Dana Elaine Owens (born March 18, 1970), known professionally as Queen Latifah, is an American singer-songwriter, rapper, actress, and producer. Born in Newark, New Jersey, she signed with Tommy Boy Records in 1989 and released her debut album All Hail the Queen on November 28, 1989, featuring the hit single "Ladies First". Nature of a Sista' (1991) was her second and final album with Tommy Boy Records.
Latifah starred as Khadijah James on the FOX sitcom Living Single from 1993 to 1998. Her third album, Black Reign (1993), spawned the single "U.N.I.T.Y.", which was influential in raising awareness of women's rights and the perspective of women in communities worldwide[citation needed]. The record won a Grammy Award and peaked at No. 23 on the Billboard Hot 100. She then starred in the lead role of Set It Off (1996) and released her fourth album, Order in the Court, on June 16, 1998, with Motown Records. Latifah garnered acclaim with her role of Matron "Mama" Morton in the musical film Chicago (2002), receiving a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress.
In the book Notable Black American Women, Jessie Carney Smith considered her "rap's first feminist" and "one of the few women to make a mark in the male-dominated field of rap music".[69] Dinitia Smith as editor for New York magazine (1990) called her the "Queen of Rap" in her profile article.[69] She has also been dubbed as the "Queen of Jazz-Rap". She became the first female hip-hop recording artist to get nominated for an Oscar. In 2006, Queen Latifah became the first hip-hop artist to receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame,[70] and was also inducted into the New Jersey Hall of Fame in 2011.[71] In her music career, Queen Latifah has sold nearly 2 million albums in the US.[72][73] The Root ranked her at number 35 on The Root 100 list.[74]
She is a recipient of a Grammy Award from six nominations, a Golden Globe Award, two Screen Actors Guild Awards from five nominations, two NAACP Image Awards from thirteen nominations, one Primetime Emmy Award from three nominations, and an Academy Award nomination. Queen Latifah became an influence to R&B, soul, and hip-hop artists, such as Eve,[75] Da Brat,[76] Lil' Kim,[77] Fugees,[78] Jill Scott,[79] Lauryn Hill,[80] Missy Elliott,[81] Remy Ma,[82] Ivy Queen,[83] Foxy Brown,[84] Ms. Dynamite,[85] and Naughty by Nature.
