Who could’ve guessed that 20 years after the dust has settled, the Roxanne Wars would warrant a Wikipedia entry?
Or that today, millions can still recite the devastating rap laid down by then-14-year-old MC Roxanne Shante:
And after that and you know it’s true
Well let me tell you somethin’ else about the Doctor, too:
He ain’t really cute, and he ain’t great
He don’t even know how to operate”
After shelving her music career to get her PhD in pyschology, Shante has occasionally resurfaced in the record bins, most recently with 2006’s “Yes Yes Y’all,” a collaboration with British-born beatmaker Mekon.
At 5:30 p.m. today she’ll be appearing at the Hard Rock Cafe on Beale Street as part of the Memphis Music Monday free concert series, staged by the Memphis & Shelby County Music Commission (MSCMC).
“Roxanne is in town on business. We were fortunate to run into her at Citadel Broadcasting, and we invited her to come on by the Hard Rock tonight,” says Johnnie Walker, executive director of the MSCMC. “The first thing she said is, ‘You know I’m not performing.’ We plan to get her onstage to share some things with the audience.”
Also on the bill: DJ Crumbz from Q107.5 FM, who plans to spin a special Roxanne mix, gospel singer Carla Tolbert Taylor, Restricted, Barbara Jefferies, and I’sis Hamilton. For more info, call 576-6850.
