From its South Bronx beginnings to being the dominant force in music, the evolution of hip hop has been extraordinary – and incredible women have been there every step of the way.

They’ve told their stories, vented their spleens, and brought wisdom and spirit – as well as sass and attitude – to hip hop. And in the process, they’ve been a major force in embedding rap music’s place in the mainstream.

The J Files bows down to generations of these heavy hitters who injected their own flavour into a male-dominated scene. Hear from artists and hip hop lovers Sampa The Great, Salt-N-Pepa, Rico Nasty, Lauryn Hill, MC Trey, Okenyo, Mawunyo Gbogbo, Tkay Maidza, M.I.A, BARKAA and more. 

This episode originally aired in May 2022 and was produced by Sam Wicks, with thanks to Gab Burke, Corynne Tait, Phoebe Bennett and Mawunyo Gbogbo.