Queen Latifah has become the first-ever female hip-hop artist to join the National Recording Registry with the induction of her debut album, “All Hail the Queen.”
Recall that she was also the first female hip-hop artist to get nominated for an Oscar in 2002.
Announced on Wednesday (April 12), this year’s inductees also include Madonna’s worldwide hit “Like a Virgin,” Mariah Carey’s classic holiday song “All I Want for Christmas Is You,” Daddy Yankee’s 2004 hit “Gasolina,” and even Koji Kondo’s Super Mario Bros. theme song, among others.
Per NPR, the rapper and actress is now the first female hip-hop artist to have her music inducted into the prestigious institution on Wednesday. The work selected for the honour is her debut album, All Hail the Queen, which was released back in 1989.
“The National Recording Registry preserves our history through recorded sound and reflects our nation’s diverse culture,” Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden said in a statement. “Her [Queen Latifah’s] album showed rap could cross genres, including reggae, hip-hop, house, and jazz—while also opening opportunities for other female rappers.”
In addition to being the only Queen we acknowledge, iconic singer and multi-award winner Mariah Carey was also inducted into the NRR for her highly popular song (and arguably the best Christmas song on Earth), “All I Want for Christmas Is You.” Other notable inductees include Wynton Marsalis for “Black Codes (From the Underground),” Irene Cara’s “Flashdance…What a Feeling,” Madonna’s “Like A Virgin,” the Super Mario Bros. theme by Koji Kondo, and Daddy Yankee for “Gasolina.”
Queen Latifah can currently be seen on the hit CBS drama, The Equalizer. She also ushered in the fourth season of her short film series, Queen Collective, on BET, BET Her, BET Soul, BET Jams, and Pluto TV. The series features projects by women and non-binary filmmakers of colour and seeks to shine a light on their projects as well as provide resources to help further their creative journeys.
The Root quoted her as explaining that “by being in a position that I am, I didn’t want to just make more movies and make a whole ton of money. I wanted to be able to produce films; that way, I could make sure that when I look past that camera, when I look behind it, I can see a diverse group of people back there working in every department.”
