Lexus GS Cracks Most Iconic Hip-Hop Cars List

By adpock - June 23, 2015

Lexus GS 300

It’s well known that rap music can’t function properly without the word “Lexus.” From Biggie to Jay-Z to Kanye, all the greats have name dropped the marque. Heck, there’s even a rapper named DJ Lexus; where would he be without the brand?

As we mentioned last week, according to Hiphy Hip Hop, Lexus is the second most mentioned car brand in rap music. Indeed, there is an 11-page thread here at Club Lexus that attempts to track all those references. But apparently quantity doesn’t necessarily coincide with iconography, because there is only one Lexus that makes Complex‘s list of The 25 Most Iconic Hip-Hop Cars. Granted, they definitely got that one right: the Lexus GS comes in at No. 17.

The GS has been a mainstay of hip-hop, ever since it was first introduced in the States as the GS 300 back in ’93. Since Lexus appeared on the scene, rappers have always been attracted to the brand, as it not only represented status, but new status, not like the stodgy old BMW and Mercedes brands. And the LS and ES models did a fairly decent job of representing, but when the sportier GS came out, that’s when the Lexus lyrics really started to flow.

Complex mentions two songs in particular, that give credo to their No.17 claim: Jay-Z’s “Dead Presidents,” and Biggie’s “Young G’s”. But there are plenty more where those came from. For me though, nothing is more iconic than Jay-Z’s use of a GS in the NSFW video below, “99 Problems.” It’s safe to say that the Lexus GS, ain’t one.