First of all, don’t let the name fool you — I am a woman named Kyle. Throughout my decade-long journalism career, which has morphed into a Hip Hop-centric dream, I’ve often struggled with the rampant misogyny that ripples throughout the culture. Much like fellow HipHopDX writer Aaron McKrell, who reflected on his relationship to misogynistic imagery and lyrics as a teenager, I was once unfazed by the repeated use of “bitch,” “ho” and whatever other derogatory name being used to reference a female.
There I was, 14 years old and loving Dr. Dre’s The Chronic, Beastie Boys’ License To Ill and Too Short’s Cocktails, and not realizing the possible damage it could have inflicted on my self-esteem and how I viewed myself as a young girl. On the other hand, when it came to female artists, I idolized Queen Latifah, Erykah Badu and feminist punk rock pioneers like Kathleen Hanna of Bikini Kill and Le Tigre.
Who you callin’ a bitch?
I admired these strong symbols of feminism and yet at the same time, was allowing myself to be sonically assaulted by the men making the music I loved. Even more confusing were the images of the “ideal woman” (or what we’d perhaps call “video vixens” today) that somehow us “regular” women were supposed to live up to, which to most, is nearly an impossible feat.
As I got older and entered my 30s, I soon found myself skipping songs like “Girls Girls Girls” by the Beastie Boys, “Bitches Ain’t Shit” by Dr. Dre and N.W.A’s “A Bitch Iz A Bitch” when they’d start playing on my iPod, even though they’re on some of my favorite albums of all time. It wasn’t cute anymore (actually, it probably never was).
Ms. Badu emerged with her seminal album Baduizm in February 1997 and managed to quickly gain respect without overtly sexualizing her image.
Compounding the issue even further was the sudden emergence of hyper-sexualized female MCs like Lil Kim or Foxy Brown, whose blatant sensuality was used to package their music. While they clearly had skills as lyricists and MCs, their reliance on the “sex sells” concept was admittedly distracting. At the time, however, this was an anomaly.
Predecessors like Funky 4 + 1’s MC Sha Rock and Queen Latifah certainly weren’t half-naked while rapping, and neither were MC Lyte and Roxanne Shanté. They relied on skill alone to woo their fans.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YpRfpk311NU
Lil Kim released Hardcore in 1996 and took the “sex sells” concept to a whole other level.
Fast-forward to 2017 and female artists are practically expected to take off their clothes for attention. In a conversation I had with an important mentor of mine, Public Enemy mastermind Chuck D, we were talking about the over-sexualization of the female rapper, and he asked, “Where are the female MCs standing up on stage with a turtleneck on rapping their asses off and getting accolades for their skills?”
Presumably, he didn’t really mean an actual turtleneck (because let’s be honest—no one wears those anymore except maybe Alfonso Ribeiro) — he meant that Hip Hop no longer has a bevy of strong, female and truly gifted MCs not taking their clothes off at the forefront of mainstream culture.
Take Nicki Minaj, for example. The self-described “Barbie” is a mediocre rapper at best as illustrated by her recent guest spot on Gucci Mane’s “Make Love.”
“I rep Queens where they listen to a bunch of Nas/I’m a yes and these bitches is a bunch of nahs/Tryin’ to win a gunfight with a bunch of knives,” she spits, pronouncing “knives” as “kn-ah-ves” to rhyme with “nahs.”
Really, Nicki? What she lacks in skill, she attempts to make up for with her sex-ed up image. Let’s not forget, she rapped her whole verse while straddling an inflatable unicorn wearing not much more than a skimpy bathing suit, and is also the same woman who posed for the sexually explicit cover of her “Anaconda” single.
Is this what women in the music industry have been reduced to? A different path was there in our sights once upon a time. We had Lauryn Hill, the aforementioned Queen, Bahamadia, Missy Elliott, The Lady Of Rage, Ladybug Mecca, and Monie Love.
While there are current indications that some women want to be known for their lyrical ability rather than how big their butts are (i.e. Ill Camille, Psalm One, Rapsody), will they ever be able to attain the level of success artists like Nicki has without taking their clothes off? Probably not.
In the meantime, I hope to do everything I can to shift the focus from the superficial to the super-cerebral. Why? Because it’s about time women are treated with respect and not solely an object of desire.
Honestly all women rappers are dirt except for Trina and I would never listen to a women rapper I’d listen to a r&b singer over a female rapper anyday
I like your name first of all but since Hip-Hop’s origins, Trina is the ONLY female MC you’ve ever rocked with?
Yea I never rocked with no female rappers. I think lady of rage was alright on those death row dre records but I still wouldn’t listen to her solos but she was an mc most female rappers talk bout sucking dick I can’t relate to that shyt lol and they aren’t even hot I wouldn’t even bump no Trina stuff either but she’s looks better then all these other bitches
So for you it’s more about looks?
na I just can’t relate to a women rapper from her point of view and it doesn’t sound good male rappers are the ones that sound proper rapping women sound good as singers I’m not hating tho just an opinion and in reality all women rappers look dirt foxy nicki lil Kim young ma that’s just true but I’ll say Mc lyte and lady of rage would shit on the rest cuz they can actually rap
I definitely agree with the last sentiment. And they don’t have to take their clothes off to get noticed. They can spit!
This was a half ass editorial. I got excited reading the headline and disappointed after finishing it. Mediocrity is sweeping the nation.
Ok do the world a favor and pen a better one then post it here without plagiarizing. Good luck bitch!
Sex sells.
The problem is that the biggest fans of those hyper-sexualized rap artists are women! There are couple of talented female rappers (Invincible from Detroit, Booogy Brown, Lyric Jones, Rapsody….) but I bet people who listen to their music and go to their shows are men…. meanwhile you have lot of women having respect to Nicky Minaj just because he is a woman who made it… even if he made it just because he is half naked everytime she is in front of a camera
Kyle, thank you. these type of conversations in Hip-Hop are needed. Keep being dope.
I agree with some of this now I think saying Nicki is not a skilled rapper is dishonnest. If you know anything about rap you can’t say she didn’t rap her ass off on Kanye’s “Monster” for example. You should learn to separate your opinion of someone and their actual skills.
Something else that bothers me is saying female mc’s that don’t take their clothes off can’t attain Nicki’s success. WRONG. The same way J.Cole is selling more than Future any female mc that’ll make a great album will find her public without having to compromise herself. There’s just not that many good rappers period, male or female.
The ugly truth, Kyle, is that misogyny is and has always been a cornerstone of rap, at least as far back as the early 90s.
To come here and act all “I used to not care about the cute use of bitch and ho but now I do” wont quite cut it: as a woman you are responsible for perpetuating the rampant mysogyny by not adressing the central issue – which unfortunately is the elephant in the room – meaning the integral part of mysogyny in african american culture.
We often regard muslim culture as mysogynistic, but even having that notion (or any other sweeping criticism towards the black community) means you’re a racist, and woman in particular are ironically enough quick to defend black culture, in a perfect case of white guilt.
You are part of the machine that has these concerts attended by our sisters and daughters hearing grown men rap about a bitch and a ho. If you think the problem is with oversexualized Female rappers then you’re ignoring the fact that mysogyny is a central part of black culture as presented through rap – THATS what you should go after. But, criticising minority culture as a whole takes some guts and wits, writing a half asses editorial on FEMALE hip hop criticism is conversely pretty easy. Go after the black men instead, they’re the ones that thrive in a culture that creates this environment.
Very nice reply, I agree with you. This shit runs deep in the African American Community. I have to disagree with you on the “muslim culture” There is no “muslim culture” just like there is no “Christian Culture”. Culture depends on the country/nation you live in, and then theres even more differences within the tribes. Media lies to the people all the time and people dont know what to think anymore. Culture is compatible with Religion(They are not the same thing) All Nations are not the same or it would be a boring World.
We could write an entire 10,000 word essay on everything that needs to be addressed in this “culture” we have going on. This isn’t BLAMING the woman. This is wondering WHY we as consumers eat it up so quickly but will dismiss women with actual talent because she doesn’t sex up her image. That’s some bullshit and you know it.
Rap music is the only form of media nowadays where men are still allowed to be men and not portrayed as emasculated idiots who on their best day couldn’t live up to anything a female could do. Hollywood’s left wing agenda can’t touch hip hop. Female MCs represent and do your thing but the men aren’t little pandering bitches either
absolutely. wanna know why? do a google image search for “le happy merchant”
I always loved Heather B…. And Rah Digga..
But let’s be honest. Sex sells EVERYTHING in every corner.. Kate Moss, Naomi Campbell, contribute to negativity towards women and impossible imagery and ideals forced onto young minds..
Female rappers being sexy to sell records is no different to Katy Perry or Maddonna of Debbie Harry or any other pop chick at any given moment using what they got to get what they want..
Every mindless male rapper staggering about spitting endless bars on how much money they got, their chain, selling drugs, using bitches minimal creativity and promoting generally the worst of how the culture looks from outside..
Just a bunch of stereotypes for sale..
Just like mafia movies, hood films and the horror genre.. Just like every ultra realistic video game..
It’s all just entertainment .. Devalued..
Zz.
Who the fck wants to see emasculated men and sexually unatractive women, this world will will never change for you, media might sell you whatever you want to see, so your uglyass can relate, but the reality will still stay the same.
It’s not about that fool. It’s about actual talent and not relying on selling your body to get noticed. You can still be attractive and have actual clothes on. You know that, right? Do you see women dressed up at the grocery store looking like half-naked hookers? No. But I’m sure you’ve hollered at someone in your high school classrooms and they probably didn’t need to be half-naked to get your attention.
Seriously this is nothin but a truth,is one of the reason why we identify women as BITCHES bcoz they don’t respect themselves. To be realistic the music industry is full of BITCHES who only believe in exposing their bodies to sale well but that is not what hiphop is all about,having the talent is the most inportant thing but not exposing your whole to the world just to get popular. Bitches like Nicki minaj,lil kim,Remy ma etc should pls join the porn stars to create chance for the young talented gals to showcase what they have to the whole world… #the world is sick
So we are deleting comments again, DX? You black hoodlums dont deserve the Internet. Fuck you
Let’s be honest, most of the sales of sexualized female MCs comes from women. Just like most of the industry of pumping up female vanity (magazines like Cosmopolitan, etc) are run by, catered to, and purchased by women. There’s also the double standard of the common Buzzfeed article that calls out misogyny that’s followed up by an article that objectifies “hot men”.
I’m willing to bet its more men that respect and support MCs like Rapsody than women.
Any chance that Missy, Latifah, Lady of Rage, and Monie Love didn’t wear sexy clothes becuz they wouldn’t look “sexy” in them. I agree with the sexualized female mc and sex sells shit as being a little wack…but it is what it is, images like that don’t succeed if they aren’t in demand, and let’s be honest…men aren’t the target demo for female mc’s. These femcees are doing what they’re doing to sell sex to other females. Use your sexuality to empower yourself and you will always just be a sex object. Why is that hard to understand? Just cuz these women choose to use their sexuality, men are the ones who are responsible for it. And Nikki Minaj is actually a good rapper, she just doesn’t make money based on her rap skills so she chose another path. Men want a sexy female and women wanna feel sexy, it’s just the way it is. Sex doesn’t sell becuz men had a secret meeting and decided to brainwash the world, it sells becuz its desired by men and women alike
Does that make it ok? Women aren’t put on earth for the amusement of men.
i agree. but the entertainment industry is an exploitative one. wether is sex, race, any stereotypes will be utilized for monetary profit. when you pass by a place that sells magazines, half of the covers will illustrate some kind of semi-nakedness. people will either be enticed by it or visualize themselves as that person on the cover, if they’re not happy with their own body type. it’s basic human psychology. the images that are put out there, the people that are propelled by the industry to be pop stars that are a representation of what we all subconsciously choose collectively
Will the dicks of all men suddenly fall off one day?
Eve
fuck dat flat face bish isn’t she married to some white man and lives in the UK nowadays
I am a homosexual man.
Check out Sammus if you like women with brains beauty an lyrical skill.. Bctih Be Healthy
As many underground rappers as i listen to, I like surprisingly few female emcees. Jean Grae might be the only one I actually check for everytime she drops something. I’ve heard some Rapsody here and there, she’s pretty good too but haven’t listened to a whole project. Bahamadia is pretty underrated from what I’ve heard as well. Erykah Badu and Lauren Hill were before my time.
I had to read that twice to get the point of that, but you’re mostly right. But that always creates the challenge. Should Men be interested in Female rappers equally? If they’re just as skilled as the most skilled guy mc, would they care? One of my favorite MC’s of all time is MC Lyte. She became one of my favs because I loved Hip Hop so much I didn’t care or looked at the fact that she was female, just dope. Do you think this generation actually love Hip Hop music….enough?
i think hip-hop is such a contact sports that we are drawn to the males rappers like most ppl watch the nab over the wnba. there;s a whole new class of female mcs who i think is dope. this generation does love hip-hop. everybody ain’t with the autotune mumble shit, contrary to popular belief. but the roles that are reserved to black people in mainstream entertainment are very limited. and unfortunately some black artists will feed into that stereotype biz thats where they think the money is
Real debate. This is the kind of stuff we should be talkin about more often
Women need to know that God gave them natural beauty and men actually see and recognize it. You dont need make up, plastic surgery, you dont need to wear skimpy clothes to get recognized by men. Booty shorts and showin breasts. Thighs and Breasts like KFC chicken. Respect yourself. When i was a teenager i loved lauryn hill bc she killed it on the mic and she dressed up like a lady and she was hella sexy to me.
Female rappers are trash how tf can you relate to this dick sucking shit only hoes listen to this trash no proper bitch would listen to this shyt who wants to hear a bitch talking bout how tough she is on a record shyt is wack thunn
Ghetto Twins- Sho No Love
I agree with the point being made here however I don’t understand how Out of allll the verses Nicki Minaj has done, why use that lyric out of THAT song to make it seem as if she is pretty much corny. Tbh I was a fan of Nicki before I seen what she look like. When I seen her that was just a plus
Female rapper will one day take over becos lately all guys talk about is drugs an flexing,sex etc…if nicki will woman up an stop being a girl it will do her more good than..fooling around i thank god for female rappers like.. Dej loaf,remy ma
Is anyone else distracted by that big ass zit in the middle of Lil Kim’s forehead on the cover photo for this article?! Like goddam!! What is you doin behby?!
… So we’re ignoring rappers like Young MA and Gizzle? Are we ignoring Nicki’s ‘Monster’ verse too? Okay.
So the on that note HHDX should be posting songs n doing interviews with more dope femcees who are not sexualized. Y’all post Nicki every 2 seconds
Lil Mama is quite dope n has her own playful style. Lauryn Hill showed that with talent a female will sell without undressing