Columns

Let's face it – it is, as Mr. Brown would have it, a man's world. It seems that no matter how masculine or feminine a profession may appear to be – think cooking, fashion design or dancing – a man will undoubtedly be at the top. Perhaps it is because half of the population are better than the other, maybe it's because men just have that extra burning ambition, or maybe it's because they don't have to create new humans and look after them for eighteen odd years. Whatever the reason, I'm feeling pretty snarky about it. However, in the music world, where men again take power and control, especially in the underground fields of music, these women give me some hope.

Katy B

Being just a year older than I, Katy B has single-handedly MCed dubstep and drum & bass out of its filthy little hole. Hailing from Peckham in London, the singer completed a degree in pop music at the prestigious Goldsmiths, University of London and was signed to Rinse, when its corresponding radio station was still pirate. When Rinse was officially recognised, the label brought out her first single, "Katy On a Mission", which, with the production of Benga, was embraced in the underground and mainstream alike - reaching the top five on the UK Singles Chart and number one on the Indie Chart. She has continued to "smash it" in the charts with her singles and co-labs with the Magnetic Man crew, whilst touring endlessly around the UK and rest of Europe.

I love Katy B, not just because she brings delicateness to a harsh, angry sounding breed of party music, but because she is always natural (ditching make-up for a lot of photos), down to earth, and acts like a lady through all the partying and club antics.

Ms Dynamite

When your name is Niomi Arleen McLean-Daley, any stage name that pops into your head hungover on Strong Brew at 1pm on a Sunday is going to seem pretty tasteful. I like this woman not only because she is one of the best female MCs out, but she has definitely been through extreme success and failure, recently arriving on the other side.

After winning Brit Awards for Best Urban Act and Best Female Solo Act amongst others in the early 2000s, donating much of her prize money to the National Society for the Protection of Children and generally dominating the underground, we skip forward to see her fall. After her second album flopped in 2006, we see the Scottish/Jamaican getting her tacky girl violence on outside a club by punching a copper in the face, causing her new album to be half released and giving rise to her radio host/reality TV show stint, after winning the Naomi Award for Worst Urban Act. Most of us would have gone into hiding right there and then, but not Ms D. She has worked her way back up to be one of the most sought after female MCs once more, along with Katy B, and has had hits in the top five on the UK charts with Magnetic Man and DJ Zinc – and has really hit her stride. Her perseverance, lack of shame, and ability to take on both masculine and female MCing means that I do indeed love Ms Dynamite and eagerly await her third studio album which is set to drop early 2012.

Continued next week when we take a look at the women that are shaking up hip-hop...