Hip-Hops First Lady, Queen Latifah (born Dana Elaine Owens), turns 52 today! Latifah is a true trailblazer in every sense of the word. Her work as a rapper, singer and actress has earned her a wide range of accolades including:
- 1x Grammy Award (from 6 nominations)
- 1x Emmy Award (from 3 nominations)
- 1x Golden Globe Award (from 3 nominations)
- 3x Screen Actors Guild Awards (from 3 nominations)
- 2x NAACP Image Awards (from 13 nominations)
- 1x Oscar nomination
- BET Lifetime Achievement Award
Music Career
Latifah made her mark in hip-hop rapping about some of the issues that pertain to her experience as a black woman. Her songs have covered topics like domestic violence, harassment on the streets, and relationship problems. This represented a stark contrast to the gangsta rap that heavily prevailed at the time — hence she has been hailed by many as “rap’s first feminist” (though she expressed that her music, of course, was not made exclusively for a female audience).
In 1989, Latifah released her debut album All Hail the Queen at just 19 years old. The album spawned the hit single “Ladies First” (featuring British rapper, Monie Love), which became the first collaborative track by two female rappers that were not in a group.
Her third album, Black Reign (1993), became the first album by a solo female rapper to receive an RIAA certification (a certificate received based on the number of albums and singles sold through retail). The success of this album arguably paved the way for a talented new wave of female rappers to make their own way onto the charts as the 90s progressed (like Lauryn Hill, Lil Kim, Missy Elliott, Foxy Brown and Ms Dynamite). The lead single from the album, “U.N.I.T.Y.”, was influential in raising awareness of violence against women and the objectification of Black female sexuality. The record won a Grammy and peaked at No. 23 on the Billboard Hot 100.
In 1998, Latifah became the first-ever hip-hop artist to perform at the Super Bowl halftime show (skip to 5:35) — a testament to her influence and success.
After her fourth hip-hop album, Order in the Court (1998), Latifah decided to focus on creating jazz and soul music (which she had used sparingly in her previous hip-hop records). She released 2 albums — The Dana Owens Album (2004) and Trav’lin Light (2007). Both were well-received, with the latter of the two receiving a Grammy nomination. Latifah eventually returned to hip-hop in 2009 with her album Persona, which debuted at number 25 on the Billboard 200.
Acting Career
Besides her Grammy Award-winning rap career, Latifah has flourished in the TV and film industry. Though she had previously received some critical acclaim for her acting work in the 90s, it was her role as Matron “Mama” Morton in Chicago (2002) that propelled her to mainstream success. The film won the Oscar for Best Picture, and Latifah herself was nominated for Best Supporting Actress (making her one of five hip-hop/R&B artists to receive an Oscar nomination in an acting category).
In 2015, she won a Primetime Emmy Award for her starring role in the film Bessie.
A woman of many firsts, Latifah became the first hip-hop artist to receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame (2006). During her acceptance speech, she stated that:
“One of the reasons for me to be here is to inspire other young women, young African American women, young wannabe rappers, or wannabe actors, or wannabe entrepreneurs or full-figured sexy women… Anyone who sees me, I hope they see me there and feel inspired, and feel like, If I can do it, they can do it.”
Happy birthday to the Queen!
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