2. Lady G
Lady G isn’t just a woman in a man’s world, she’s a feminist in a man’s world. Since her first hit, “Nuff Respect” in 1988, the deejay born Janice Fyffe has been calling it like she sees it on tunes meant to point out cultural issues, from “Legal Rights” to “Breeze Off” to “Me Or The Gun” to the more recent “Ghetto Vibes.” After getting her start with Black Scorpio Sound System in the mid-80s, she had a string of hits with Papa San, as well as on her own, before taking a brief sabbatical in 1990 to raise her children.
Returning in 1994, she’s continued to record and tour, even charting in the U.K. with garage hit “Girls Like Us.” Soon after, she founded G String Productions, where she works with artists like Capleton, Sizzla, and Lady Saw. She’s largely avoided slackness, though songs like her first record “Ghetto Rock” (recorded while still in high school!) show she can get down with the best of them. The always-outspoken Lady G has an unparalleled flow—if you’re not convinced, just check her appearance at the Four The Hard Way clash at Reggae Sting ‘89.—Natalie Weiner