DX: March 8th marks the International Women’s Day so I’m glad to catch up with you in light of it. What are some of the obstacles you face as a female rapper?
Theory: As a female emcee, you have to fight to prove yourself. On the consumer side, many of your listeners are going to want to compare you to other female emcees, box you into some category or tell you that you’re they’re favorite “female” rapper. On the industry side, so many people, particularly men, want to dictate what your image should be. There are definitely challenges, but what I’ve been finding is that if you’re good at what you do, people can’t deny you. I find that as I work to perfect my craft and work to really just be real about who I am and what I’m about, the less I deal with those challenges. People are starting to say that I’m their favorite emcee without gender prefaces. Folks are starting to see that I can be a great performer and hold the audience’s attention…with my clothes on!

DX: What are some of the perks?
Theory: One of the perks of being a female emcee is shocking people. Many people say I don’t “look” like an emcee, so when folks have never seen me perform before, they usually think I’m going to do something different than what I actually do. I love to see their faces when they get something totally unexpected.

The other perk is really important to me. I’ve had women from as young as six to as old as 76 approach me and thank me for my music because they were able to see parts of themselves in it. As a woman, a feminist, and a Hip Hop head, I often feel conflicted between my love for Hip Hop culture and the misogyny that’s so rampant in it now. If I’m not diligent about seeking out certain artists, I might start to believe that Hip Hop hates women. Therefore, it’s really important to me that my sisters know, through my music, that I love them and hip-hop loves them.

DX: Very interesting. Why do you think some female rappers grab the balls that they don’t have and come across more rugged than some of the dudes in the game?
Theory: Well, for one, I think some sisters express themselves like that because that’s who they truly are and I can’t do anything but respect that; however, there are probably some women who do that because they’re trying to play the game. It’s obvious that Hip Hop is disproportionately flooded with testosterone and most of the Hip Hop albums that are produced in the industry are marketed towards male listeners - with the exception of the singles with the R&B singers on the hook made to appeal to the female audience. As an emcee, the majority of the venues that I perform in are packed with men. If you’re not comfortable with who you are and where you are as a woman, it can be intimidating and you might try to adopt a number of strategies to deal with that fear, including trying to emulate male emcees. I’m comfortable with myself as an emcee and a woman. I rock mics and heels. That’s who I am.

DX: Your song “Last Rider” talks about the consequences of slavery, including modern-day examples of atrocities such as those occurring in Sudan and Somalia. How big of a role should hip-hop play in activism and education?
Theory: Hip Hop is such a powerful tool. This is an art that started in the basements of the ghettoes and it’s now a booming, global industry. Hip Hop is heard, seen, and felt all over the world. Given the fact that this powerful tool was created by some of the most oppressed and subjugated people of the world, I think it’s important that we use it as a means to achieve the freedom, knowledge, and understanding necessary for us to grow. Not using the Hip Hop that we created to educate and create solutions to the real–life problems that we face is like being shackled with a key that you made sitting right next to you but refusing to use the key because you made it to just be “art.” You think that because it’s art, it’s only meant to be gazed at. You’re not aware that it has a function that could set you free. It’s that type of mentality that keeps us entertained - and enslaved.

DX: Educational Hip Hop: can it expand to the mainstream or is it destined to lurk in the underground?
Theory: Educational Hip Hop is like any other movement. The success or failure of it depends upon whether we believe it’s achievable or not - it’s that simple. I tend to live my life with an empowered approach, meaning that I believe that I create my reality. What I believe, I manifest. I think that applies on an individual and collective level. Therefore, if those of us who believe in educational Hip Hop continue to produce it and advocate for it, I can definitely see it becoming mainstream. I think there will have to be a shift of social and cultural forces that make it happen; but I believe that’s possible as well. Anything is.

DX: That’s great, a very positive outlook. You also seem to practice what you teach. Talk to us about your participation in the “Fight to Protect our Children.”
Theory: I’m working on organizing a march in Jackson, Ohio on April 11th. The march is to work to get a law changed in Ohio that didn’t protect a little girl who was repeatedly raped on the school van. According to this law, the school and van drivers are not responsible for what happens to children on school vans or churches. They are only responsible for getting them to and from school safely. Therefore, if your child is raped, molested, sodomized or abused in any kind of way on a bus in Ohio, you have no recourse. I and some other committed folks have been working really closely with Bernadine Wade, the mother of a seven-year-old girl with special needs who was a victim of this kind of treatment. Not only did she have to endure this abuse but the school district was totally dismissive of the incident, even though the teenage boy who sexually assaulted the little girl admitted to his crime. It is so obvious to me that the school’s decision to not accept accountability had a lot to do with gender, race, class and other factors. And Ms. Wade’s daughter wasn’t the only child affected by this crazy law. Other victims have had their cases thrown out of court because Ohio law does not protect them. We are going to march but that’s not all we’re going to do. We want to help Ms. Wade find a lawyer who is willing to fight to protect children. We want to get the other cases organized so that they can file a class action lawsuit. We want to get the law changed and show Ms. Wade’s daughter that adults will stand beside her and make sure that she is heard. That’s what we’re supposed to do. If anyone wants to learn more about the case, check out the page [by clicking here...] or e-mail me [by clicking here...]. Continued on page 3 »