30+ Rap & Hip-Hop Icons of All Time, Ranked

The rap and hip-hop world is inundated with male superstars, but it is many of the women rappers and emcees that have created some of the most iconic and memorable music in this genre. These women, like all women, have found their place in a male-dominated field and established their own styles that many women and men across the globe idolize. From Lauryn Hill to Missy Elliott, we are reviewing the greatest female rap and hip-hop icons of all time!

During the early 2000s, you couldn’t turn on British hip-hop channels without hearing at least one song by Lady Sovereign. She had several collaborations with big-time rappers such as Missy Elliott but also became really well known for her own rhymes.

Born in Wembley Park, London, this young rapper didn’t quite fit the mold and yet still earned plenty of respect. Eventually, though, her health reportedly took a turn and she hasn’t released music since 2012.

Though most people that are less into rap may know her name only for one song, “Milkshake”, Kelis had quite a career before that tune hit the airwaves. Born in Manhattan, she began singing in the late 1990s.

Along with releasing iconic songs she also found time to attend culinary school and is actually a full-fledged chef. Over the past couple of years, she has released several albums and is currently working on new music.

Though this iconic activist, author, and musician only released one album, she still finds herself listed amongst many as one of the best rappers of all time. Born in the Bronx, Lisa Williamson eventually transformed into Sister Souljah.

Although she hasn’t released music since 1992, she keeps busy as an author and has even done a bit of movie production. Who knows — maybe one day, she’ll pick up the mic again.

Though so many rappers on this list come from the US, there’s no denying the talent that comes out of Britain as well. For instance, Estelle is not only a rapper but a singer-songwriter, as well as an actress.

Starting her career in the world-famous hip-hop record store Deal Real, she soon found herself in the studio and has been rapping ever since. For the past few years, she’s been doing both acting and singing.

Like many other young hip-hop artists, Becky G started out her musical journey by posting covers online. Eventually, she caught the eye of a very famous music producer. In 2014, though, she really left her mark when she released the single “Shower”, which immediately hit the Billboard Hot 100.

She ventured away from English-speaking records and focused on Spanish-speaking albums for quite a while but just recently returned to English music with a significant amount of fanfare.

Megan Pete — also known as Megan Thee Stallion — hails from Texas. She began her career in 2016 by posting videos of her freestyling on Instagram and other social media platforms.

During the time that she released her first mixtape, she also landed a gig as a cast member of the hit MTV reality television show Love & Hip Hop: Houston. Over the past five years, she has worked really hard to get her name into the public eye.

Lil Mama hit the scene in 2008 with a chart-topping album, VYP. Within the songs on this album, four of them turned into major singles and she seemed to be on a roll. But, then she decided to take a break and concentrate on other aspects of her career.

From 2008 all the way to 2012, she was a judge on a dance contest show and even found her way into the film industry. Though there’s no sign that she’s going to return to music anytime soon, her brief but vibrant career definitely makes her an icon.

Way back in 2008, you could launch your own career by using the platform Myspace to release music. This is exactly what Azealia Banks did and from there, she quickly became an overnight sensation. Combining dance music with hardcore hip-hop is how Azealia was able to leave her mark on the music industry.

Still active in the hip-hop and rap industry, Banks has actually just recently released a new single. Along with this, she has launched a perfume and continues to work on new music.

Freestyle is the lifeblood of rap music in general. This British rapper, Lady Leshurr, became known for her freestyle capability back in 2016. Her music is highly influenced by other rappers such as Missy Elliott and Busta Rhymes.

She used her musical fame to get movie roles — in addition to partnering with many different big-time companies. Her unique flow and openness with the media have granted her many followers and fans.

Another iconic name that has to be mentioned when talking about the best female rappers is, of course, Monie Love. This British rapper was prolific during the ’80s and ’90s.

She had major collaborations with many different artists — including another iconic rapper Queen Latifah. Though she now primarily focuses on radio and other career outlets, she did release a track in 2013.

Stacy Ann Ferguson has been in the limelight since she was a young child. She began her musical career off on the kid’s television show, Kids Incorporated before becoming a member of a female girl group in the early ’90s.

Though she’s probably best known as one member of the iconic Black Eyed Peas, she eventually pursued a solo career — where she not only shined with her vocal abilities but her rapping skills as well.

Many of the most iconic female rappers started in the underground hip-hop scene in New York City. Jean Grae is no exception. Between her unique musical style and lyrical abilities, she has been touted as one of the favorite rappers by many big names such as Jay-Z.

Over the past two decades, this female rapper has worked both in the underground — as well as with mainstream musical production companies. Though she’s been relatively silent over the past couple of years, having released her last album in 2018, we’re sure to hear something from this iconic rapper soon.

In 2016, everybody was scrambling to get their hands on a new mixtape floating around. This mixtape had been released by Kamaiyah and quickly gained critical acclaim, pushing her to release another mixtape the following year that received just as much praise.

She’s been signed to two mainstream labels but neither one of them did what she wanted. So, in 2020, she started her own label where she’s producing her own music.

There’s no denying that this young Dallas native has an eclectic taste and musical style, which really adds to the whole experience. Liv.e utilizes online platforms to release her tracks. You can hear all types of musical influences within her songs — and this has even garnered her some pretty big fans including Erykah Badu.

Though she’s quite new to the rap scene, her unique style sets her apart from the other rappers in the industry — and that definitely makes her one of the best female rappers today.

Marlanna Evans, also known as Rapsody, started her hip-hop career as a member of H2O while attending North Carolina State University. After she graduated, she began working on her own music and in 2007, she released her first album, Return of the B-Girl.

She then dropped another album the following year and has been working nonstop. Now 38 years old, Rapsody shows no signs of slowing down.

Like many female rappers of the ’80s and the ’90s, Yo-Yo used her rhymes for female empowerment. After starting out her career as a protégé of iconic rapper Ice Cube, she made her first vocal appearance on one of his tracks.

Once people discovered her talent and rhyming abilities, it was clear that she needed to go off on her own. And so, in 1991, she released her first album. From there, she went on to release more albums. Eventually, she even found herself on both TV and film. Musically, though, we haven’t heard from her since her last album dropped in 2009.

If you’re into rap, then you know the name Def Jam. Rashawnna Guy, also known as Shawnna, was the first female artist to sign with Def Jam South Recordings. She made her musical debut as one part of the rap duo, Infamous Syndicate. Now, Shawnna is actually considered musical royalty.

Taking the influence from her father the Blues musician Buddy Guy she began her career in music. Known for the rapid delivery of her lyrics she has been working on music ever since her debut album was released in 1996. Though we haven’t heard anything from her since 2006.

Roxanne Shante may be best known as a member of Juice Crew but for those that are deeply involved in the rap world, she’s also known for her own flow as well. She began developing and honing in on her skills at the age of nine and has worked alongside some of the most iconic names — such as DJ Mr. Magic.

After releasing a record in 1985 with Sparky D, her career officially took off. She worked consecutively until 1986, in which she then decided to take a few years off. Her last track was released in 1992 and she’s been retired pretty much ever since.

When you think of Missy Elliott, you may also think of hip-hop vocalist Ciara. This singer found her start in a girl group and eventually worked her way into becoming a solo artist.

In 2003, she released her first album and has continued to work pretty consistently since. She has even dabbled in filmwork. But, for those of us that grew up in the ’90s and early 2000s, she’s definitely one of the most iconic female hip-hop stars out there.

Janelle Monáe has her own unique style and personality. Not only is she an iconic rapper, but she’s also a beautiful singer — not to mention, an actress. In 2006, she signed with Bad Boy Records and began work on her first album.

Naturally, Janelle’s life has been busy ever since. Throughout her career, Janelle has received eight Grammy Award nominations. She has won both an MTV Video Music Award and the ASCAP Vanguard Award.

Many female rappers got their start as a member of a squad and Rah Digga is no different. As one of the members of the Flipmode Squad, which was a hip-hop group that Busta Rhymes led, she found fame.

In 2000, she released her debut solo album and began building her legacy. Though she hasn’t released a new album since 2010, she’s still very relevant considering that she’s the co-host of a radio show, alongside Lord Jamar and Godfrey.

Sometimes, fate finds you and for the Lady of Rage, this is exactly what happened. After doing a few bars on another group’s album, Dr. Dre heard her and asked her to be on his album. Eventually, this led to her first solo single being released in 1994.

This iconic female rapper continued to work consistently with other female rappers. These days, the Lady of Rage is part of the group N’Matez (along with rappers Daz Dillinger, Kurupt, and RBX).

Following in the footsteps of previous iconic female rappers, Remy Ma started her career off as a member of the Terror Squad — which was fat Joe’s posse. That’s how she got signed to his record label when he founded it. In 2006, she released her debut album.

Since then, she has continually worked on new music and released track after track. When she’s not rapping, she apparently keeps busy by getting into fights with fellow female rappers including Nicki Minaj.

Having a love for music early in her life, Young M.A. worked really hard to build her skills. Eventually, in 2016, Young M.A. released her first single “Ooouuu” — which quickly found its way onto the US Billboard Hot 100 chart and garnered the attention of some pretty big names.

Since then, she’s been working on releasing freestyle after freestyle and has found her way onto a lot of great playlists.

In this day and age, there are a lot of different ways in which rappers can get the attention of their potential audience. For Cardi B, this was initially through social media platforms like Vine and Instagram.

After gaining popularity there, she found herself as a cast member on the VH1 reality television show Love & Hip-hop: New York. From there, she launched and released two different mixtapes and has become one of the most iconic female rappers of this day and age.

This Australian rapper knew what she wanted from a young age and moved to the US at 16 to pursue a career in music. After releasing a few of her songs on YouTube, she was signed to T.I.’s record label and released a mixtape soon after.

In 2014, she released her debut record and then another one in 2019. Through several hit singles off these two albums, she has worked her way into becoming one of the best female rappers of all time. However, in 2021, she released her final album and retired thereafter.

Most recently, Feloni is probably best known as part of MTV’s logo documentary (Coming Out Stories). But, in reality, this female rapper has extensive discography to prove her talent. Having released her first album in 2007, Feloni has been spitting her rhymes for more than a decade now.

Mixing hip-hop, rock, alternative, and R&B — along with her smooth rhymes — this very talented female rapper has cemented a place in history. Along with music, though, she’s also a painter, songwriter, and record label CEO.

M.I.A. has a unique perspective and utilizes her rhymes to get the word out about things she’s passionate about. Born in London, she and her family eventually moved to Sri Lanka where she honed in on her skills amidst the unrest in the country.

As many people did back in the early 2000s, she uploaded many of her songs to MySpace where she garnered a lot of attention. Eventually, in 2005, she released her first album. Since then, she has consistently worked.

Selling a million copies of your debut album ain’t a bad way to start your rap career. In 1994, Da Brat released her first album and it received a platinum award. This alone puts her in the same field as iconic rappers such as Salt-n-Pepa.

For the remainder of the ’90s and the early 2000s, Da Brat continued working alongside both hip-hop and rap stars to create some iconic songs. Though she last released a single in 2013, she has continued to stay busy, and is even the co-host of the Rickey Smiley Morning Show .

Starting with an appearance on one of the most iconic tricky sales, Trina quickly found herself in the limelight. She released her debut album that quickly rose to #33 on the US Billboard 200. It stayed there for 49 consecutive weeks — and this was just the beginning.

Over the last couple of decades, she has consistently been working, even starring in a reality television show along the way. In 2019, she released her sixth studio album and has been reportedly working on a new project.

Younger generations may only think of Queen Latifah as an actress and producer. But, Dana Elaine Owens began her career beatboxing in a hip-hop group and eventually worked her way to a solo career.

Having released her first single in 1989, it was soon evident that she was going to be a force within the rap community. She continued her hip-hop career up until about 2003 before shifting into more traditional singing (soul music and jazz). Since then, she has had a return to hip-hop — all whilst maintaining a career in film and television.

This iconic American hip-hop group released their first single way back in 1987. With its success, Salt-n-Pepa hit number one in three different countries. For the next several decades, the duo — along with their DJ Spinderella — would continue to release hit after hit.

Though the group disbanded for about five years, they have since come back together to create and release music together.

Starting as a member of a Brooklyn-based group, Lil’ Kim soon found herself as one of the most popular members of that group. This launched her solo career and, in 1995, she released her debut album.

Of course, her life was not without controversy, and this just seemed to fuel her music even more. After a long hiatus, the female rapper released her latest album in 2019 and seems to be back on the rise.

As a member of the inaugural class of female rappers in the 80s, MC Lyte released her first full album in 1988. Though she may not have reached the same heights as other female rappers, she quickly gained a huge following within the rap music community because of her style.

Throughout the ’90s, she released her own tracks and collaborated with several rappers such as like Queen Latifah and Run DMC. The iconic female rapper released her last single back in 2018.

In the ’90s, when you were listening to R&B, there was a chance that you were definitely grooving to the sounds of TLC. As one-third of the trio, Lisa “Left Eye” Lopes, was in charge of spitting all the rhymes and she did so with excellent flair.

Though she may have left us too soon, her skills and talents placed her well within the upper echelon of female rappers.

Foxy Brown began to spit rhymes at a very early age and did so with success. After winning several contests, she wound up working her way into the industry at a young age. At 17, she released her debut album, which landed her in the top 10 of the Billboard 200 charts.

From there, she continued to release tracks and albums to critical acclaim. Today, she continues to work in the music industry and keeps busy with other side projects as well.

Finding her way out of a career that was fitting to her talents, this female rapper eventually signed with Dr. Dre’s record label and began releasing singles. In 1999, Eve released her debut album, which sold over 200,000 copies in the very first week.

Taking her unique style and pushing it hard, she continued to release albums up until 2012. It was then that she switched gears and began working on her acting career more than her music. Recently, though, she has announced that she will be releasing new music.

Like many female rappers, Missy Elliott began her career as a member of a group. This is where she met Timbaland who was hired to produce the girls’ tracks. From there, the rest is history. In 1997, she released her first album, and it was clear that her unique style was set to make her a part of rap history.

For the rest of the ’90s and early 2000s, she continued to release hit album after hit album — and still is one of the most popular rappers alive.

Nicki Minaj started by trying her hand by performing in groups but none of that ever worked. So, like every musician in the early 2000s, she began to release her songs via her MySpace account and eventually caught the eye of Fendi.

Her first mixtape was released in 2007 and she followed it quickly with a second mixtape in 2008. But, it wasn’t till 2010 — when she found her place on the Billboard Hot 100 — that her career really took off. Her unique flow and style, along with her high-profile collaborations, have rocketed her into the top levels of female rapper stardom.

Regarded as one of the best female rappers of all time, Lauryn Hill has won many awards including eight Grammy Awards. So, with that said, there’s no denying that Hill has cemented a place in music history.

Though she hasn’t released much in the past decade, the music that she has left in the world is still listened to by millions of people every day.