Issa Rae Says Upcoming Show “Rap Sh*t” Was Inspired By Jermaine Dupri’s Criticism of Women Rappers
Women have been running the rap game for the last few years. While many people champion the female rappers that have come out in the last few years, some have been critical of this new wave in hip hop. Jermaine Dupri has been one of those people critical of this new movement, saying that they all sound similar. Well apparently it was his criticism that inspired Issa Rae’s upcoming HBO show, Rap Sh*t.
In 2019, Dupri stated that he didn’t have a favorite woman in the rap game because he believed they all sound the same.
“I can’t give you a favorite because I feel like they’re all talking about the same thing,” he said. “I was talking about these people’s names they gave me. I said, ‘It’s like strippers rapping,’ and it went crazy.”
Rae spoke about how Dupri’s comments inspired her to make her upcoming show in this month’s edition of Rolling Stone magazine. “I was just like, ‘This is so unfair.’ So that inspired the writing of it,” Issa said.
Rae announced the project in October of 2019. Just this past February, the series recieved an 8 episode, half hour order from HBO. The series is loosely based on QC rap duo, City Girls, and will follow two childhood best friends who reunite to form a rap group. In the interview, Rae also spoke on how Megan Thee Stallion and Cardi B’s rise in the rap game also inspired the series as well.