Queen Latifah Is the First-Ever Female Rapper Inducted Into the National Recording Registry

In recent years, Queen Latifah has focused more on acting and producing. However, she kickstarted her music career in the late '80s, forever changing the industry. As a result, she's now become the first-ever female rapper to be inducted into the National Recording Registry.

The institution chose to praise her debut LP, All Hail the Queen, which she released in 1989. "The National Recording Registry preserves our history through recorded sound and reflects our nation’s diverse culture," Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden said in a statement. "Her [Queen Latifah's] album showed rap could cross genres including reggae, hip-hop, house and jazz -- while also opening opportunities for other female rappers."

Every year since 2002, the Library of Congress, the United States' oldest federal constitution, release a list via the National Recording Registry. According to the LOC, "the National Recording Preservation Board (NRPB) and members of the public have nominated recordings to the National Recording Registry. The depth and breadth of nominations received highlights the richness of the nations' audio legacy and underscores the importance of assuring the long-term preservation of that legacy for future generations."

See more of this year's National Recording Registry below.

The full list of #NatRecRegistry 2023 inductees.

Did you know you can nominate recordings for the registry? Here's how: https://t.co/IrF9swt9Ep pic.twitter.com/RVfQdBopsx

— Library of Congress (@librarycongress) April 12, 2023

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