2 Chainz

Lil Wayne will be embarking on his first ever European tour next spring, and he's taking along some very special hip-hop acts for the ride.

2 Chainz performed on the 'Jimmy Kimmel Live!' stage last night, rapping his single 'I'm Different,' off his Grammy-nominated album, 'Based On a T.R.U. Story.'

Chart-topping artists Jay-Z, Kanye West, Frank Ocean and Miguel lead the pack of nominees in the hip-hop and R&B categories for the 2013 Grammy Awards. Hov and Yeezy both nabbed six mentions apiece including Best Rap Song for their ubiquitous hit 'N----s in Paris.'

There's a huge lesson to be learned by looking at 2 Chainz's success in 2012. The 36-year-old has been around for some time now -- 1997 to be exact -- and finally got his moment in the spotlight. As one-half of Disturbing tha Peace’s rap duo Playaz Circle, he received recognition for their hit track 'Duffle Bag Boy' in 2007, but he left Ludacris' label to advance his career further...

2 Chainz deserves the 2012 Most Valuable Player of the Year award. This year alone, he made guest appearances on over 40 songs. And when he wasn't on your favorite rapper's hit single, 2 Chainz dropped his own club anthems like the ubiquitous 'No Lie' featuring Drake...

We're coming up on the final days of 2012 and as usual no one can truly predict what songs have the biggest impact on the culture until now. Looking back on the last 12 months, the most popular hip-hop songs this year were dominated by a mix of old and new faces. If ...