HIP HOP’S FIRST LADY: MC SHA ROCK
BRONX, NEW YORK | MC SHA ROCK
INTERVIEW TERRELL “REALIFE” BLACK
“I’m a voice for a lot of the females that were there with me and if I’m in a position to enlighten the world as to what really went down, then it’s my duty to let people know how it really went down.” - MC Sha Rock
VALIDATED: I see that you weren’t actually born in the Bronx, but you were raised in the Bronx?
MC SHA ROCK: I left Wilmington, North Carolina when I was eight years old. So, my primary growing up and childhood years were in the Bronx, New York.
VALIDATED: And what was it like growing up in the Bronx, during that time?
MC SHA ROCK: Growing up in the Bronx was an experience, during the time that I was growing up in the Bronx in the 70s, you had so many different things that were going on. The politicians weren’t paying attention to the youth, mother had to be on the… Well, some parents like myself had to be on the cheese line, or the food line to make sure that their kids were properly fed, and we had little or no hope.
But when we see the fire hydrants or the water sprinkling out, or when you see the lunch that was given to young kids, when you had to wait in line, and all those ice cream trucks that came by or those icy vendors that came by, that was everything to us. Or playing little games that we made up, those were the types of things that we looked forward to as young youth in New York City that was normal for us.
VALIDATED: You were a b-girl, and a breakdancer in the Bronx. How did you get into that?
MC SHA ROCK: Well, I was attending junior high school downtown Bronx, and I had a couple of friends that were in junior high school with me, that were B-boys, that were learning from their cousins that lived a couple of blocks away from where I lived, which was 169 Washington Avenue. And so what happened was they taught me how to become a B-girl and they taught me all the moves, they taught me all the floor moves, or what they were taught by their cousins.
I would then, on the weekends, when my mother would allow me to, go up the block where the jams were being played and just breakdance in the park, and I began to migrate to different sections of the Bronx where they were holding jams and just start breakdancing all over the Bronx at that time. I was that nomadic B-girl that would travel all over the area in the Bronx at that time, just to hear those breakbeats.
VALIDATED: And it was just something that you took too easily?
MC SHA ROCK: I mean, I love the dance, but because I was brought up on music and was a connoisseur of music taught to me by my parents. I used to listen to the James Brown’s, the Isaac Hayes, the beats and all that stuff, that’s what really got me gravitating to becoming a B-girl and becoming an MC, simply because I was always intrigued with the drum beats, with certain parts of the song that really had you engaged in a song and even if it was an R&B song, but the breakdown of that song, of the beat was always something that I was engaged in and I really loved. And so that’s what made me gravitate towards becoming a B-girl just by listening to those breakbeats, those beats that were synonymous for the B-girl and the B-boy.
VALIDATED: You later became the first female MC. How did you transition from being a B-girl and a breakdancer to rapping?
MC SHA ROCK: Well, I came into the game in 1976 as a B-girl. Shortly after that, I was introduced to a person who was passing out flyers that were going to hold auditions for MCs for a group in an organization that was called The Brothers Disco. Later on, The Brothers Disco became the umbrella of the group that I was a part of. So, when they held the auditions, I went up, I auditioned for it. The manager at that time liked the way that I sounded and, so, he said, “Okay, we have a party and a jam, I want you to come and I want you to rock out.” And so that’s what I did.
So, although there were two other guys before me in the group that was later to be formed The Funky Four, I came in as the third person, and when I came in as the third person, by the end of 77, the beginning of 78, I became a part of the original Funky Four, which was Rahiem, who was one of the members of the Funky Four, who later went on to be a part of Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five.
And so that’s what made me gravitate towards becoming an MC, just as it was as if I was a B-girl, it was the music, it was the beat, it was everything that embraces what the Hip-Hop culture was about, and how it was formed. That’s what made me become an MC, because basically, it was the breaks, it was the music, it was the ambiance, it was everything that Hip-Hop culture was becoming.
VALIDATED: So, being a female in that male-dominated arena at that time, did you get a lot of pushback?
MC SHA ROCK: No. And that’s a question that everybody asked. I didn’t get pushback, because you’ve got to remember, I came in an era of the MCs, I came in that era with the MCs were spitting, not 8 bars, not 6 bars, not 16 bars, but just bars until your rhyme finished. So, I didn’t come in the era where I had to be judged, because I was already a part of that era. So, either I was a dope MC, or I wasn’t a good MC. And so I never got judged on being a female, I got judged on being an MC, but an MC that was just as prolific as other MCs that were out there at that time. So, I never experienced what some may experience today because I came from the onset of the culture and the beginning of the true MCs, and how the MC’s rhyme formats were being formed.
VALIDATED: So, were there any MCs at that point that actually influenced you?
MC SHA ROCK: There was one particular MC, even though I knew a certain MC that was named Cowboy that was a part of the Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, the one that really stood out for me was Grandmaster Melle Mel from the Furious Five MCs and Grandmaster Flash. The reason why I would always give him credit, because of his cadence, the way that he engaged the crowd, the way that he had his rhyme format, and the way that he made sure that people were listening to what he had to say.
And so because I respect the way that he approached all of the—and I won’t say fans, because we didn’t call them that at the time, but all the party-goers all the jam goers, people that were out there to see what he and I or our groups were doing, I respect him because he engaged the crowd in a way that no other MC at that time, I felt could do.
And so I felt like, I’m a good rhymer, I’m a good MC, I want to be able to give that same type of energy as a female and engage that crowd where they will come back the next day, they will know MC Sha Rock’s rhyme and they’ll get a friend to come back and they’ll get another friend to come back and then they would be able to say, “Listen, I know who Sha Rock is, Sha Rock brings it.” And that’s what was happening back in the Bronx in my era,
VALIDATED: That is dope. So, in 1979, the Funky Four Plus One, you all actually became the first Hip-Hop group to have a legitimate record deal?
MC SHA ROCK: Right. And what that means was when we say legitimate record deal, you may have had people that came out in 1979, like the Sugar Hill Gang, and you may have other people that recorded, because there was a select group of people that recorded in 1979. But when we say a legitimate record deal, an authentic record deal, it was like we were from the streets of New York, we didn’t come into the game on rap records, we were in the parks, we were in the jams, we were moving the culture forward, we were doing everything to let people know outside of the Bronx, what we were doing to solidify Hip-Hop culture.
And so coming from that era, and we had the opportunity and we got signed to Enjoy Records, Bobby Robertson had Enjoy Records and Enjoy Records was like the premier home for every authentic MC or authentic group that was basically performing on the streets, or they were rhyming at parks and jams before they actually made a record, they were rhyming in places, and at different venues.
And so when we say legitimate record deal, we were the first to be approached to be able to make a record—but a group that was from the streets in New York and not just a put together group, but a group that was already moving the culture forward and rocking for the culture and had basically brought the culture into its head with groups like Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five.
VALIDATED: Wow that says a lot. So, when they approached you all about the deal, of course, I’m assuming you all were excited, but did you even know what to expect at that point, with it being such a new thing?
MC SHA ROCK: No, we didn’t know what to expect. All we knew was that what we were rhyming to in New York City had basically transferred over from cassette tapes to records. So, that was the only new thing for us, people were already listening to us in New York City, and in the tri-state areas and different parts of the city or the country because the cassette tapes were moving around for people that didn’t know Hip-Hop was really, really going on in the Bronx. But making that record was a way for us to be able to not only get into the world of people who didn’t know about Hip-Hop music, but at the same time, they can hear us beyond cassette tapes.
And so no, we didn’t know what we were getting into, all we knew is that we wanted people to know what was going on back in the Bronx. And as far as the ins and outs of the music business, and the way that you get paid and all the antics and everything that you had to do to get paid, we didn’t understand that point, we weren’t told that point, our parents didn’t understand that point.
All we knew is that our parents were going to rock with us, because they were happy because we were doing something. We could have been doing something different, but we’re doing something that we love and at the same time, it was bringing what the Bronx was doing to the forefront. And so our parents backed us up 100%, but they did not know the legality of the culture and its music and how we were supposed to get paid, and what proceeds we were supposed to receive from the payment of our songs that we made.
VALIDATED: And that had to be hard, because you all were one of the first, so I’m assuming everything was new?
MC SHA ROCK: It was new, but at the time, we didn’t think it was hard. And at the time, we didn’t feel like it was something that would hold us back until we started realizing that we weren’t getting paid for everything that we were doing, everything that we were recording. It hit the fan, when it’s time to get a check and when you see people singing your songs around the world, and when you hear them start playing it on radio and when you hear young kids coming to the concerts, the early on concerts and know your song, but at the same time, you’re not getting any proceeds for it. That’s when it started hitting.
That’s when it started hitting when you start asking questions about where my money at? Then you begin to realize as a teenager, the game was not built for kids or any youth that doesn’t know about the game, we had to find out the hard way and we were the poster children for letting people come behind us that you had to be on your A-game to be able to understand what was really going on in the rap industry and the music industry in general for young youth.
VALIDATED: And so to backtrack for a minute, you mentioned, of course, Hip-Hop started in the Bronx, but being there and experiencing it and being a part of it, what was it like to see it start in the Bronx and start to venture to other boroughs?
MC SHA ROCK: Well, it was a wonderful thing, because I was a part of that movement that brought emceeing and Hip-Hop to those boroughs. So, when you say, “Okay, well, how did it move?” It was moving, because we were at those venues, we were booking those venues, we were going from Staten Island, to Manhattan, to Harlem, to Connecticut to any part of New York City and beyond, and outside of the triborough areas.
So, when you hear and when you see that people are beginning to gravitate towards the culture and gravitate towards the MCs and the rhyming format of the culture. It was a wonderful thing because it was like it was moving Hip-Hop forward and beyond the Bronx. So, the thing is that it was the most exciting thing because now not only are other boroughs or other tri-state areas feeling what I know to be something that’s real and for the youth, but they’re feeling it as well and they’re embracing it as well.
So, it was a crazy feeling, you know I love to rock, I live to have gone to the park jams and the venues where you have people pile up and just wait to pay money to come in and see you rhyme, you know what I’m saying? And then at the end of the show at the venue, you turn on the lights, and then nobody wants to go home, because they don’t want to lose the moment of what they just really experienced. Do you know what I mean?
So, it was a good feeling, it was the best ambiance that anybody could just cling to or paint for Hip-Hop culture. And to me, that was the best years of Hip-Hop culture, and, of course, it went on to be better, but this was the essence of Hip-Hop culture, when it was bringing everything together, when it was pure. I love those eras, don’t get me wrong, but this is when all of the elements were coming together. So, it was an awesome time.
VALIDATED: But you actually got to see and be a part of it, not only starting in the Bronx but venturing out to other boroughs and then actually venturing outside of New York.
MC SHA ROCK: Absolutely, I was there, I was there in every step.
VALIDATED: So, those elements, how did those start to kind of form and become part of Hip-Hop culture?
MC SHA ROCK: Well, no doubt, you always have to put the DJ first, because without the DJ spinning the records and playing the beat, and playing those breakbeats and playing the songs that youth and young kids wanted to hear and playing the songs for the MCs to rhyme off of, that comes first. And of course, the MC is always there, but you still had your B-girl and your B-boy and your MCs coming together, your masters of ceremonies, your mic checker, all coming together making Hip-Hop culture what it is. Now, there have always been MCs or disc jockeys on the radio as MCs or masters of ceremony for their shows. But with this particular thing in Hip-Hop culture, we were rhymers, we were not 16 bars, we were not 30 bars, we were bars, like behind that we were just rhyming and rhyme and rhyme, until people know the rhyme or you will pass it on to your group member.
So, all the elements were coming together, graffiti has always been there, some people say, “Okay, well, it’s not a part of Hip-Hop culture.” But it has always been a part of Hip-Hop culture, because of the simple fact that you had artists and flyer makers, like Buddy Esquire or Teddy Riley, or different people that were making flyers that would put forms of graffiti and art into the flyers. But Buddy Esquire was one of the persons that transferred that art over to clothing, and dungarees and Lee jeans and pants and all of that stuff.
So, when it’s all said and done, all of these elements that make up Hip-Hop culture, were all coming together to form what we call the Hip-Hop culture. Even though in the beginning, it was never called Hip-Hop culture, it was just called the jams and we celebrated different parts of the elements, it wasn’t until the beginning of the 80s when Afrika Bambaataa had begun to really start taking all of the elements around the world and put a name to it and it had begun to start to be called the Hip-Hop culture. Even though we were saying rhymes and putting Hip-Hop in our rhymes, all the elements had begun to have a name to it, which was called Hip-Hop culture.
VALIDATED: So, in 1981, the Funky Four Plus One, also appeared on Saturday Night Live, and actually became the first Hip-Hop group to appear on national television.
MC SHA ROCK: Yes, although there may have been people like Kurtis Blow that had appeared on television, we were the first authentic Hip-Hop group from the streets in New York to appear on national television, and that was with the legendary group, Blondie’s Debbie Harry, who was the main person that represented the group.
And what happened was, we were on tour, we were on the first major Hip-Hop tour with the Sugar Hill, which was a Sugar Hill tour. And so we had gotten called off the tour because Debbie Harry wanted us to be on the Saturday Night Live as her guest because she was hosting Saturday Night Live that night. And so, what we did was we came back for the tour, they worked out a deal so we can get on it, you know, Sugar Hill records and Saturday Night Live, and that night, we became the first Hip-Hop group that was on national television.
And at the time, we didn’t know that we were making history, we just knew that we were popular in New York City, we were popular through the tri-state areas, but we didn’t know at the time that we were making history by being the first Hip-Hop group on television, all we knew is that now we come from the era of cassette tapes and we come from an era of flyers. So, outside of cassette tapes, and outside of records, now the world can be able to see this young group, the Funky Four Plus One with a female, Sha Rock, come into their homes and see how we were rhyming and how we were rocking in the streets of New York. And so that was the highlight, but we didn’t know that we were making history at that time.
VALIDATED: So, at what point did it start to hit you all like, “Wait a minute, we’re doing something that’s monumental”, and we’re actually pioneers?”
MC SHA ROCK: Well, I’ll tell you, we had a show that night, so as soon as we finished Saturday Night Live, we had a show, I think in Connecticut. So, we took the limo up into Connecticut, and everybody was going crazy. But that was normal for us, because people were already supporting us anyway. For me – and I don’t know about the fellas – but for me, I still didn’t realize that over the years, until people started documenting, they started coming up with these museums, people started telling their stories of how they did this and that.
And I was like, “Well, hold on, we were the first to be on national television.” So, when you go back and you look at all the things that you have accomplished and me as a female or my group, we didn’t think about those things back then because it came naturally. It is only when the museum people started documenting that they came up and they started telling me stories that didn’t jive with what I know back then to be for real, was when we begin to start telling, I begin to start going on a crusade to tell people from a female perspective of exactly how it went down.
And when you hear the stories, you always hear the men telling their stories, but they don’t say that Sha Rock or other females that came behind me was on that front line too, you all didn’t know that because they don’t always talk about the female. But the females were right there with the men hand in hand, making sure that this culture was moving forward. And that’s because I’m a voice and I’m a voice for a lot of the females that were there with me and if I’m in a position to enlighten the world as to what really went down, then it’s my duty to let people know how it really went down.
VALIDATED: So, you’re credited actually as being the first female MC to go full circle. You used to do rhyming battles with groups like Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five?
MC SHA ROCK: That’s so true. But it started off as the original Funky Four because a lot of people know me as Sha Rock, The Plus One, but I was a part of the original Funky Four. It wasn’t until Rahim, from Grandmaster Flash that was a part of my group left and went to Grandmaster Flash and I left and then I came back, I came back as a plus one. And he went on to be a part of Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five.
So, when rap battles began, it began with the Furious Four and the Funky Four. I was a part of the first rap battles where even though you may see it now, our rap battles include the cadence, our rap battles include rhyme routines, our rap battles include routines on stage, smoke machines, different sound effects, and different things that will make you better than your competition.
I was a part of the era where our dress code was in sync with our members and our different showmanship or different gadgets or different props that we had to make our show better. So, even though you may see the rap battles being different now, I come from the era of where it was microphone stands for every member, as I said before, the cadence and the rhyming patterns and the music and just the entertainment where everybody is on stage doing dance routines, they are doing harmonizing routines, they’re playing beats that would be better than their opponent. They were playing songs that would be better than their opponents, or they were kicking rhymes harmonizing, where we would show who was the better person when it came to stage and showmanship. So, that’s what our rap battles were all about, the rhyming skills and everything that came with it.
VALIDATED: So, you also in 1984 made a guest appearance in the legendary Hip-Hop movie “Beat Street”?
MC SHA ROCK: Yeah, I did. And so what happened with that was, during that time, I was still a part of the Funky Four, but we were going to try to get off the Sugar Hill label. And so, even though I had a contract to record with them, because the actual Funky Four Plus One had broken up, but I was still a part of the Funky Four, let me say that I stayed behind, I still was within the mix of everything that was going on, I was still rhyming. And so, I had linked up with two other females, we came together to become the Us Girl, which was a part of the movie. And although we had a different name in the beginning, we changed it to the name Us Girls.
And so one day, Harry Belafonte, Sidney Poitier, and everybody that was involved, that was producers, and all that stuff were at the Roxy. So, what they were doing was basically holding auditions for the movie that was going to come, Beat Street. And so I had told the other two members that was a part of the Us Girls about it and I said, “Listen, I think we should go and try for this.” And we saw a flyer, and we did.
And so when we did go up to the Roxy, which was a place I think in 18th street where, in the beginning, you would have people come and skate in that place. But you will also see, on certain nights, people like Madonna that would perform at the Roxy. But this particular night, Harry Belafonte was holding the Beat Street auditions. And so we didn’t see any other MCs or Rappers that you may have seen in the movie for the auditions at the time.
But it was taken a long time, we were waiting for a long time and it was at the end of the day, and Harry Belafonte came up to the booth in Roxy, I said, “I’m going to him, we’ve been waiting for so long, we need to go up to them and let him know who we are.” So, I went to him and I said, “Listen, my name is Sha Rock, I have these two females here, we are the best females in New York City, we will make the movie better if you just give us a chance to be a part of the movie.” And so he said, “Okay, well, come down to my office on Tuesday, we’ll see what y’all can do.” So, we went down to the office, and at the time, I was still under contract but the other two girls that were with me, they weren’t under a contract, they didn’t have a recording contract. I was on my second recording contract.
And so when I went to them, and I told Mr. Harry Belafonte, I said, “Look, I want to be in this movie.” I said, “There was a movie that was already made that was called Wild Style and I missed that movie, but I don’t want to miss this movie, because of the legalities and all of that stuff was the reason why I wasn’t in Wild Style and so I don’t want to miss this movie.” So, I said, “So what I need for you to do is call Sylvia Robinson, which was the owner of Sugar Hill Records, and whatever you have to do figure out a way for me to be in this movie, because I missed one of the first Hip-Hop movies”, which was Wild Style that was directed by Charlie Aheam.
And so whatever he did and then he called me to his office the next day and said, “Listen, we worked out something with Sylvia. So, in order for you to be in a movie…” as I said before, the other two girls didn’t have to worry about the movie, they were in there already but I was still under contract. So, I had to go to the record label because she had a management contract, she had a recording contract, she had all these contracts on us, you know what I’m saying? So, I had to go to her for her to be able to allow me to do the movie.
And he did, he went to her, he called her whatever deal they worked out, come to find out he told me that I was going to be in a movie, but what deal they made was that, Melle Mel from Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, will be allowed to use one of the songs that he had already had to be placed as one of the theme songs for the movie. So, that’s how I was able to get into the movie. But then they go shady, some new members of the Furious Five were getting into the movie and that’s how that turned out.
VALIDATED: That’s wild when you start to learn the history of this stuff.
MC SHA ROCK: Yes, I’m here to tell it.
VALIDATED: So, being one of the founding members of Hip-Hop, and Hip-Hop culture, what does Hip-Hop mean to you?
MC SHA ROCK: It’s everything, it means everything to me. And my thing is that, a lot of people ask me, “Okay, well, what about hip hop? What do you think the state of Hip-Hop is right now?” And I’m going to always say this, and I’m going to say this to any and everybody. The thing is that when you talk about the Hip-Hop culture, what people need to ask, what do you think about the element of the rap styles of people nowadays or whatever, because that’s what you really want to ask, because when you talk about Hip-Hop culture, rapping and emceeing is just one element of the culture. It’s not everything of Hip-Hop culture.
So, the question should be rephrased to, “What do you think about rap music or the MCs of today?” not just about what Hip-Hop culture is, because you really are only talking about the element, because people want to talk about, “What do you think about this rapper? Why does this rapper rap this way? Why do rappers rap that way? What are his lyrics? What are his lyrics about? Are you offended by this?” That’s what they really want to say.
But instead of them saying that, they put rap music and emceeing in just one box as Hip-Hop culture. So, when you ask me what I think about, I think about it as being alive and well, you know why? Because there are a lot of people who still celebrate the culture, they still celebrate the elements of the culture; some people are practicing the rap aspect of the culture, or emcee, some people are out here, they’re still going around the world holding these B-boys and B-girls championships. As a matter of fact, the B-boy and the breakdancers part is going to be in the Olympics, some people are still going around being a part of DJs battles and the new era is rocking graffiti on their clothing, something that we started back in the days that I was a part of.
So, when you talk about all the elements, when you talk about graffiti, and when you talk about, the MCs, the DJs, the B-girls, the B-boys, all the elements are alive, we’re still rocking all the elements today. Rap music is just one element that is a part of Hip-Hop culture. So, Hip-Hop culture is still alive, it’s still alive, because we’re perfecting and performing the elements that make up Hip-Hop culture, it’s alive and well. But rap is just only an element, one element of the culture.
VALIDATED: How do you feel about the female’s role in Hip-Hop now, or at least how it is portrayed in the mainstream?
MC SHA ROCK: I support all females, because you got to look at it like this, I see it from a different perspective, simply because I’ve come from the music area, and I was introduced to a lot of female R&B singers that were saying some of the things and doing some of the things the females are doing now that people may or may not like or they may not talk about.
But my thing is that rap music, and Hip-Hop culture is a way for anybody to express themselves. Now, if you feel that it is derogatory, if you feel that it is disrespectful to young kids, then I suggest what you do is educate them. What I suggest you do is introduce them to other things besides what you think is not right and let them be able to choose and hear and adapt to other genres of music, other genres of people kicking ballistics, whether or not it’s conscious, whether or not it is jazz, whether or not it is blues, whether or not it is blue brass, introduce your children to other things where they know that is just entertainment.
But my thing is also that you want females and everybody to be responsible and conscious, everybody’s not there yet, some people may not be there yet. You’ve got to look at the era that I was growing up in and the stuff that we were doing, unless you were that emcee or unless you were that person that was a part of the Hip-Hop culture, some of the parents didn’t like it then. Other eras go through places where parents are not well receiving of the type of music at that time.
So, my thing is that don’t get into so much of these kids, they’re not right for you or for whatever. They said some of these things about us growing up in Hip-Hop or the things that were going on at that time, or how Hip-Hop was bad, out in the street because there were a lot of crazy things that were going on.
But there was a way for us to change it and I think that there are so many different people out there, that can give you the insight of the consciousness that allows you to be able to listen to other music, besides what you may be fed on the radio, but you have a choice of whether or not you could enlighten yourself by introducing yourself to other genres, introducing yourself to other forms of rap music, where you’re able to adapt to your environment, and at the same time, respect that people feel like that’s their artistry. But you don’t leave it up to one segment of music or one segment or form of rap music, to say that it is bad. I feel that everybody should be able to express themselves, you’ve just got to know how to navigate through it, but at the same time understand that it’s entertainment.
Now, you can complain about it all you want to, but unless you continue to listen to it on the radio, then why are you complaining if you listen to it? If you don’t like it, switch over to something else, involve yourself in other aspects of music, and then go from there, not everybody is there yet, as far as being conscious about what’s going on in the world or just rhyming about things that will really enlighten you; everybody’s not there yet. So, what you have to do is you just have to navigate around it.
VALIDATED: That’s true, I’ll give you that. Also, how do you feel about a lot of the pioneers that actually, you know, it seems like now hip hop, mainstream even, you got a lot of the pioneers starting to come back. So, it seems like even though it drifted in my opinion, it kind of drifted away from the elements, it seems like it’s making its way back to that.
MC SHA ROCK: Well, what I believe is that you got to know your audience, and you got to know your audience that you target. And if people are complaining about, “Okay, with the old heads, they’re old school,” well, a lot of this stuff out there now, that you may be targeting, it’s never going to be for you, because you have to target the audience that respects you and what you bring to the game and respects your craft, and what your craft brought to the game. Because if you try to target a certain genre of music, whether or not it’s drill or trill, or it’s trap music, or it’s Hip-Hop or is it conscience, then a lot of times, you can introduce it, but don’t expect everything from it, because people are focused on a certain type of music, and they have a right to do that.
So, I feel like as an artist or I feel like when you say they’re making a comeback, I just think that for me, I do it for the fun of it. If somebody asked me to get on a track, I’m not out here trying to make a record deal, I’m not out here trying to prove a point. Yes, I’m Sha Rock, I’m the first female MC— I’m not trying to do that. If I get on a track with somebody, it is because I love the beat and just because I can do it. Not because I’m trying to make a comeback, but because it’s something that I like to do, something that I want to do, just for the fun of it, that’s the way I see it. Because if you get into looking at it from other aspects, then a lot of times, you may or may not be asking for anything. I do it for the love and I don’t just jump on everybody’s beat. But it has to be something that I like and I’m quite sure some people may feel that way. And I hope they do, but I do it for the fun of it. But I’m going to get paid for it if I do it.
VALIDATED: I definitely understand that. So, do you have anything going on currently?
MC SHA ROCK: I’m an educator in the Hip-Hop culture from a female’s perspective. So, for the last seven or eight years, I’ve traveled around the world, going to universities and colleges and sort of answering questions of people that want to know, inquiring minds that want to know about the culture from a female perspective, and what it was like for me in that era and certain things that were going on at that time. So, I’m going around, and I educate to the universities, but at the same time with that, I am in the process of coming out with my biopic, just trying to make sure that everything is in order, I got the right people to put it out that’s going to really tell my story the way that it should be told.
And so I had a writer from Brooklyn by the name of Dana Dane, he’s an artist too, but he’s also a storyteller. And so I had him write this script, and there are some things that we’re tweaking now. But my hope is to ensure that as I’m telling you my story, that people can be able to actually live it with me. And so that’s one of the things that I’m working on. A lot of things I did, I had to fall back, because at the time, I was in law enforcement and so I had to wait till I retire to be able to move around and do some of the things that I needed to do to be focused on making the movie come to fruition, while also telling the story. But with that said, I had held the casting in New York about a year and a half ago before COVID really hit.
And so New York City and the Bronx, they had given me my own day, which was MC Sha Rock Day. And so, I wasn’t able to celebrate it last year because of COVID. So, I did a virtual last year with people like Big Daddy Kane, Roxanne Shantae, Melle Mel, and a lot of other artists that came on to support me. So, this year, you know, as I said before, New York has opened up a lot of different places and venues for people to be able to come out, but with the protection of their mask and all that stuff.
So, this year, next Saturday, June 5th, I will be celebrating MC Sha Rock Day, as well as African American Music Month as well in the parks up in the Bronx and New York City. If you’re able to make it, just come out to Ben Hill Park on June 5th, Saturday, from 2PM to 6PM.
VALIDATED: Any last words for the readers?
MC SHA ROCK: I hope that some of the questions that you have asked, I have enlightened you more than what you have been enlightened previously on Hip-Hop culture and women in Hip-Hop culture. And so, I just want to say thank you. Follow me at @IamMCShaRock on Instagram and I’m also on Facebook. But I appreciate you rocking with me and thanks for listening to my journey as the first female MC of Hip-Hop culture.