A ‘Latina Takeover’ for Bay Area Hip-Hop

The prominence of women in hip-hop in 2024 can’t go unnoticed.

From Megan Thee Stallion, Sexy Redd, Latto and Ice Spice to Rapsody, Doechii, Tierra Whack and Flo Milli, more talented women than ever are carrying the torch. Even so, the playing field is still stacked against MCs, DJs and dancers who are women, says the Bay Area’s Megan Correa.

Correa, a hip-hop event organizer and artist who goes by Lil MC, says that despite the accomplishments of women at the forefront of the culture, she and others in the industry still have to work twice as hard as their male counterparts to gain the same amount of respect. That’s in addition to being confined to historic archetypes and dealing with the ever-present issue of sexism.

In response, Lil MC and her partner Kaila Love founded Queens of The Underground, an organization that hosts monthly parties highlighting women in hip-hop. And behind the scenes, Queens of The Underground functions as an artist development group, coaching MCs through the process of building websites, learning about royalty split sheets and navigating the industry.

Formed in 2020, the organization also holds quarterly showcases with stacked lineups of women from the Bay Area paired with national headliners.

On Friday, May 10, one such quarterly showcase rolls into Neck of The Woods in San Francisco for a special “Latina Takeover,” with a full lineup of Latina MCs, dancers and DJs to turn the party out.

Well-known Los Angeles MC Reverie headlines, with Bay Area openers TYSF, Frisco Baby, Lil MC, and a performance by burlesque artist Qu’in De La Noche. The event, hosted by Snowy Gee, will also feature the Bay Area’s legendary aerosol artist DJ Agana on the turntables all night.

Raised all over the Bay and currently residing in San Francisco, Lil MC started rapping when she was in high school, and got into battle rap in her early twenties. That’s when she noticed the discrepancy in representation. “I was the only woman I’d see in these rap battles,” she says.

Lil MC adds that nowadays, “You go out to any hip-hop space — Bay Area, L.A., Atlanta — there’s at least one or two women on the bill.” But even with the change in optics, “there’s a lot of exploitation as a female artist.”

Lil MC says her ultimate goal is to combat the idea that women in hip-hop have to fit into one of two stereotypes: either hyper-sexualized, or super-woke and super-conscious. “I feel like there isn’t really a big lane for women to just be a rapper — just rap,” says Lil MC. “I really want to shift that, especially for Bay Area artists.”

The Queens of The Underground ‘Latina Takeover’ edition takes the stage on Friday, May 10, at Neck of the Woods in San Francisco. Details here.