Our current generation of Hip Hop culture is overrun with talented women who are dominating music spaces, and within their rhymes, you can hear the influence of their predecessors who helped pave the way. In Rap, there are often discussions about the generations of music and how Hip Hop has evolved over the years, and undeniably, women’s voices have been instrumental in the genre’s development. Female emcees have not only demanded seats at tables with their male peers but many have created their own boardrooms, and for Women’s History Month, we’re taking a walk down memory lane as we revisit hits from women dominating the Rap game, both past and present.
Earlier this month, we introduced our Ladies First series where we sit down with women in music and ask them about their experiences as rappers in a male-dominated space. In celebrating the accomplishments of women in Hip Hop, we’ve created a playlist that spans decades, from Roxanne Shante’s “Roxanne Roxanne” to Noname’s “Song 33.”
Eve poses in 1992 – Harry Langdon/Getty Images
It has long been established that women in Rap are not a monolith and streaming over 50 tracks on our Ladies First Spotify Playlist drives home that point. Lauryn Hill’s “Doo Wop (That Thing)” confronts as a warning but will also make your body move, Eve’s “Gotta Man” has us nostalgic for Golden Era classics, and BIA’s “Whole Lotta Money (Remix)” shows the global takeover that can occur when different generations merge on a hit—and support one another.
Stream our Ladies First Spotify Playlist and let us know which women in Rap you believe deserve more recognition.