If you turn your radio to a popular music station and a hip-hop song isn’t playing, then it’s guaranteed to be a song from another genre with a hip-hop influence. It isn’t a secret anymore that rap has grown to become is the biggest and most popular music genre out of them all. As of 2018, Rap has overtaken rock as the most popular genre in the United States. R&B/Hip-hop is responsible for a quarter of music consumption in the country according to Nielsen Soundscan. Along with the growth of rap happening before our very eyes came to an emergence of new artists who have also stepped into the scene. Among these artists are women who have been adding more flare to the current world of music with their presence, talent, lyrics, production and flow. I admire the female rappers of the past for completely rewriting the rules in order to create a space for themselves in hip-hop, and the current female rappers are just continuing that tradition. Hip-hop becomes more woman dominated as the days go by due to their ability to create this space to freely be themselves and do what they do best — release some of the most. Here’s a compiled list of my current favorite female rappers. You’re guaranteed to feel more confident as you get into at least one of these women:
- Megan Thee Stallion
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Probably my favorite out of the female rappers I’ve listened to lately. I don’t know a more confident person, and I truly admire her for it. A daughter of a female rapper herself — Houston’s very own, Megan Thee Stallion, creates hip-hop music that’ll reassure you immediately. Her music consists of explicit lyrics over satisfying beats. Hot Girl Meg, who’s currently an undergrad at Texas Southern University, is taking the throne in freestyles as well. I personally fell in love with Megan’s music after her “Stalli (Freestyle).” She creates music that is meant to empower women. She has also addressed the people who’ve attempted to critique her on her sexualized lyrics by addressing the obvious double standard meant to hold women back in hip-hop during her latest Rolling Stone feature. “You let the boys come up in here and talk about how they gon’ run a train on all our friends and they want some head and they want to shoot everything up, and they want to do drugs. Well, we should be able to go equally as hard. I don’t want to hear none of that ‘That’s offensive!’ or ‘All she talk about is p*ssy.’” She even says that she “knows” she’s “striking a nerve that’s pissing that one specific man off” with her lyrics — and it’s what she’s intending to do in order to change the conversation around women in rap.
- Rico Nasty
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The only artist who could possibly compete with DMX as the loudest, raspiest rapper of all time. Listening to Rico Nasty is an immediate stress-reliever for many. She self-proclaims her music as “sugar trap,” which is the name of a genre consisting of female artists rapping over welcoming, lighthearted, “bubblegum” beats. Her alter ego “Tacobella” is what gives her the ability to channel the soft side of her artistry. The 21-year-old rapper makes music with lyrics that are as bold as her outfit choices. Rico Nasty released her first mixtape “Summer’s Eve” when she was just in high school, and she has been releasing bops since. I personally fell in love with Rico Nasty’s music after hearing her song “Poppin” — which remains one of her biggest hits. She’s also someone who brings the art of moshing into hip-hop for the purpose of relieving stress for women. She also channels her artistry through her music videos that are out of this world. Rico Nasty is a force to be reckoned with, and if her music doesn’t convince you of that then I don’t know what else will.
- Lizzo
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Lizzo, the body positive queen. A woman who brings “soul” to hip-hop. She’s a talented flutist, entertainer and songwriter whose main goal is to show the world that thick black women deserve proper representation. Her uplifting tempos like “Truth Hurts” and “Juice” are super catchy and the. She recently collaboration on a song with Missy Elliot, who she credits as one of her biggest inspirations. The song “Tempo” starts off with Lizzo exclaiming “I’m a thick b*tch, I need tempo!” It’s impossible to hear one of Lizzo’s songs and not immediately want to dance along.
- Bbymutha
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Bbymutha is literally said to be “rewriting the rules of motherhood” and I couldn’t agree more. The Tennessee-born rapper uses their music to display their non-conformist ways towards her stance in society is shown throughout her art and her music. Bbymutha’s “Rules,” a song with heavy bass and explicit yet encouraging lyricism, is the song that made me get into her music.
- Yung Baby Tate
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An eccentric producer and rapper, Yung Baby Tate creates lighthearted, yet bold music — especially for GIRLS around the globe. Yung Baby Tate is a girl from Atlanta who raps over her own beats and makes music that exemplifies the many tropes and identities of “girlhood.” Her first album, GIRLS, features a mix of moody rap and modern-day r&b which I love. My favorite song by her right now is “Play Girl,” a song about her laying the line and declaring her feelings aren’t something to play with.