FIRST THINGS FIRST, hip-hop is not just the music, and women have played a big role in shaping the way it looks today. FIRST THINGS FIRST takes readers on a journey through some notable firsts by women in hip-hop history and their importance. Factual firsts like Queen Latifah becoming the first rapper to get a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, Lauryn Hill making history as the first rapper to win the coveted Album of the Year Award at the GRAMMYs, April Walker being the first woman to dominate in the hip-hop fashion game, and Da Brat being the first solo woman rapper to have an album go platinum, and metaphorical firsts like Missy Elliott being the first woman rapper to go to the future. (Trust me, she really did.)

There are chapters on music legends like Nicki Minaj, Lil’ Kim and Mary J. Blige, tv and radio hosts like Big Lez and Angie Martinez, and so many more ladies I would name but I don’t want to spoil the book! There are games, charts and some fire images, too.

Altogether, FIRST THINGS FIRST is a celebration of the achievements of women in hip-hop who broke down barriers and broke the mold. So the next time someone doesn’t have their facts straight on the ladies in hip-hop, you can hit them with “first things first” . . .

For those who want to get to know more about their favorite hip-hop artist, be inspired by the black women who helped shape the music scene from the beginning or like me, want to learn something new, this is a fun primer.

Set in the same conversational tone as her blog, The Gumbo, Simmons gives readers brief biographies of over thirty women who broke through the male-dominated genre of hip-hop with huge firsts such as first one to bring “Yo” to the mainstream, first to perform a rap in the Grammys, and more. She doesn’t confine herself to only performers as she tells readers that hip-hop has a whole entourage behind it, building the culture. She covers the fashionistas, the choreographers, the actresses in hip hop movies, the music journalists, the radio hosts.

They all had a hand in putting hip hop to the mainstream as well as putting females in the space, proving they can cuss, rap and sing about hard-hitting topics just like the men.

Plus she keeps it fun with a chapter discussing Lil Kim’s impact as the blueprint for modern women in hip hop, a crossword puzzle on Big Lez to highlight the sheer volume of things accomplished in her life to why Queen Latifah needs a star in every category on the Walk of Fame, and an interview with the executive editors of the first female hip hop magazine, Honey. This allows her to break up the monotony of straight biography prose, and gives her a chance to add mention more women that she wasn’t able to devote full chapters to. I especially enjoyed chapters where she discusses favorite songs or lyrics, what they meant to her, and what they meant in the wider context of women in hip-hop.

It’s a book steeped in the hip-hop genre, and it’s clear that Simmons has the knowledge and passion that she knows/loves what she’s talking about. But if you have absolutely no idea about hip-hop, you might feel confused at the start.

You jump in, and she’s discussing terms like you’re already supposed to know about it. She explained some of the lesser known subgenres like crunk, and horrorcore rap, and terms like Afrofuturism, but I wanted a simple one like are hip-hop and rap interchangeable? Like is all rap hip-hop, but not all hip-hop is rap? I already knew a b-girl was short for female break-dancer, but someone else might have no idea what that means. And all these other rap groups and individuals, I’m sure if I had any idea who they were, I’d understand why it was a big deal that this woman or that rapped against them, but I was simply confused. The only one I knew was Jay-Z, Kanye, and P. Diddy which is kinda funny considering the scandals they are in now.

However, I did learn how instrumental P. Diddy was in lifting up these women, and other groups with his record company, and how he was considered the limit of rap. It’s a shame that he’s an awful person considering how visionary he was in changing the hip-hop landscape.

But she offers a lot of song suggestions, so if you want to get into listening, Simmons will clue you to the greatest hits of each woman.

So if you want to learn a bit more about major players like Queen Latifah, Mary J. Bilge, Missy Elliot, Megan Thee Stallion, Cardi B, Nicki Minaj and other rappers that shouldn’t be forgotten, check this book out.