Of all of the genres that make up my musical lexicon, hip hop still expresses best who I was (as a baby b-girl) and who I am now – passionately outspoken and fly! lol

No, Ms Q never breakdanced, pop-locked or rhymed – but you could always find me in the crowd around a fledgling MC spittin’ fire, hollerin’ my support when they dropped an especially dope verse; noddin’ my head energetically to a sick beat box demo; always in my flyest b-girl gear, fake gold bamboo earrings swayin’. Hoping against hope that the sun didn’t go down before the cypher was over – my mother regulated with an iron glove – cause I had to be home before the street-lights came on.

Seems so innocent in retrospect, those scenes of my, and hip hop’s, adolescence…only lyrically talented MCs and DJs that could scratch & mix with only 2 turntables (or 3) and headphones need apply or the crowd would boo you while doing the “Showtime at the Apollo” get off the stage dance.

Total respect and admiration to Ms Badu for articulating my love and nostalgia for the halycyon days of hip hop…