And the Nominees Are...

The wait is over — the nominations for the 2012 BET Hip Hop Awards are here. These 47 nominees ran rap over the past 12 months, and come DATETK, some will have the trophies to prove it. Read on for a breakdown of the nominees and the awards they're competing for.

(Photos from left: Tim Mosenfelder/Getty Images, Peter Kramer/NBC/NBC NewsWire, John Ricard/BET)