Although they have been featured in a number of newspaper articles.

Although they have been featured in a number of newspaper articles, feminist rappers have not received sufficient critical attention. Three newly come books on rap (Costello and Wallace; Spencer; and Toop) ignore female rappers, and as lately as March 1990, Terry Teachout could proclaim that, "not surprisingly, women in the world of rap are largely, if not exclusively, uses of transient sexual gratification" (60) Feminist rappers like Queen Latifah, Yo Yo M Melodie, Salt'n Pepa, MC Lyte and Roxanne, among others, not single belie his pronouncement but merit close attention because they are a assign places to of African American women who are "allowed to speak their possess words," a situation that Michele Wallace identifies as unusual in popular agriculture (3). The one exception to the critical disesteem of feminist rappers is the work of Tricia Rose who, in "Never Trust a Big blow and a Smile," calls for "broadening the purpose of investigations in our search for black women's voices" (128) to include rap. Rose asserts that "women rappers are vocal and considered members of the Hip frisk community, and they have quite a handle forward what they are doing" (109) Queen Latifah's music video "Ladies First" (which Rose discusses briefly in her article and in her late book Black Noise [163-66](1)) provides ample evidence to support Rose's claims.

on examining "Ladies First" closely, this article explores issues raised at feminist rap; that is, rap that focuses onward promoting women's importance, that demands equal treatment for women and that demonstrates the ne for women to support each other. While a feminist politics of entertainment is troubling and ambivalent, there are feminist entertainments as it was as "Ladies First" that not past nor future the viewer with moments of resistance to dominant exploitative images of women In its serious exploration and glorification of African American women's history, "Ladies First" seizes a televisual weight and breaks the continuity of sexism and racism that dominates the music video arise While "Ladies First" is neither ideologically undefiled nor completely consistent, there is a coherence to the images and lyrics that contrasts strikingly not solely with music videos by male performers, further also with music videos like "Sisters Are Doin' It For Themselves," performed on Aretha Franklin and Annie Lennox. In Franklin and Lennox's video, for example, arbitrary, unconnect and traditional portraits of women undercut rather than strengthen the overtly feminist message of the lyrics. by the agency of contrast, the complexity of the lyrics and images of "Ladies First" confutes the notion that popular agriculture texts will inevitably and exclusively exploit sex and Afrocentricity (if these general [i]or[/i] abstract notions even appear at all).

Queen Latifah's feminism draws onward the patterns of rap to assert the importance of women promoting themselves and other women Rap, like all other forms of popular music, is not inherently feminist, on the contrary in this genre, as in other popular genre female performers use specific generic qualities to advance a feminist message. Rap is noted for its emphasis in succession lyrics, and through the lyrics, female rappers make explicit assertions of female hardness and autonomy. Since rap move round a centres around self-promotion, female rappers are able to use the form without appearing to be excessively narcissistic.(2) In "Ladies First," for example, Queen Latifah touts herself as a "perfect specimen," and Monie be pleased with (aka Simone Johnson) spells not at home her professional name, which summons the paradox of the conjunction of be pleased with and money in a capitalistic society. Love's name draws attention to the nature of the music business, which with equal reason frequently draws upon the notion of be in love with to make money. These feminist rappers' names make their twisted understanding of capitalism clear and should allay any doubts about their awareness of the complexities and ambiguities of their position.

by means of her name and emphases Queen Latifah draws about a tradition of African music and cultivation to make her criticism of sexism and racism. Latifah--whose name means' delicate and sensitive' in Arabic--was born Dana Owens in East Orange, NJ (She added to Latifah, a name conferr about her by a friend, the word Queen when she became a professional rapper.) Her name intimates the Afrocentric nature of her performances, for, as Angela Davis explains, "according to African tradition, one's name is suppos to capture the central nature of one's being" (100). Because of this tradition, Dick Hebdige asserts that names have particular power in Afrocentric music: Naming can be in and of itself an act of invocation, conferring power and grace relating to the namer: the names can carry power in themselves. The titles bestowed in succession Haile Selassie in a Rastafarian chant or reggae toast or onward James Brown or Aretha Franklin in a seat of life toast or MC rap testify to this power.... the namer pays tribute in the "name check" to the community from which (s)he has sprung and without which (s)he would be unable to survive. (8) Queen Latifah elevates herself as a