‘SISTERHOOD OF HIP HOP’
T.I. gives a platform to female rappers
Nicki Minaj and Iggy Azalea have blown up top 40 radio this summer with their Fancy rhymes and Pills and Potions, but is there room for more female rappers in mainstream music? That’s one question Sisterhood
of Hip Hop (premiering Tuesday, Oxygen) may find the answer to over the course of its eight-episode run. Executive-produced by rap titan T.I., the docu-series follows five female emcees as they forge their own paths in a typically male-dominated genre: recording music, performing shows, and working with reallife mentors Lil Jon, Pharrell Williams, Eve and Rick Ross, who will appear on the show.
“We’re providing a platform for them, and if they’re dope enough, they will open doors for others and also be the exception,” says T.I., who knows a thing or two about mentoring a young woman in the business (Azalea is his protégé). “All of them are overcoming stereotypes and overcoming the assumptions that come with being a female emcee in a maledominated industry.” The five women of the Sister
hood are Pharrell signee Bia, former Crime Mob member Diamond, Miami-bred rapper
“If they’re dope enough, they will open doors for others.” Executive producer T.I.
Brianna Perry, Timbaland mentee Nyemiah Supreme and the openly gay Siya. Unlike a typical competition series with weekly challenges and eliminations, the episodes primarily focus on the women’s individual journeys in the business, with family and in relationships. And when artists do cross paths, it creates a competitive atmosphere among them, rather than one bogged down by drama and gossip, says Supreme, whose real name is Nyemiah Streeter.
“I never really knew other female rappers personally, and initially, you want the light to shine on you,” Streeter says. “But getting to actually know every- body, emotionally, it’s like, ‘Wow, I really hope these other girls will go big and I hope these other cast members get the chance to shine.’ It’s made me ... happy for the person.”
“No one’s worried that someone’s going to steal their man, no one’s jealous because their Birkin bag is bigger, no one’s jealous because of material things,” says Rod Aissa, head of original programming and development for Oxygen Media. Instead, the attitude is “‘Let’s let the competitiveness be about the game and not about our lives outside of the game.’ That’s what’s super-cool.”
T.I. helped in selecting women who would represent the “truth of the game,” Aissa says. “It’s not an America’s Next Top Model or other reality show situation where you may have a few people that represent an outlying position. We wanted to make sure that these girls were starting from a level playing field in terms of who could actually make it.”
And to make it, you have to have a thick skin. Streeter has been in the industry for more than five years but says her quiet demeanor has been holding her back. During the season, “I go through a big emotional transition,” she says. “You see me dealing with a lot of people, like my manager, my mother, and the other cast members, and I attempt to go through a 0-to-100 change from the first episode to the last episode.”
T.I. believes these personal battles and victories will be what resonates with viewers:
“They’ll connect with the journeys, lives, ambitions and drive of these real young ladies in real-life situations.”