Can be used in a positive or neutral sense to refer to an artist that has attained appeal beyond fans of the genre in which the artist started out. Can also be used in a
negative sense that implies "selling out" to refer to the same artists or to artists who are attempting such a crossover. The negative connotation is most often used by purist fans or fellow performers within that genre. This term gained some prominence in early 1990s rap as some rappers 1) attempted to tailor their acts to white suburbia, 2) employed what was regarded by some as an excessive amount of R&B on records, or 3) engaged in collaborations with heavy metal artists, in the style of
Ice-T. The negative version of the term is now used less often in rap circles, as many mainstream rappers have blended the
avaricious hustling image of
street culture with the rampant consumerism of white suburbia so as to attain both crossover status and street cred.
Example:
Black
Jeff Foxworthy - "If you used to front one of the most innovative hip hop groups of the early
nineties and you find yourself in a
Hype Williams video, you might be a crossover."