Paid in Full Funds Hip-Hop Pioneers

Andreessen Horowitz published a report on the Paid in Full Foundation's unconditional grants to early hip-hop pioneers whose contributions outstripped their financial rewards.

Updated on Nov. 8, 2026 in Hip-Hop and Rap

Bold hot pink and black poster-style illustration of a cassette reel and turntable over a checkerboard field, with halftone texture evoking 1980s hip-hop graphic culture. — Andreessen Horowitz's Paid in Full Foundation is awarding unconditional five-year grants to early hip-hop pioneers, including Rakim, Scarface, George Clinton, and Roxanne Shanté, whose contributions outstripped their pay. AI Illustration. Upload story photo >

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Andreessen Horowitz published a report on November 7, 2026, detailing grants from the Paid in Full Foundation to hip-hop pioneers. The foundation, founded by Ben and Felicia Horowitz, provides unconditional five-year grants to artists whose contributions outstripped their financial rewards.

Why it matters

The report spotlights how early hip-hop figures were often left without songwriting credit, royalties or basic security despite shaping a major genre. It frames the foundation's grants as a response to that imbalance in the music industry.

"Rapper's Delight" sold at least 2 million copies by the label's count, yet Grandmaster Caz received neither official songwriting credit nor royalties for his lyrics. The report does not disclose the total number of artists supported by the foundation's five-year grants.

The players

Andreessen Horowitz

A venture capital firm that published the report on the Paid in Full Foundation's grants to hip-hop pioneers, and whose co-founder Ben Horowitz bought the Eric B. & Rakim album "Paid in Full" for $10.

Grandmaster Caz

A pioneering hip-hop artist whose lyrics appeared on "Rapper's Delight" without songwriting credit or royalties, and who was among the foundation's grant recipients.

Nile Rodgers

A Chic guitarist and producer whose band's song "Good Times" was sampled on "Rapper's Delight," and who performed with Caz for the first time at the Hip Hop Grandmaster Awards.

The details

The Paid in Full Foundation provides unconditional five-year grants to hip-hop artists, with support going to figures including Rakim, Scarface, George Clinton and Roxanne Shanté. Chic secured publishing rights and royalties for "Good Times" through a legal settlement, while Caz lived in public housing before receiving his first grant.

1979: Sugarhill Gang releases "Rapper's Delight," sampling Chic's "Good Times."
2011: DJ Kool Herc raises money online for kidney stone surgery after lacking health insurance.
October 24, 2026: Fourth annual Hip Hop Grandmaster Awards held at Bellagio in Las Vegas.
November 7, 2026: Andreessen Horowitz publishes the Paid in Full report.

Legacy Context

The 1979 release of "Rapper's Delight" by the Sugarhill Gang sampled Chic's "Good Times," leading Chic to secure publishing rights through a legal settlement. The Paid in Full Foundation's report revisits the uncredited contributions of Grandmaster Caz to that same record.

Fans can read the full Andreessen Horowitz report on the foundation's grants to early hip-hop artists. The grants support pioneers directly, offering five-year unconditional funding without performance conditions.

The takeaway

Credit and royalties for foundational music often depend on contracts and legal settlements rather than on the creative work itself. Readers interested in music history can check publishing and songwriting credits on the recordings they enjoy.