Hip-Hop Icon Roxanne Shanté Receives Lifetime Achievement Grammy

Shanté made history in 1984 with "Roxanne's Revenge," which sparked the infamous Roxanne Wars in rap.

Roxanne Shanté, a pioneer in the world of hip-hop, is set to make history as the first solo female rapper to receive a Grammy for Lifetime Achievement. The 55-year-old artist, who rose to prominence as a teenage battle rapper in the 1980s, reflects on the honor ahead of Saturday’s ceremony, where lifetime achievement and other special awards will be presented.

"I never imagined I would get a Grammy," Shanté told NBC News. "For me to receive a lifetime award, not just for my music, but for the choices I made, is incredible. I'm being recognized for doing the right thing, even when many did wrong by me."

Shanté’s journey dates back to the early days of hip-hop in the 1980s. By the time she was 10, she was already an integral part of New York City's underground rap scene. By 13, she had earned a reputation as an undefeated battle rapper.

Her breakout moment came in 1984 with the release of "Roxanne's Revenge," a rebuttal to the Brooklyn rap group UTFO's "Roxanne, Roxanne." The track ignited the infamous Roxanne Wars, a legendary rap feud that inspired more than 80 response songs.

Born and raised in the Queensbridge Houses, New York City's largest public housing complex, Shanté was surrounded by future hip-hop legends, including Nas, Biz Markie, Tragedy Khadafi, and Big Daddy Kane, many of whom would later collaborate with her.

Before entering the rap world, Shanté was drawn to wordplay through comedians like Nipsey Russell, but neighborhood boys constantly challenged her to rap battles, a challenge she always accepted — and won. "The music found me," Shanté recalls.

By the time she was in her teens, Shanté was battling men twice her age, maintaining her undefeated streak. When she recorded the iconic freestyle "Roxanne’s Revenge" with DJ and producer Marley Marl, she had no idea that the track would go on to cement her place in music history.

The freestyle came about almost by accident, as Shanté had no intentions of creating a diss track, nor did she know it was a response to UTFO. Marley Marl, a neighbor, asked her to record a freestyle while she was on her way to do laundry, offering to buy her and her sister three pairs of Sergio Valente jeans. After recording, the song quickly gained national attention.

Despite its success, Shanté was not financially rewarded for the track at the time. She reflects, “Being able to travel the world was the best thing that I ever got out of being Roxanne Shanté.” While the song made her a household name, she didn’t receive large financial gains or major recognition until much later in life.

Shanté eventually stepped away from the rap scene in the 1990s, recognizing that it wasn’t financially rewarding for her. "I never got the big signing bonuses or the mansion. It was never financially beneficial for me," she said.

However, more than 40 years later, Shanté is finally receiving the recognition and financial rewards she deserves. Rap legend Nas, a fellow Queensbridge native, has spoken about how Shanté’s rise in the '80s inspired him. “Roxanne Shanté sparked something in me that made me take rap seriously,” Nas said in 2020. "She is one of the reasons I thought it was possible for me to make it."

In 2020, Shanté also began hosting a SiriusXM show on LL Cool J's "Rock the Bells" channel.

Her journey was immortalized in the 2017 biopic Roxanne Roxanne, which depicted her struggles growing up in a single-parent household, becoming a mother at 16, and overcoming the obstacles of public housing. The film and its lead actress, Chanté Adams, won the Special Jury Prize for Breakthrough Performance at the 2017 Sundance Film Festival.

In 2023, Shanté was honored with the NAACP Legacy Award, and just last year, she received the Hip-Hop Grandmaster Award, along with a $1 million check, from the Paid in Full Foundation, which compensates artists who were underpaid for their contributions to the genre.

Looking back, Shanté says that if she could give advice to her 14-year-old self, it would be simple: “It’s going to turn out all right. Don’t stress. You may think you won’t make it, but I promise you, you’re going to live to be a healthy, wealthy old lady.”