It's impossible to miss the recent slew of chart-topping, female-forward, hip-hop duets. From the record-breaking, headline-making "WAP" by Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion; to the otherworldly anthem by Doja Cat and SZA, "Kiss Me More"; to the recent and instantly trending "Rumors" that teamed up Lizzo and Cardi B, Black women have been choosing to feature other Black women.
It's simple, according to Carl Chery, head of urban music at Spotify. We're in a golden age of female hip-hop.
"A year and a half ago in comparison to now, the field has expanded so much," said Chery. "You're seeing women who emerged as early as two years ago become stars. We've never seen this. I don't think there's ever been this many female rap stars, ever."
In 2019, Chery noticed the beginnings of this new wave of Black female artists. Acts such as City Girls, Lizzo, Doja Cat, Cardi B, Saweetie, SZA and Megan Thee Stallion were making a name for themselves on the heels of Nicki Minaj, Rihanna and Beyoncé's seemingly stand-alone successes, without the scaffolding of big names or record labels to prop them up.
"Meg isn't connected to anyone like that," said Chery. "She's standing up on her own."
"WAP," Megan Thee Stallion's collaboration with Cardi B, broke the record for the biggest 24-hour debut for an all-female collaboration on YouTube and currently has more than 876 million plays on Spotify, the most of any of Megan Thee Stallion's songs. In second place? "Savage Remix," her song with Beyoncé.
"Women are ruling," said Bktherula, a female rapper from Atlanta. "It's really amazing to just hear women everywhere all the time. You open TikTok, music apps, what do you hear? Black women."
https://www.washingtonpost.com/arts-entertainment/2021/08/23/black-women-rappers-duets/
