Evolution of Femininity Through Hip-Hop 

Ray Bellville 

Rap/Hip-hop Journalist

INTRO 

From the beginning, Hip Hop has been a male-dominated environment with only a handful of women who can be called legends, but how did this come to be? I can point to a multitude of reasons regarding the objectification of women being perceived as a sexual item used for insults or portrayed as such in visual media. Luckily, there were leaders in the community to flip the switch and start the change in perception for the commercialization of more women in the hip-hop sphere. 

GENDER ISSUES 

Women often struggled to make an impact in the world of hip-hop without being associated with a star or already widely recognized in another genre. Many music videos and lyrics point to women being seen as nothing more than that of a watch, or an item used to reward one’s ego. In turn, I posed the question of why women and why it was so successful. I’d say it is because the desired way to feed the consumer adopted the idea of “sex sells”. Directly profiting from the sexual exploitation and commodification of the “rapper lifestyle,” which is the stereotypical image of someone drowning in jewelry, surrounded by women, and representing a street lifestyle. Though the events of the Neo-soul revolution tended to lift the stigma placed on woman especially Lauryn Hill, who was very vocal. 

LEADERS 

The Neo-Soul Revolution featured an abundance of artists today; I’m highlighting Lauryn Hill and Erykah Badu, but would like to mention D’Angelo and Maxwell. Both were very prevalent in reshaping the mainstream in appeal by rejecting the idea that they need to sexualize themselves for a successful career. Instead, they used their musicality to bridge gaps in music by combining genres such as hip-hop, reggae, and soul in a way to express themselves as individuals rather than objectifying themselves. It would work brilliantly earning Lauryn eight Grammys and Badu five, totaling out to 12 Grammys and 39 nominations between both. Along with Badu, Missy Eliot should be given her flowers for challenging gender norms from a creative design through visuals and fashion. Both sought more non-conforming styles for the time by covering up more and in vastly different ways. Badu wore more of an Afrocentric, earthy style, as she was more of a spiritual individual than Missy Elliot, who was erratic and wore styles that fit a futuristic aesthetic. 

MODERN ERA 

New faces emerged for the game as Beyoncé, Nikki Minaj, and Rihanna were all taking the world by storm through the 2000’s and 2010’s. Their success kept the ball rolling as more female artists would pop up through mainstream artists, but Beyoncé would go further than that, expanding the genre to country and pop. Nikki would be labeled the “queen of rap” and was one of the best MCs to touch the mic, being in the light with the likes of Drake and Lil Wayne. 

Entering the 2020’s saw Megan the Stallion, Lizzo, SZA, Cardi B, etc., who pushed the message of body positivity and furthered women into the mainstream. It’s a topic heavily referenced by the four mentioned above through messages regarding self-worth, the use of cosmetic surgeries, and body shaming. Lizzo is the most vocal about weight shaming in the industry, especially the double standard placed on women to have no faulty features and maintain a “healthy” weight for stardom. It’s especially critical to point out that Biggie, Big Pun, Fat Joe, Rick Ross, and Action Bronson were not treated to the same extent that Lizzo was. Then you have both SZA and Cardi, who are outspoken about their surgeries and their regrets, where Cardi did end up having 95% of her implants removed in 2022. Going on, even talking about the necessities of the surgeries, especially the butt lift, which became a trend of sorts while being one of the more dangerous cosmetic procedures. And to top it off, the genre’s main audience has shifted towards the club scene and it’s being completely run by women, I’d say. Emerging stars are becoming ever more popular, such as Doechi, Little Simz, Glorilla, etc. The future for the industry has no other choice but to stand watch as more and more women enter the mainstream and top the charts with trends set on all social platforms.