Rap music written and performed by men has generally either ignored the existence of women or defined them as commodities, objects of male pleasure, or ornaments.(1) The mere presence of female rappers helps to combat the intensity of this sexism, but too often these women have confronted barriers both within and without the industry which was discouraging, if not preventing altogether, the fullest expression of their social and political, as well as emotional and sexual, concerns. By exhibiting their verbal virtuosity as well as social and political conscience, pioneering female rappers, such as MC Lyte and Salt'N Pepa, have secured and steadily broadened the place of women in the industry. Though women always had a presence, albeit unacknowledged, female rap is now as deeply entrenched in the industry as, for instance, comedic rap (as expressed by Biz Markie, D.J. Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince). Consequently, we have witnessed a growing sexual freedom in female rap. This freedom includes an evolution of the concepts and acceptability of female sexuality and an increasing willingness on the part of female rappers to display and address issues of their own bodies and sexuality. Out of this history has emerged a particularly unconventional and sexually aggressive trio known as T.L.C.(2) T.L.C.'s debut album, Ooooooohhh . . . On the TLC Tip represents a major breakthrough in the expression of black female sexuality. A product of the sexual (r)evolution in female rap, it serves as a powerful, liberating assertion of black women's economic (Depend on Myself), psychological (Shock Dat Monkey), emotional (Baby-Baby-Baby), and sexual (Ain't 2 Proud 2 Beg) independence and their ability to dictate and take responsibility for the terms, the process, and the outcome of their own experiences. It is not only an admission of self as sexual as well as an intellectual being, but more importantly pride in that fact. These women take charge of their own sexuality and make a conscious choice not to be victims of either men or sex. Women, particularly African-American women, have long been characterized as loose, immoral, and hypersexual. The threat of sexual harassment, already a major problem for all women in the workforce, increases dramatically when women dare to enter nontraditional fields. The hiphop community is exception, with men attempting to deter women's entrance and subsequent rise in the field by, typically, subjecting these women to attacks on their personal, ie., sexual, reputations and/or placing them before their male peers for judgment? Perhaps in an effort to combat this tendency, pioneering female rappers tended to keep their sexuality well hidden. Their lyrics were predominantly asexual but rarely, if ever, gender-coded (They typically addressed questions of legitimacy and virtuosity as an MC). In personal and stage appearances, these women cultivated images as 'one of the guys.' MC Lyte, for instance, began her career wearing sweatsuits, sneakers, and dookey chains (large gold rope chains), and toting a gat (a small handgun).(4) Similarly, Roxanne Shante wore no make-up and everyday clothes.(5) While Nancy Guevara might argue that this was a refusal on the part of women in rap to have their femininity dictated by their male peers and audiences, I would suggest that this was in actuality a concession to the limitations inherent in many sexist notions of success. That is, these women chose to adopt a style which was traditionally male in order to succeed in a male-dominated industry. The apparent message was that the projection of a more masculine image leads to success and that, in fact, success as a rapper could come only after sacrificing femininity.(6) This inability to reconcile the feminine and, we are led to assume, the sexually desirable is glaringly apparent on the cover of MC Lyte's debut album, Lyte as a Rock. The diminutive Lyte is posed to the left of and slightly behind her producer, the King of Chill, while her disc jockey, K-Rock, reaches an outstretched hand toward a traditional female, complete with long straight hair, tight miniskirt, and red spiked heels - a woman whose face, significantly, runs off the page. …