If you were to have asked late Sugar Hill Records co-founder Sylvia Robinson who helped put hip-hop—a genre traditionally dominated by men—on the map, she would have justifiably raised her hand. Robinson, who passed away in 2011, was largely responsible for hip-hop’s first Top 40 single, “Rapper’s Delight” by the Sugar Hill Gang (1979), as well as “The Message” by Grandmaster Flash & the Furious Five (1982), rap’s first socially conscious track.
Taking it back even further, Kool Herc’s younger sister, Cindy Campbell, co-hosted the historic Back to School Jam at 1520 Sedgwick Avenue in the Bronx on August 11, 1973, widely celebrated as hip-hop’s “birthday.”
More than 50 years after the genre was created, women—especially women of color—are still fighting for a seat at the table. Though there’s been progress with the rise of strong Black female rappers like Megan Thee Stallion, Nicki Minaj, and Cardi B, there’s more work to do.
Zuri Appleby, Ruthie Fantaye, and Rachel Francis perform at Passing the Crown.
Passing the Crown, founded by classically trained violinist Juliette Jones, aims to combat the underrepresentation of Black and Brown women in music. Established in 2024 as an extension of her talent booking agency, Wondersmith Entertainment, Passing the Crown pairs female emcees, breakers, and DJs with female classical musicians who use an array of violins, percussion instruments, keys, and cellos to create an enriching musical and cultural experience.
Of course, symphonies have backed hip-hop artists before—Wu-Tang Clan, Rakim, Cypress Hill, Nas, and Common, to name a few—but not many have been composed solely of women of color.
Jones, who’s performed with the likes of Rihanna, Lady Gaga, Jon Batiste, Stevie Wonder, and Janelle Monáe, enlisted violinist and Wondersmith Entertainment director of finance and operations, Monique Brooks Roberts as associate producer for Passing the Crown. Together, they’ve produced shows featuring Grammy Award-winning artist Rapsody and trailblazing female rapper MC Lyte. But Brooks Roberts points out it’s been a tumultuous road.
“As classical string players, we don’t see ourselves represented, but sometimes—because we were always one of one—we were pitted against each other,” Brooks Roberts says. “Sometimes you don’t get the full respect from your colleagues. But when I met Jules, she was so humble and so incredibly talented but also a supporter of me and my work. It was like, “Put me in, coach!”
Jones further explains, “Passing the Crown allows us to center women in a very specific way. As Black women in this thing, we are considered the bottom of the totem pole, but we rise at all times. Creating Passing the Crown was a way for us to work with our sisters and amplify women, both in music and in dance, and do something meaningful.”