Women In Rap/Hiphop & The Wet Fish Of Awareness
So the other day I posted on
Twitter that I would no longer be uploading trax to radio stations by chance of
getting played, or magazines in the hope of a review, and said I would explain
why in a blog…this is THAT blog.
For those few radio presenters, Dj's, & Music journalists that have been supportive from the get go and dare to be different, I have nuthin but luv, thanx, appreciation and admiration at your gusto and look forward to continuing sharing each others journey.
Eve? Missy Elliot? Lauryn Hill? Jean Grae?
Where are they? Well, still
making damn good music that’s where, like thousands of other female rap/hiphop
artists worldwide, not that it’s that obvious seeing as they don’t
get the respect or amount of coverage they
deserve.
The other day, it was like I
was suddenly smacked around the head by the
wet fish of awareness, if these amazing
women haven’t been enough to shake up this male dominated genre, then us mere
mortals haven’t got a ….a…erm….wet
fishes chance.
But I’ve finally
woken up to the realisation courtesy of that metaphorical wet fish
that I could bang my head against the proverbial wall for the next 20yrs and it
still wouldn’t change the stereotypical handling
of rap/hiphop especially in the UK.
Depending on the shape of
your genitals you haven’t got an elephants trunk of a chance ……unless of
course its …er….shaped like an elephants trunk.
In my heart I think I already
knew but I felt this solidarity for all the other female rap/hiphop artists out
there, overlooked, ignored, dismissed. I’m so angry, not for myself but for
some of the legendary females that some of us have aspired too, they’ve worked
hard, have something of substance to
say, clever, talented, not like a lot of todays pop acts who just get their kit
off, or look for some other pathetic way to shock to sell a record.
Blatant inequality doesn’t happen with any other genre I can
think of, just rap/hiphop, it hasn’t
changed since the genre was born, how sad is that? or maybe I should say how shameful is that?
I thought if I stopped playing the game and banging my head I’d be letting down the genre, and all the
other women like me hoping If we
banged our heads long enough someone in the industry would wake up, grow some
balls and give it the shake up it so desperately needs.
But then I realised, we’re not
defined by some individual, usually male, that we’ve never met before, sitting behind a
desk deciding whether we’re worthy or
not. Only we can truthfully determine our own worth, and as women, as music
artists I’d say we’re damn well worth it.
We cant change the industry, or the bosses with ancient mind-sets
running it or the sheep that follow . There’s many a talented musician lying in the graveyard that was never deemed relevant
or worthy enough to be heard , but we all know that’s certainly not the truth.
On a personal note I wasn’t
sure I’d even be accepted into the
rap/hiphop fraternity/sisterhood its an
extremely tight community and while I’m certainly not the best, I could only
hope the luv, honesty & passion I feel for it would show
through. Its not just something I do,
its something I live.
Coupled with being followed
by a few of your music idols, you know that despite being constantly overlooked you must be doing something right.
Its not us , the women that
need to change, it’s the industry ,and I’m
not prepared to sit around waiting for it to happen any longer, waiting for a crumb
to be thrown, or banging my head on the same wall for another 20 years. I know my worth, I know my achievements and the people that matter, fellow musicians and the listeners, and that’s a great reason to continue making
music and the only validation needed.
Someone once asked me, as a
female if I knew what I know now, whether
I would still have chosen to go into
rap/hiphop and the response was simple, you don’t choose it, it’s a part of
you, just like an arm or a leg.
Everything has its day, the industry is stale
and out of touch, while modern technology and social media is expanding and
allowing artists to do more and more independently, So an industry that refuses to change is setting itself up
for social suicide, while women in
rap/hiphop will continue to grow, and come that day I know which side I'll be standing.
Stay Blessed
Mama Chill XXX
Stay Blessed
Mama Chill XXX
Your followers know your worth mate,the rest of the world needs to wake up to it !! Stay blessed also my friend. xxx
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