Hip Hop Studies Commons^™

Black Female Artists Reclaiming Their Sexual Power, Nicole E. Heller

Student Publications

The emergence of hip hop in the 1980s and 90s is representative of the struggle that Black men and women face in modern society. As a result of a New York City housing crisis, crime, and poverty, hip hop arose as a coping mechanism, as many art forms do; hip hop provided a way for Black men to express their experiences and struggles. Hip hop has been used as a vehicle for self- expression, social views and political views among disadvantaged urban groups (White, 2013). However, it was and still is common for male hip hop artists to sexualize and …