Sisters Of Rap - women rap artists

Ebony, Nov, 1999 by Joy Bennett Kinnon

TEN years ago it was difficult to tell the male rappers from the female rappers. To get respect in the hardcore, male-dominated rap world, women emcees (MCs) had to stash their femininity in combat boots, Army fatigues and gangster bravado.

Within the past year, a new generation of women rappers have burst on the music scene brandishing their sexuality like an automatic weapon, earning respect with their rhyming skills and picking up six-figure paychecks all without missing a beat.

New rappers like Eve, Sole, Charli Baltimore and Mia-X pay homage to rap female pioneers like Queen Latifah, who dominated rap with her politically Charged lyrics, and Salt-N-Pepa, who won their first Grammy nomination in 1987 for best rap performance.

But while rap's pioneering women may have started out just talking about sex, the flagrant sexuality of the 1990s rappers has at least one newspaper calling them "hard-edged harlots."

While that moniker might be rough, rappers Lil' Kim and Foxy Brown are the current reigning divas of raunch, with their NC-17-rated lyrics and stage clothes that leave little to the imagination. Their in-your-face sexuality has alarmed parents, delighted their audiences and filled their bank accounts. The debate has grown so loud and intense that some top-selling female MCs are reportedly debating whether to abandon or tone down their sexuality. Some, but not Missy Elliott, who doesn't flaunt her sexuality, but doesn't deny it either.

With her album Da Real World, Elliott has done for rap's testosterone-fueled B-word what Richard Pryor did for the N-word--taken it back and changed its meaning.

"Females in this business aren't taken as seriously as we should be," she has said. "So in order to be heard we often assume a character and give off what one would call a `diva' or `b--' attitude."

"A b-- is what they call a woman who knows what she wants," Elliott says. And no one has ever accused Missy Elliott of not knowing what she wants.

Tough-talking and tender-hearted, the new genre of female rappers can rock the mic and the cradle, can shoot from the lip and the hip. As a group, they are often more profane than Chris Rock, Richard Pryor or Redd Foxx, and what's more, they do it to music. But they can also be profound in plainly stating that they won't be mistreated, professionally or personally.

Here's a peek at the top female rappers as they take rap into the next millennium. They are young. Some are barely out of their teens. Some are thin, and some are full-figured. Not shy, they sashay to a salsa beat in five-inch heels and satin ensembles--that's after getting off a motorcycle.

And although many are mothers, and although at least one has a degree, most of their albums are NC-17 rated or at the least require parental discretion. They are, nonetheless, an emerging force, although some of their best friends, even some of their mothers, say they ought to tone down their acts. Meet rap's ladies of rhyme.

FOXY BROWN

The reigning Queen of Rap is none other than 19-year-old Foxy Brown, whose first album in 1997, III Ha Na, set a record for female tappers by entering the charts at No. 7 and eventually going platinum, selling 1.5 million albums. Born Inga Marchand in Park Slope, Brooklyn, Brown has been criticized for sexually explicit lyrics and materialism. After an explicit magazine cover earlier this year, the baby diva has vowed to class-up her act. Brown, who took her stage name from Para Crier's classic 1974 movie, already is modeling for Calvin Klein and is preparing for her acting debut. This year, her sophomore album, Chyna Doll, which she co-produced, debuted at No. 1 on the charts.

SALT-N-PEPA

Dubbed the "platinum queens from Queens" the group is shown above at the recent wedding of Sandra (Fepa) Denton. Salt-N-Pepa is the most successful female rap group in history. Although the three--Salt (Cheryl James), Pepa (Sandi Denton) and DJ Spinderella (Dee Dee Roper)--first attracted attention in 1986, this group is hardly "old school:" They are the only female rap group to be repeatedly certified platinum. Reigning through the '90s at the top of the rap/hip-hop charts, this is the group that shows the teenagers how it's done.

MISSY ELLIOTT

Female rapper of the millennium is issy (Misdemeanor) Elliott. ultifaceted, multitalented and very much in charge, Elliott's rep as a writer and producer is already legendary. The list of people she hasn't produced or written for is shorter and easier to name than the A-list of stars who have sought her talents. But she saved her best singing and rhyming for herself, in her multiplatinum debut album Supa Dupa' Fly in 1997. Known for her edgy style, futuristic beats and her NC-17 lyrics, Elliott transcends both genre and gender. At the head of her own empire, she has her own record company, The Gold Mind Inc., appeared as the first rap star on the Lilith Tour, executive-produced the soundtrack for the film Why Do Fools Fall in Love and adds acting to her long list of accomplishments. She has also starred in high-profile ad campaigns. Her current album, Da Real World, was released this summer to critical acclaim.