TIME has created a list of “The 7 Female Rappers You Should Be Listening To Right Now.”
“There are more talented femcees out there than just Nicki Minaj and Iggy Azalea,” TIME says.
The publication says the list is, at least in part, a response to the fact that no women were included in XXL’s Freshman Class this year.
“In light of that, it seemed like a good time to revisit the subject of female MCs — particularly so because female-fronted Hip Hop is on the cusp of a resurgence. Not only does Nicki Minaj have her third studio album slated to drop by the end of the year — and the femcee promises a return to her fiery Hip Hop roots — but rapper Iggy Azalea has found mainstream success in her collaborations with both Ariana Grande and Charli XCX. Artists like Angel Haze, Jean Grae and Azealia Banks are all working hard, too, to make it in the male-dominated world of Hip Hop, and they aren’t alone. Here are seven incredible female rappers that you should be listening to right now.”
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The list features Lee Mazin, Sasha Go Hard, Noname Gypsy, Nyemiah Supreme, Tiffany Foxx, Gifted Gab and Rapsody.
TIME says the following regarding Rapsody.
“Rapsody is one of the hardest working rappers in the business, cranking out five mixtapes in the last three years. Her She Got Game mixtape (download it here), featured collaborations with Chance the Rapper, Common, Raekwon, Mac Miller and more, showcasing her impressive vocals skills. The North Carolina native, whose real name is Marlanna Evans, has a soulful style that garners her well-earned comparisons to Lauryn Hill with her melodic flow, laconic beats and irrepressible rhymes.”
Rapsody’s exclusion from the XXL Freshman roster was addressed by the magazine’s Editor-in-Chief, Vanessa Satten.
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“Do we have respect for what Rapsody’s doing? Definitely,” Satten said at the time. “Was she in our top ten for rappers? No. Do we have to do females? Do we have to do White rappers? Do we have to do Asian rappers? Do we have to do Latino rappers? No. We aren’t trying to fill any quotas. We are trying to pick who we believe in that’s gonna blow up in the next couple of years that are hot right now. And women have a harder hill to climb definitely, but they can still do it. It’s not fair for us to say, ‘Hey this spot is going to a woman no matter what,’ and not give it to someone else who maybe should have it if we believe in them because we had to fill a lane. And if we went and filled the lane for the Bay Area dude and we filled the lane for the New York dude and we filled the lane for the [Los Angeles] dude, and we fill the lane with the White rapper or fill the lane for the Asian rapper then we wouldn’t have the cover that we have. We have a cover that comes from a different perspective.”
RELATED:XXL Editor-in-Chief Vanessa Satten Explains Rapsody’s Exclusion From 2014 Freshman Class
