Review Revue: Queen Latifah - All Hail the Queen

If you had told the DJs at KCMU 25-plus years ago, as they listened to the debut album by the New Jersey rapper known as Queen Latifah, that in 2015 her name would the second thing suggested by Google when you type in "Queen" (just under "Queen Elizabeth"), they would have said "what's Google?" But then if you'd explained the Internet, and search engines, and the dominance of a particular search engine and the way it was able to incorporate the searching habits of people around the globe to constantly update and tailor its results, I imagine they would have been surprised and impressed. (But probably pretty suspicious, too; I mean, how do you know all this, back in 1989?)

Of course there are other things you could mention, too - a long and multiply-awarded career in music, film, and television, or even just the feat of remaining culturally relevant all those years. I don't know about you, but this sentiment is still as relevant as when it was printed (and then written in pen) on this album cover: All hail the queen! (Oh and look, it's another accidentally timely blog post from yours truly! Turns out Queen Latifah stars as Bessie Smith in a brand new HBO biopic about the legendary blues singer. Fantastic news! Now to find a friend with HBO...)

"Queen raps + rules. Great production... easy to edit red dot as it is in the intro. M."

"One of the finest rap LPs of '89. Funkyshit!"

"Rap folks 'bout as bad as metal folks when it comes to 'Thanks' in the LP credits. By the way, not an H disc."

"Why not? Feeling threatened by the Queen?"

"Rap being a genre rife with misogyny, it's always refreshing to hear a woman rapper who doesn't pander to male fantasies. Neither a sex kitten (like L'Trimm) or a Tough Mama (like MC Lyte), Latifah is simply a creative, intelligent woman. Played this after Aretha's Lady Soul LP at home, and the Queen of Rap doesn't lose anything in the comparison. Not a weak cut here - play up."

"She looks like Eartha Kitt in that get-up."

"Bow Down to the Queen."

"Yeah!"

"Yes!!"

"All hail the queen. Play - good stuff."

"Stand-outs: 'Dance for Me'; 'Queen of Royal Badness'; and, of course, 'Ladies First.'"

"Ah-la-ti-do-au-lat-latte-latte-FWAH. Gimme some coffee skillet." [I have no idea what this means. Anyone?]