The concept of high fashion and pop music going hand in hand is nothing new, but lately designer wear in hip-hop is garnering a lot of attention. With contemporary MCs, style and fashion trends are taking root in more ways than one...

Best Dressed Lists: Earlier this week, we learned the true significance of lists when every other rapper in the business seemed to go on a schoolyard tirade on their opposition to MTV’s Hottest MCs list. Next, they'll be complaining about this.

Fashion Statements: Rappers dressing in noteworthy attire while taking the stage or strutting in music videos isn’t anything new (parachute pants, anyone?). But then Kanye wore a skirt and redefined ridiculous.

Clothing Lines: Lil Wayne, Nelly, Pharrell, Nicki Minaj, Hov… Yup, they’ve all got them. Making the charts isn’t just about penning music anymore. It’s about selling an attitude and a lifestyle.  

Wordplay: Label (that’s fashion label) drops in singles. Yes, rap music has finally gone there.

Plain Speech: Perhaps the most oppressively direct example of fashion in rap music in recent months is Justin Timberlake’s “Suit & Tie,” which features Jay-Z and is literally about dressing up in Tom Ford suits…