before anybody knew of a Swizz Beatz, Dee and Waah Dean developed an association with the motorcycle clubs above the Bronx and showed the world at large what the inner city did for fun by white-knuckling with these off-road vehicles. Like DMX and Swizz's ability to make anthems for the clubs, the streets, and the ring, the Ryders rolled over any surface they came across.

Key Members: Eminem, Proof, Bizarre, Mr. Porter, Kon Artis, Swifty
Proof: The "The Slim Shady LP" cover art.
Buy It Now: $2,950

From 1970 through the '80s, the Monte Carlo had been Chevrolet's versatile mid-size coupe. As the name suggests, these cars were usually economically-decadent, with a lot of European influence. Assembled in Flint, Mich., the second-generation cruisers launched in 1973. One such artist who gravitated toward these cars was a Detroit-born working father by day, rapper by night named Marshall Mathers.

He was driving a Monte in "My Name Is," one was featured on his debut major label album cover, and it returned in a nod on "Berzerk" on The Marshall Mathers LP 2. With the car's uniquely cut rear window and hood that was longer than the Titanic, this car stood out in early Eminem artwork, music videos, and lyrics. When Em and his crew D12 wanted to drive home the point of coming from a lower income environment, these cars conveyed the working-class message. It was even used in the "Stan" video, where it sadly ended up at the bottom of a river.

Key Members: Bun B, Pimp C
Proof: "Pocket Full Of Stones" (Park Avenue being the luxury model).
Buy It Now: $8,500

Affectionately known as the "deuce and a quarter," the Buick Electra 225 was pure Detroit steel from 1959 to 1990. However, Bun B & Pimp C, also known for Fleetwood Cadillacs of the same era, truly embraced the box deuces of 1977 through 1984.

Although the changes made after the bicentennial cut the car's length, cheapened its interior grandeur, and used a smaller powerplant under the hood, Bun B loved the lines on these dependable cars and made that clear on tracks like "Feds In Town," the "Ridin' Dirty Intro," and of course, "Pocket Fulla Stones." Coming through clean was never an issue, and like most General Motors full-size products of the day, you could pop the trunk in the glovebox for that Texas style.

Key Members: Slug, Ant, Jake One, Blueprint, Eyedea, Mr. Dibbs, Brother Ali
Proof: Jake One's "White Van Music" album.
Buy It Now: $7,950

Ford's Econoline vans have been a workingman's best friend since 1961. These vans, which can be fitted with or without seats, are used by painters, plumbers, haulers, carpenters, and the like. Oh, and rappers. Minneapolis' Rhymesayers Entertainment, founded in part by Atmosphere, has always been about blue-collar values. Since the late '90s introduction of the group, when Slug wasn't pushing his personal Ford, he was rhyming about hitting the open road ("Cats, Van, Bags", Felt's "Employees Of The Year") with a crew that included his partner Ant, DJ Mr. Dibbs, Brother Ali, Blueprint, DJ Abilities and the late Eyedea, among others.

Seattle-based RSE producer Jake One even named his 2008 solo debut, White Van Music with one of these gleaming bad boys on the cover. Long manufactured solely in Ohio, the Econoline is as defiantly Midwestern as the dope RSE artists who wheel them.

Key Members: 50 Cent, Tony Yayo, Young Buck, Lloyd Banks, DJ Whoo Kid
Proof: 50 Cent's "2003 Ferrari"
Buy It Now: $119,000

The Ferrari F430 was briefly manufactured from 2004 to 2009. Those years in Hip-Hop were largely dominated by G-Unit. The group, the record label, the clothing, and the attitude had a confidence about them. For the past 75 years, few cars exude the kind of confidence of a red Ferrari. 50 Cent, who played around with the nickname of "Ferrari" and "F50" over the years, allegedly outfitted the clique with cars like these in the prime days of The Unit (will we see a LaFerrari for their return?)

From DJ Whoo Kid to Sha Money XL, these cars stood out on the streets of New York. Although made with cutting-edge style, these Ferraris, some priced below $200,000, were ultimately a fast-pass to the club. By the time Ferrari ceased production in favor of the introduced 458 series, the group G-Unit had gone from five members to a dwindling three.

Key Members: The Notorious B.I.G., Lil' Kim, Lil' Cease, Capone, D-Roc,
Proof: The Notorious B.I.G.'s "Unbelievable"
Buy It Now: $8,998

Infiniti's marquee luxury, like the group who drove it, is no longer in production. However, the members of Junior M.A.F.I.A. and the market of the Q45 cut remain. Introduced with Infiniti's 1989 launch, these artfully-designed sedans produced more than 275 horsepower.

Accentuated with leather interior, sunroofs, and a Bose sound system, these were the perfect cars to transport a large, tightly-knit crew from the borough of Brooklyn over to Daddy's House Studios to record an album. These V8s packed a punch, and music videos and stories from the rest of the clique (see "Ready To Die" and "Good Times") have taught us that Biggie Smalls liked to mash on the gas when on the turnpike.

Key Members: 2Pac, EDI, Napoleon, Kastro, Fatal Hussein, Young Noble, Mopreme
Proof: Inserts of "All Eyez On Me."
Buy It Now: $5,000

In a group with names taken from various foreign dictators, the modus transportation was fitted for dignitaries. In the last days of 2Pac's life, when he wanted friends and foes alike to "picture him rollin'," he favored the black Mercedes SL-series convertible. With history dating back to 1954, the '90s version of the 500 (and 600) SL approached 400 horsepower in a body type that sustained from the late '80s through the early 2000s.

This was perfect for 'Pac, EDI, Napoleon, Kastro and Fatal's days of "riding on their enemies," the ultimate symbol of wealth, flamboyance, and West Coast living. Sadly, 2Pac barely got to enjoy his, and photos taken around the time of his death found his black convertible parked beside a Rolls-Royce that was said to be a gift from then-Death Row Records CEO Marion "Suge" Knight.

Key Members: Daz Dillinger, Kurupt, Soopafly, Snoop Dogg, Big C-Style, Nate Dogg, Warren G
Proof: Daz Dillinger's "In California" video
Buy It Now: $24,995

Although N.W.A. favored early 1960s Chevrolet full-size cars, the group's high-profile disciples, Tha Dogg Pound, enjoyed another brand of General Motors steel that looked tough in the streets of South Central and Long Beach. Between 1981 and 1987, these coupes were crafted from the "G-Body" platform, so how could they not love 'em?

With stylish rims, decorative dashboards, and throaty V8s as an option, these cars moved through the streets and had large flat hoods and roofs that looked great when custom painted. Daz figuratively used his Grand National (a highly-desirable turbo-powered version) in the "In California" video, and showcased another one in Tha Pound and Snoop's "Cali Iz Active." For '70s babies, these Regals and Grand Nats were the perfect car to load with "pumps n' dumps," for lowriding, racing, and chasing cheddar. Point Buick.

Key Members: Marley Marl, Big Daddy Kane, Kool G Rap, MC Shan, Roxanne Shante, Biz Markie, Craig G, Masta Ace
Proof: Marley Marl's "In Control, Vol. 2" album cover.
Buy It Now: $2,300

In 1988, BMW introduced a completely restyled 5-series. Closely competing with Mercedes-Benz and the new kids on the block, Lexus, these Bimmers were symbols of yuppy prestige. However, when Marley Marl leaned against his M-series on the cover of In Control Vol. 2, he was rocking some B-boy style with the sports car carrying his initial.

A 3-series model BMW from the era assisted Kool G Rap & DJ Polo's getaway in "On The Run," while on 1989's "Me Vs. Me," Biz Markie barked that he needed a kit on his own BMW, almost 25 years before Frank Ocean's Nostalgia, Ultra artwork. Yeah, Marley Marl's posse had the transportation that had all the haters (besides KRS-One and B.D.P.) catchin' the vapors.

Key Members: Jay Z, Memphis Bleek, Beanie Sigel, Freeway, Dame Dash
Proof: Jay-Z's Volume 2: Hard Knock Life artwork, videos.
Buy It Now: $146,500

From 1995 to 2009, few music label empires rivaled Jay Z (when he had still had the hyphen) and Dame Dash's Roc-A-Fella Records. Throughout that time, Bentley produced these convertibles, which were hard on fuel but easy on the eyes. Jay Z famously posed with his first-generation Azure on the cover of his third solo album, letting all of Marcy Projects (and New York) know that it was a hard knock life no more for the MC.

Available in classic colors, these cars were leaning to $400,000 from the factory in 1995, babying nearly all other Bentleys. While 2Pac, Suge Knight, and Snoop Dogg had previously pushed classicly styled Rolls-Royces and Bentleys, Jigga and Dame let the world know that it was a new era automotively, just as it would be musically. The song would get a nice name-check in "Jigga, My Nigga," while "Jay Z Blue" conspicuously doubled as "Azure Blue."

Key Members: Kanye West, 2 Chainz, Big Sean, Pusha T, CyHi Da Prynce
Proof: "Mercy" title and video (although it was apparently a Gallardo).
Buy It Now: $209,998

Common might "take the bus home just to touch home," but the new class at G.O.O.D. Music likes to cold lamp in a Lambo. Kanye West, Big Sean and newcomers Pusha T and 2 Chainz made "Mercy" the multi-leveled slang for the Lamborghini Murcielago in 2012.

Interestingly, the successor to the Diablo was already out of production by 2010. The 2011-coined Aventador just doesn't sound as good in a chorus. The car marked Lamborghini's first model introduced after Audi purchased the historic Italian brand. These six-speed V12's cost just around $400,000 before adding an assortment of options. That, coupled with their candy colors gave us dark fantasies of doing donuts in a hater's yard.

Sidenote: Coincidentally, you can only find photos of Kanye in either an Aventador or a Gallardo. So, we chose to display the Aventador up top.

Key Members: Lil Wayne, Birdman, Drake, Nicki Minaj, Ace Hood, Mack Maine, Busta Rhymes, Mystikal, Gudda Gudda
Proof: Birdman's Pricele$$ album cover.
Buy It Now: $1,100,000

With Maybachs out of production, leave it to Birdman (on his Pricele$$ album cover alone), Lil Wayne, and the rest of the Young Money Cash Money Billionaires to show us how to stunt. Baby even gave Justim Bieber one of these cars before Beebs was busted for drag-racing. Ironically, Bugatti has been around since the same 1909 year that birthed Maybach. However, it's the S.A.S. model with its unrivaled 16-cylinder "W" arrangement, producing more than 1,000 horsepower that has Cash Money doin' donuts.

This oval-shaped object of uber-wealth have been prominently displayed on album covers, videos, interview series, and of course the subject of Ace Hood's entrance music. With the base model stickering for approximately $1.7 million (the Super Sport costs you an extra mill) there were only 47 units of the Veyron sold in 2013, which may give Gudda Gudda some relief with his own debut approaching.

Key Members: Curren$y, Fiend, Trademark Da Skydiver, Young Roddy,
Proof: Curren$y's "Michael Knight and video.
Buy It Now: $5,800

Curren$y has been kicking muscle car chronicles since he was a 504 Boyz hopeful in the late '90s. Spitta is among rap's biggest purveyors of cars, and while he regularly shows off some waxed-up Italian paddle-shift porn, the New Orleans MC is a big fan of early '80s Chevrolet products.

In the years when Corvette was only producing coupes (the convertible production was suspended from 1976-1985), Spitta made a character out of his mid-'80s Stingray. "Michael Knight" celebrates a darker period for Corvette, and like his El Camino collection, the Jet Life King has been able to boldly redefine what cars are cool to the hip-hop heads. He would return to paying tribute on "Corvette Doors" and "Luxury Sport," among the myriad of mentions. At a time when rappers show off window stickers from the dealership floor, Curren$y's biggest hit of the past five years still owes gratitude to another '80s-baby.

Key Members: Eazy-E, Dr. Dre, Ice Cube, MC Ren, DJ Yella
Proof: Eazy-E's mention on "Boyz N The Hood."
Buy It Now: $4,250

N.W.A. exemplified 1980s South Central Los Angeles street life. Like the gangsters the quintet was rolling with and speaking for, the Niggaz Wit' Attitude favored the common cars of two decades earlier, tricked out to remind pedestrians that they were 'bout that life.

Eazy-E's "Boyz In The Hood" chronicled shooting dope fiends for trying to steal the Alpine speakers from his '64 Impala, while Ice Cube had a gold-flake '63 for his role in John Singleton's film of the same name. Dr. Dre would make a starlet out of his own deep purple '64 lowrider in a series of videos in the 1990s. Daytons, headlight shades, and glass-pack mufflers updated Chevrolet's longtime flagship convertibles and came straight outta Compton with the villains who drove them.

Key Members: RZA, GZA, Method Man, Ol' Dirty Bastard, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, Masta Killa, U-God, Inspectah Deck
Proof: Raekwon's "C.R.E.A.M." verse, and the car in the video.
Buy It Now: $1,995

When Mazda introduced its family-minded passenger van in 1989, the Japanese automobile mainstay did not picture Ol' Dirty Bastard climbing in for a lift. However, the nine-artist collective called the Wu-Tang Clan made the selectable 4WD family vehicle look all-terrain on the streets of Shaolin. They worked the Mazda into Raekwon's "C.R.E.A.M." verse, and the video to match, before Chef again MPV'd on "Still Strugglin'."

Ghostface Killah also cued the passenger van on the intro to "Can It All Be So Simple." Available with a manual transmission, the dependable four-cylinder base model of the 1989-1995 three-door van had some grit to it. Although the vehicle conspicuously seated eight (leaving the Wu to fight after who's walking), it featured hinged doors, leaving the sliding doors on your mom's soccer-practice taxi.

Key Members: Wale, Meek Mill, French Montana, Maybach O, Gunplay
Proof: In name alone, Maybach Music Group makes their affinities known.
Buy It Now: $155,998

Pulling the passenger curtains to the side for perhaps the most obvious Rap-car reference is Rick Ross and his Maybach Music Group imprint. Forever associated with luxury, decadence, and scarcity, the Daimler AG-owned German car-maker is more than 100 years old, dating back to its founding namesake William Maybach. However, just as Rick Ross released his label's seventh studio album in the form of Meek Mill's 2012 debut, the real Maybach-makers announced a stop in production.

Although Jay Z famously debuted the Maybach Excelero coupe in his video, and the car has been championed by Busta Rhymes and Russell Simmons, it's forever a Rozay ride. The Miami-based rapper/mogul featured the car on his sophomore studio album, Trilla, while assisting Meek on the ostentatious "Maybach Curtains" luxury feature-based track. Oh, and dont' forget his custom Maybach COUPES that were not Exceleros.