MC Sha-rock was an original member of the Funky Four (which later became the Funky 4+1) and is credited with being the first female MC in Hip Hop history. Just as hard as it is to pinpoint the year Hip Hop originated, we can neither confirm nor deny whether this title is accurate. We do, however, know that along with Sha, the only other female MCs that performed regularly during the late 70’s were Lisa Lee, Debbie Dee, and a few others.

Denise Jacobs was born in the Bronx in 1960 and later moved to Harlem. Around 1974, Denise started sneaking back up to the Bronx to attend parties thrown by a deejay named Kool Herc. The mid-seventies was the heart of the disco era, but Kool Herc would play a mix of Soul, Funk, and Disco that caused the crowd to go bananas. The parties became so popular that Kool Herc would have people hype him up and announce the locations for upcoming parties while he performed. Over time, these announcers became more creative, and, ultimately became Hip Hop’s MCs. Denise immediately was hooked to Kool Herc’s music, as well as the new atmosphere that was totally different from what was going on at downtown disco clubs. More importantly, Denise realized that she could do what these announcers were doing while Kool Herc played records. This period is when Denise first realized that she would become an MC.

Denise was attending high school in the Bronx when she and another girl were asked to tryout for a newly formed group called the Funky Four. Denise was asked to join the group and assumed the stage name Sha-rock. From that moment on, Sha-rock and the Funky Four performed at Kool Herc’s summer block parties and other shows in Queens, Brooklyn, and a far as Mount Vernon. Just like Lyte, Latifah, and Lauryn did years later, Sha-rock gained respect from opposing crews like Melle Mel & The Furious Five, The Treacherous Three, and The Cold Crush Brothers because she wrote her own lyrics and could simply hold it down on the mic.

The Funky 4+1 eventually signed to upstart label Sugarhill Records and recorded several songs; many of which were just recently released overseas. Their most popular recorded song is “That’s the Joint,” but their best music, performed at all of those block parties during the 70’s and early 80’s, was never recorded.  As is the case with the majority of Hip Hop’s pioneers, Sha-rock and the group is in dispute with Sugarhill Records over royalty payments for their music.

Married with children, Sha-rock now lives in Texas and may have passed on her legacy to her children.  Sha has a twenty-five year old daughter that goes by the name T-Roc, an unsigned MC who says that it’s in her blood to rock the mic. Sha-rock is still involved in Hip Hop, often making appearances at events in Japan and Europe, and licenses her name and likeness to the Kool Herc affiliated apparel line, Sedwick & Cedar.  Sha has mentioned that Melle Mel is her favorite MC of all-time, and credited MC Lyte with being a female MC that she admires.

Over thirty years ago, Sha-rock grabbed the microphone and laid the foundation for female MCs to move the crowd.  Many would argue that women rappers of today have regressed to a point so low that they have simply become irrelevant. Today’s lady rappers rarely write their own rhymes and are forced resort to sensationalism like bearing all in videos and performances to sell records. Maybe Sha-rock’s story may inspire a new generation of lady MCs to once again rock the mic.

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