Hip-Hop’s Trailblazing Women and Their Many Milestones, From MC Sha-Rock to Nicki Minaj

This has been an important year for women in hip-hop.

From the rapid rise of rap princess Ice Spice, to Missy Elliott’s induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, to Doja Cat winning the first hip-hop Hot 100 No. 1 in the year, until the theatrical debut of Megan Thee Stallion in Dicks: the musicalas Latto scored her first chart-topper with the Jungkook collaboration “Seven,” it’s safe to say that women continue to push the genre to new heights, just as they have in the five decades since its inception.

In fact, thanks to the efforts of icons like Foxy Brown, Eve, Remy Ma, and newcomers like Doechii and Coi Leray, every year has been big for the women who keep pushing hip-hop forward. In honor of her continued dominance and the culture’s 50th anniversary in August, PEOPLE looks back at some of the women who made today’s success possible.

From MC Sha-Rock’s milestone onwards Saturday night live From 1981, to Nicki Minaj becoming the first female rapper to reach 100 million RIAA sales, here are some major milestones by female superstars who made their mark and made their voices heard.

MC Sha-Rock permeates the stage

Funky 4 + 1 More perform on ‘Saturday Night Live’ in 1981.

Al Levine/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank

In 1981, MC Sha-Rock, long hailed as the first female MC, made history when she and her group — Funky 4 + 1 — took the 30 Rock stage as performers on Saturday night live.

The performance, according to Sha-Rock’s website, made Funky 4 + 1 the first hip-hop group to perform on national television. And yes, it also means that Sha-Rock was the first female MC to ever perform on national television, a feat that paved the way for decades of iconic acts to come.

Roxanne Shanté leaves a mark

Roxanne Shanté performing at the Regal Theater in Chicago in 1988.

Raymond Boyd/Getty

Often considered one of hip-hop’s first female stars, Roxanne Shanté has made history in more ways than one throughout her career. But perhaps her earliest known achievement was the 1984 release “Roxanne’s Revenge,” which she recorded at just 14 years old. Over time, the song (intended for the group UTFO) allegedly earned the title of the first diss record in hip-hop history.

“Hip-hop has been my home since I was a teenager, and as an adult I’ve grown to love it even more,” Shanté told PEOPLE in August.

Mc Lyte lights up the charts

MC Lyte poses for a picture in New York in 1991.

Al Pereira/Getty

Mc Lyte, often applauded as the first female MC to release a full-length studio album thanks to 1988’s Lyte as a rockmade even more history just five years later.

In 1993, Lyte’s hit “Ruffneck” made her the first solo MC to be certified gold by the RIAA, as the single sold 500,000 copies within just a few months of its release. Lyte later won the Recording Academy, when her hit No. 35 Hot 100 made her the first solo female rapper to be nominated for a Grammy in the Best Rap Solo Performance category.

Queen Latifah ascends to the Grammy throne

Queen Latifah performs at the 1995 American Music Awards.

Joan Adlen/Getty

Just a year after Lyte’s milestone Grammy win, several other women have come to break more barriers at the annual ceremony.

In 1995, Queen Latifah became the first solo female rapper to win a Grammy, for Best Solo Rap Performance, thanks to her hit song “UNITY.”

In the same year, icons Salt-N-Pepa also became famous for the Recording Academy, when the rap group also became the first women to take home the Rap Grammy for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group for their song “None of Your Business” — all on the same night!

Salt N’ Pepa Go Platinum

Salt-N-Pepa appears at the Grammys.

Steve Granitz Archive 1/WireImage

The Grammy win wasn’t the only milestone for Salt-N-Pepa, as the trio (with DJ Spinderella) also became the first women in rap to go platinum a few years ago — all thanks to 1986’s Hot, cool and badass.

“It’s a nice feeling because just to see that… you weren’t born, but you came to it the hard way. Like women, you all made up your mind about it,” Sandra “Pepa” Denton told PEOPLE in August. “I took that as success, which is what hip-hop is all about, which is just seeing women, acknowledging us and how we inspire them, or they say we’re the soundtrack of their lives. I said, ‘Oh, thanks.'”

Yes Brat’s solo triumph

Da Brat attends the 39th Grammy Awards in 1997.

Ron Galella, Ltd./Collection of Ron Galella via Getty

Back in 1994, Da Brat released his revolutionary debut LP Funkdafiedwhich just a few months later cemented it into the history books.

Shortly after its release in 1994, the album went platinum, making Da Brat the first solo female rapper to sell a million album units. The record was officially certified on January 6, 1995, according to the RIAA, just months after its title track (and single) did the same.

Lauryn Hill’s ‘Miseducation’ makes history

Lauryn Hill poses with her trophies at the 41st Grammy Awards.

VINCE BUCCI/AFP via Getty

In 1999, when Lauryn Hill took home five Grammys for The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, just didn’t make history for women in hip-hop or women in popular music. She wrote the history of hip-hop as a whole.

That day in February, Hill’s now-iconic debut album became the first hip-hop record to ever win Album of the Year — a feat matched only once since Outkast took home the same trophy in 2004 for their double LP Speakerboxxx/Love below.

Lil’ Kim Threepeats

Lil Kim at the 2006 MTV Video Music Awards.

Dimitrios Kambouris/WireImage

Lil’ Kim may be best known for her hit singles like “Magic Stick” and “Crush On You,” but she also has the magic touch when it comes to album sales. In 2003, she secured her third consecutive platinum album, La Bella Mafia — which followed Kim’s Hard Core and Notorious KIM — made Kim one of the few women in rap to ever accomplish the feat.

Cardi B is doubling down

Cardi B attends the 61st Annual GRAMMY Awards.

Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic

In addition to the success of her Grammy-winning debut Violation of privacyCardi B etched her name into the history books with her chart-topping performances.

In 2018, the MC became the first woman in rap to score two No. 1 hits on the Hot 100 — with “I Like It” on the heels of her hit “Bodak Yellow.” Since then, other women have followed suit, like Doje Cat with “Say So” and this year’s “Paint the Town Red,” and Nicki Minaj with “Trollz” and “Super Freaky Girl.”

Doja Cat and Nicki Minaj are a dream duo

Doja Cat, Nicki Minaj.

Frazer Harrison/Getty; Paul Zimmerman/Getty

Doja Cat and Nicki Minaj also broke records as a couple.

The two MCs topped the charts together with their 2020 remix of “Say So,” making them the first female rap duo to reach #1 on the Hot 100. They even earned a Guinness World Record nod for the feat!

Nicki Minaj rules the charts

Nicki Minaj Appears at ‘Barbie’ Premiere in July 2023

MICHAEL TRAN/AFP via Getty

Nicki – of course – is no stranger to solo successes. She broke barriers as one of the best-selling female musicians of all time.

The queen of rap has sold more than 100 million albums worldwide, making her one of the best-selling women in music. ever. Additionally, her triumphs have extended to the charts — where she boasts 133 hits on the Hot 100 as of October 2023, per Board.

Megan Thee Stallion on stage at the Oscars

Megan Thee Stallion performs at the 2022 Oscars.

ABC via Getty

Megan Thee Stallion may have only debuted in 2023, but she’s already been spotted on the Oscars stage.

During the 2022 Academy Awards, the H-town hottie made history as the first woman in rap to perform at the annual awards show, when she rapped “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” alongside Becky G, Luis Fonsi and the cast team Encanto.

Ice Spice, baby!

Ice Spice poses for photos at the 2023 MTV Video Music Awards.

Taylor Hill/FilmMagic

Back in May of this year, women in rap are breaking down barriers.

Thanks to her verse on Taylor Swift’s “Karma (Remix),” rising star Ice Spice has scored the biggest streaming debut for a female rap artist ever, surpassing the record previously held by her friend Minaj. The song, released on May 26, ended up garnering 5.036 million streams in just its first day of availability.

missy makes hall(s)

Missy Elliott speaks onstage during the 50th Annual Songwriters Hall of Fame Induction Dinner and Awards.

Larry Busacca/Getty

Missy Elliott has always been a trailblazer, but her greatness came into full display this year and 2019 — when she also became the first female rapper to be inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame and later took her place in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Hall of Fame.

The icon’s induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame officially took place on November 3 when Missy celebrated with fellow inductees at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn.

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