MC LYTE, HIP HOP'S PIONEER FEMINIST

Hip hop’ s pioneer feminist, the Brooklyn, New York queen, Mc Lyte was the first female to ever release a hip hop solo album back in 1988,Lyte as a Rock. Her career took off in the late 80s and made it through the early 90s with hits such as, “Cha Cha Cha” and “Paper Thin.”

In 1993 her classic anthem, "Ruffneck," was nominated for a Grammy for Best Rap Single, making MC Lyte the first female solo rapper ever nominated for a Grammy. If you don’t know her you will probably recognize her from featured joints such as Janet Jackson’s, “You Want This” and Brandy’s “I Wanna Be Down.”

Mc Lyte also did some acting with appearances in shows like,  MTV Unplugged, In Living Color, Moesha, Cousin Skeeter, New York Undercover, My Wife and Kids and a few others. She went on to do voiceovers and become a DJ as well. She is also the CEO of Sunny Gyrl, INC a production and an entertainment firm. This woman does it all. If you are looking for messages of empowerment than you can read her book, Unstoppable: Igniting the Power Within to Achieve Your Greatest Potential.

It’s safe to say she opened doors for other females in the hip-hop culture with her hard hitting lyrics and most importantly because she had the guts to point out the sexism and misogyny that often runs rampant in hip-hop. Salute to MC Lyte and enjoy some of her hits down below.

Diana Hernandez

@DianaCarolina_05