The Motherlode

100+ Women Who Made Hip-Hop

By: Clover Hope

Narrated by: Clover Hope, Remy Ma, Nia Long, Chloe Bailey, Lauren London, Janelle James, Angie Martinez, MC Lyte

From the birth of hip-hop in the 1970s to today, women have been just as integral to the growth and development of the rap game as their male counterparts. Nonetheless, they’re consistently shortchanged as artists, creators, renegades, and cultural visionaries in prevailing histories of the genre.

The Motherlode changes that.

Based on prolific music journalist Clover Hope’s book of the same name, The Motherlode digs deep into the history and misogyny of hip-hop to give props to its most continually overlooked innovators and underappreciated voices. From foundational figures like MC Sha-Rock and Roxanne Shanté to revolutionaries like Salt-N-Pepa and Lil’ Kim to modern chart-toppers like Cardi B and Nicki Minaj, Hope’s in-depth look at the many untold stories of women in hip-hop spans 50 years of excellence.

An essential listen for true hip-hop heads and music history fans alike, The Motherlode is narrated by Hope herself along with special guests including Remy Ma, MC Lyte, and Nia Long. Get ready to add some new favorites to your playlist.

Cover Illustrated by Rachelle Baker

©2023 Clover Hope (P)2023 Audible Originals, LLC.

Captivating

The Motherlode pays homage to the influential and often overlooked women who made significant contributions to the world of hip-hop. Highlighting their contributions results in a powerful tribute that will leave listeners inspired, and informed. I have a newfound appreciation for the immense talent and impact of these remarkable women.

Informative & entertaining

Thorough history and the narrators made it come to life with unique sound effects. Highly recommend.

So well done and worth the listen!

I was excited to listen to this and it was so much better than I expected. Glad I chose to listen to it because the performances were also fantastic and the whole production was phenomenal.

Love this!

As a white male, I found this to be an authentic window into a world of particular music that I’ve always paradoxically loved and honestly felt a bit threatened by, like I do of the overall “sex sells” culture. This book helped me reflect and understand the omnipresent biases that men in general, let alone white men (myself included), hold when viewing women trying to simply express themselves artistically on their own terms. I’ve learned a lot in the process of listening to this book. Beyond the amazing content of this book, the delivery and recording of it are so well done that I’m sure I will listen to it more than once for the information and the aesthetics. This level of quality is not super common and is super refreshing to hear. If you’re at all into hip hop culture, I highly recommend it.

Absolutely Thorough!!!

What I loved most was not the stories of the well known key figures, but the honorable mentions of lesser known figures as well as the stories of many unsung heroes...

A lot of info packed in here

I love the way it takes you through each and every artist and how each successive decade turns to fully empowered female artist.

insight

This gave me a lot of insight in what these women are or have gone through. Wow just wow! Ans thank you and keep going for more.

this old white woman loved this book!!

I learned so much!! it was wonderful. thank you to Clara for this enlightening journey... you are amazing. thank you to all the narrators for a most compelling performance that I couldn't stop listening to... and thank you to the amazing women of rap

Revealing

This book was extremely revealing. It was informative and educational. If gives a fresh perspective on the importance of women in the hip hop industry.

The motherload

Very well put together!!!! it took me back in time of learning. The time of learning and growing and exploring in the music world!!!