Rapper Kreayshawn arrives at the 2012 MTV Video Music Awards at Staples Center in Los Angeles, Sept. 6, 2012.
A week after her debut album drops, Natassia Gail Zolot, better known by her stage name Kreayshawn, will turn 23. While that may seem like a tender age to most people, in the world of female emcees where women start spitting out rhymes at the age of 3 (see Brianna Perry) and getting signed to major labels at 16 (see Reema Major) that makes the is-she-or-isn’t-she-serious Bay Area LOL-rapper almost a veteran. Her full-length debut, Something ‘bout Kreay, is in stores today, but the project’s most notable tracks—featuring contributions from Diplo, V. Nasty, and 2 Chainz—have all been released already. Some, such as “Gucci Gucci,” “Breakfast (Syrup),” and “Bumpin Bumpin” have been available for months. Now, rather than a hotly anticipated debut by an artist-on-the-brink, the album feels like a Greatest Hits collection.
The album’s best song by far is Kreayshawn’s interminably catchy, sharply funny and subtly brilliant hit “Gucci Gucci.” Her incisive lyrics and hilariously brilliant digs like, “Girl you ain’t no Barbie/I see you work at Arby’s” got the quirky beat-laden track metastasizing across the Internet so quickly it reminded listeners why hits are called viral. But that was way back in 2011. Today Kreayshawn is far from alone in helping to fill the void of female emcee that was left by Lil Kim, Lauryn Hill and the like. We’ve compiled a list of nine other female emcees to check out when you’ve worn out your Kreayshawn tracks.
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