The Women of the 90's

From "Girl Power" to riot grrl, the 90's stand out as a particularly monumental decade for female artists. Never before, and arguably not since, has there been such a unique period where all genres of music were witness to such groundbreaking work.

From Salt-n-Pepa's "Let's Talk About Sex" to Liz Phair's "F*** & Run", nothing was held back. There was no need for innuendo, as the lyrics were raw, filled with emotion, and brutally honest in ways we'd never heard before.

But it wasn't just about sex and relationships, it was gender and racial equality, empowerment, and expression. Pop culture was dominated by the Spice Girls and Lilith Fair, and a generation of women embraced a "third-wave" of feminism that gave voice to previously taboo issues and labels.

What was it about this generation of women that led to this movement?  Was this "new voice" just a natural evolution of music - or were there specific cultural shifts that contributed?  Throughout the coming weeks, we will be exploring these questions and more as we take a deeper look into the music from this era. 

To start off this conversation, let me offer one of my favorite songs from this era:  En Vogue's "Free Your Mind".

"Free Your Mind"
Prejudice, wrote a song about it.
Like to hear it? Here it go.

I wear tight clothing, high heeled shoes
It doesn't mean that I'm a prostitute, no no
I like rap music, wear hip hop clothes
That doesn't mean that I'm out sellin' dope no no
Oh my forgive me for having straight hair, no
It doesn't mean there's another blood in my heir yeah yeah
I might date another race or color
It doesn't mean I don't like my strong black brothers.

Why oh why must it be this way
Before you can read me you gotta learn how to see me, I said
Free your mind and the rest will follow
Be color blind, don't be so shallow.
Free your mind and the rest will follow
Be color blind, don't be so shallow

So I'm a sistah
Buy things with cash
That really doesn't mean that all my credit's bad, oooh
So why dispute me and waste my time
Because you really think the price is high for me
I can't look without being watched, and oh
You rang my buy before I made up my mind, OW!
Oh now attitude, why even bother
I can't change your mind, you can't change my color

Why oh why must it be this way?
Before you can read me you gotta learn how to see me, I said
Free your mind and the rest will follow
Be color blind, don't be so shallow…

Why oh why must it be this way?
Before you can read me you gotta learn how to see me, I said
Free your mind and the rest will follow
Be color blind, don't be so shallow... FREE YOUR MIND!