Queen Latifah Searches For The Next Great Female Performer

Female emcees have been an important part of the Rap world for years. From Queen Latifah [click to read] to MC Lyte [click here], female emcees have stood out in a genre that’s run mostly by men. With the release of her latest project, The Queen has linked up with Cover Girl for the Ignite Your Persona Competition. The winner could get a chance to perform as an opening act during Queen Latifah’s tour.

During a recent interview with HipHopDX, Queen Latifah spoke on this contest and why she decided to take part in it.

“…I feel like, even with what I’ve seen, a couple reality shows tried to make it happen…Ah, I think it’s kind of been bastardized a little bit. It wasn’t done as properly and efficiently as it should be done,” she told us. “But I feel like, thanks to Hip Hop music, I’ve been able to do a whole lot. I’ve been able to have a big, wide, strong career and it’s lasted 20 years now. I feel like if I don’t reach back and try to help the new generation of up and coming female rappers, then I’m kind of not really being thankful for the opportunities that I’ve been afforded to have.”

“Plus, I just love hearing females rhyme. I love hearing a female rapper coming around a group of dudes and just spit the illest rhyme and have everybody grabbing their mouths because they can’t believe how dope it is, the rhyme that she said. So, that’s kind of the theme behind it. I love hearing females rhyme and I’ve never been a hater. I was always excited when I heard other females get in the game that sounded dope. When I first heard Eve rhyming or Missy or Kim or Foxy or Brat, I was excited because I’m like, ‘Wow, we got some dope females out here.’ And because it’s so male-dominated, when we do get on, we stand out. A lot of us have had to come up through all-male crews and be strong enough and bold enough to not be afraid to spit around anybody. So, I know that those girls are out there and that they have things to say but they’re not being heard right now, which to me, makes Rap boring,” she noted.

She went on to say that, while she has no probem with songs about “booty,” she does have a problem with a lack of balance in the genre.

“That doesn’t really cut it for me. For me, I need to hear that balance in the music. That’s why it’s really important for me to try to help discover the next female out there that has all of that.”

According to her official site [click here], the contest is open residents of the United States that are 16 years of age or older. For more on Queen Latifah, stay tuned to HipHopDX as a full-length interview should be up later this month.