Back in the early 2000's it was rare to hear a British woman rapping on mainstream radio, but Ms Dynamite broke through from the UK garage scene to inspire many other women who came after her. She was the first black woman to win the Mercury Prize in 2002 as a solo act. On this track, she showcases her vocals as well as rap skills in this tune which speaks out against materialism and empowers women 'to make they own'. It was the first single from her first album 'A Little Deeper' in 2002, and it reached No.7 in the UK charts.
This is the original song sampled by the producer Punch.
Ideas for discussion questions:
She says 'If it's not 2 complex tell me how many Africans died for the buggettes on your rolex'. What does this mean?
Are the lyrics still relevent almost 20 years later?
How many British women rappers can you name?
How do you think Punch sampled 'Chiarra Romana'?
Which US women rappers might have inspired Ms.Dynamite?
Thanks for this - I think the version I used wasn't the best example. I'll upload a different one and hopefully it makes more sense
Nate, thanks as always for your content. But the sample in the Ms. Dynamite track is an accordion which doesn't appear in the Claudio Villa version of Chitarra Romana.