Roxanne Shanté performs during DJ Cassidy's Pass The Mic Live! at Radio City Music Hall on July 21, 2023 in New York City.
Photo by Jerritt Clark/FilmMagic.
Roxanne Shanté To Be The First Solo Female Rapper To Receive Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award
Other rappers who’ve received the honor include Slick Rick, Salt-N-Pepa, N.W.A and more.
Roxanne Shanté will soon be the first solo female rapper to receive a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.
According to the Grammy website, Shanté, along with Prince, Frankie Beverly and others will receive the honor as part of the Grammy’s 2025 Special Merit Awards honorees. The honorees will be celebrated at the Recording Academy's Special Merit Awards Ceremony, which will take place on February 1, one day ahead of the 2025 Grammys.
“It's an amazing privilege to honor this eclectic group of music icons during the year's biggest week in music,” Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason Jr. said in a statement. “Each of this year's Special Merit Award recipients has left an indelible mark on music, from paving the way for others to innovation that forever has changed the trajectory of the musical landscape. We can't wait to celebrate this group and their achievements in February.”
As the Grammy website notes, the Special Merit Award “is presented by vote of the Recording Academy's National Trustees to performers who, during their lifetimes, have made creative contributions of outstanding artistic significance to the field of recording.”
Shanté released her debut single, “Roxanne’s Revenge,” as a 14-year-old. The song, which was certified platinum in 2022, was a response to UTFO’s “Roxanne, Roxanne,” and would incite the “Roxanne Wars,” with everyone from Sparky D to Crush Groove making their own Roxanne-themed song.
Shanté will soon join other rappers who’ve received the Grammy honor, including Slick Rick, Salt-N-Pepa, N.W.A and more.
