Queen Latifah First feminine rapper on the Nationwide Recording Registry

Queen Latifah made US government history after the Library of Congress chose her music for this year’s National Admissions Register List. Latifah’s 1989 debut album, All Hail the Queen, is the project that entered the registry amid 600 works and tracks.

Each year, the culture preservation institution shares a list of 25 recordings that have been included in the register — from songs to major speeches to radio broadcasts. Latifah landed 21st among the newcomers of 2023.

RELATED: Queen Latifah Accepts the 2021 BET “Lifetime Achievement Award” (Video)

The Library of Congress announcement praised the artist’s influence on hip-hop and rap. It read in part:

The 1989 release of Queen Latifah’s debut album, All Hail the Queen, cemented the success of her earlier singles while heralding that rap could be feminine and Afrocentric and involve a fusion of musical genres. These genres also include reggae, as well as hip-hop, house, and jazz, as she raps in the song Come Into My House. Queen Latifah also sang and rapped on the album. Lyrically, the album addresses ethnic, gender, political and social issues that were both timely and remain universal.”

The statement also highlighted that Latifah was born Dana Elaine OwensShe was just 19 when she shared the impressive project.

Additionally, the statement confirmed that while Queen Latifah wasn’t the first female rapper, she has been pioneering through collaborations including Monie Love on Ladies First.

“The success of All Hail the Queen was both a product of and led to Queen Latifah’s success in other areas of the industry,” LOC said.

The music speaks for itself – in addition to landing on the National Recording Registry, Queen Latifah has also secured at least seven Grammy nominations. She won one for “Best Rap Solo Performance” in UNITY in 1995

But those other successful avenues include acting, where Latifah has won multiple prestigious awards, including an Emmy Award, multiple Screen Actors Guild Awards, and multiple NAACP Image Awards.

Among them are dozens of nominations in the mentioned categories and many others like the BAFTA Awards and Academy Awards.

In recent years we have seen the creator receive her flowers for the ceilings destroyed in her professional life. And YES, that includes music, acting and production!

In 2019, Harvard University named her a recipient of the WEB DuBois Medal for her contributions to Black history and culture.

Then in 2021, she accepted the Lifetime Achievement Award at the BET Awards – complete with a tribute performance featuring Lil’ Kim, Monie Love, MC Lyte and Rapsody.

All 25 recordings were entered into the National Recording Registry on April 12. Other notable entries in black music included Koko Taylor’s 1966 hit Wang Dang Doodle, Wynton Marsalis’ 1985 Black Codes, and Mariah Carey’s All I Want For Christmas Is You.

Daddy Yankee’s popular 2004 single Gasolina also peaked at No. 24.