Billboard magazine have named their all time 50 greatest rappers in honor of the 50th anniversary of hip hop.
According to Billboard, they limited the the scope to North America in other to get the right focus.
The list started coming out on January 11, on weekly basis, with the last batch coming on February 8, 2023. Ten rappers were named every week with their respective positions.
The first list dropped on January 11, were rappers from 50-41 position.In the long list of 50 rappers, it had only 6 female rappers with Nicki Minaj being the only female to appear in the top 10.
Missy Elliott, Lauryn Hill, Lil Kim, Queen Latifah & MC Lyte are the rest of female rappers who appeared on the list as well.
The team took into account the following criteria, not in any particular order: body of work/achievements (charted singles/albums, gold/platinum certifications), cultural impact/influence (how the artist’s work fostered the genre’s evolution), longevity (years at the mic), lyrics (storytelling skills and flow(vocal prowess).
List of female rappers and their positions
NB: position on the overall list are in ()
1.Nicki Minaj (10)
2.Missy Elliott (19)
3.Lauryn Hill (30)
4.Lil Kim (31)
5.Queen Latifah (44)
6.MC Lyte (47)
