Sisters doing it for themselves
Doja Cat and SZA, winners of the Best Pop Duo Group Performance Award for ‘Kiss Me More’, pose in the winners room during the 64th Annual GRAMMY Awards at MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, last year.
PinkPantheress and Ice Spice seems like a match made in heaven, and their Boy’s a Liar link-up is proving to be one of the biggest tracks of the year.
The young British producer and singer was already heading to the big time after hits with Just for Me and Pain, but the remix featuring Ice Spice has been a global hit that has furthered both of their causes. It has also helped springboard the sharp rise of Ice Spice herself, who burst on the scene last summer with Munch.
Boy’s a Liar was already a jam and a half, but it wouldn’t have gone so big without the remix. Both artists have won big, it’s a mutually beneficial deal.
Doja Cat seems to understand this better than anybody. Her huge Kiss Me More collab with Sza has been followed by a remix of Sza’s mega massive Kill Bill lately, and Doja has also collab’d successfully with Rico Nasty, Nicki Minaj, Anne-Marie, Bebe Rexha, Saweetie, Ariana Grande among many more. Sza herself recently jumped on the Special remix for Lizzo, and both of these artists have previously combined with Cardi B, another young woman who has always seen the bigger picture when it comes to collaborations. Sza has worked with Rihanna and Phoebe Bridges amongst others while Lizzo has shared the mic with Missy Elliot, Ariana and Charli XCX.
Cardi famously brought us WAP with Megan the Stallion, which was one of the biggest hits of the last few years and which again helped propel both women into a bigger league.
Rap women often go at each others’ throats but this was a great example of them using their respective fanbases to good effect and Cardi has also appeared on music with Rita Ora, Jennifer Lopez, City Girls, Normani and Blackpink. Cardi and one of her big rivals, Nicki Minaj, did appear together on Motorsport by Migos, but most of Nicki’s collabs with other women are with pop stars.
She did just appear on the Princess Diana remix with Ice Spice though, which is another clever move from both. Also, Coi Leray and Nicki combined on “Blick Blick” before Coi went mega, and Coi Leray has now teamed up with Raye on the Flip a Switch remix too. Latto had her biggest hit so far with Energy, using a loop from Tom Tom Club made even more famous in the 90s by Mariah Carey, who was quick to co-sign it with an appearance.
It’s a great way for older artists to ride the wave of current music too, and let’s face it, Energy wouldn’t have been nothing without Fantasy or Genius of Love.
The list goes on and on. It’s by means a new trend and nearly every major woman in the music industry has done it at one stage, but it’s definitely coming to the fore more at the moment. It’s bringing the remix back into play too, which is always welcome, and it’s adding extra life to tracks that have been around for a minute already.
I’ve noticed that the charts are moving much slower these days and tracks are lasting longer, like they do in the United States, and this could be one of those reasons. I might write about this properly soon but going back to the collabs, it’s always been a thing.
Beyonce and Shakria, Brandy and Monica, Eve and Gwen Stefani, Nicki Minaj and Foxy Brown, MC Lyte and Missy Elliot, Queen Latifah and Monie Love are just a few off the top of my head.
There have been huge all women posse cuts too (Lil Kim/Missy/Angie, left Eye and Da Brat on Not Tonight, Bahamadia/Latifah/Erykah Badu and Angie Stone on Love of my Life Worldwide and the amazing I wanna be down remix by Brandy, Queen Latifah, Yo-Yo and MC Lyte. I could go on for days.
In Ireland, many of our best women share the mic together and I include Denise Chaila, Alicia Raye, Zapho, Soule, Tolu, Fehdah, Loah, Celaviedmai and many more, and as I say, it makes sense in many ways and it also brings more great music to our eardrums!
