Roxanne Wars

The Roxanne Wars is a well-known series of hip hop rivalries during the mid-1980s, yielding perhaps the most answer records in history. It arose from a dispute over a failed appearance at a radio promotional show. There were two Roxannes in question, Roxanne Shanté and The Real Roxanne.

Roxanne, Roxanne
Excerpt of "Roxanne, Roxanne" taken from the UTFO album"

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History

In 1984, the hip-hop trio U.T.F.O., produced by the R&B group Full Force, released a single titled "Hanging Out," which did not do well. However, it was the single's B side, "Roxanne, Roxanne", a song about a woman who would not respond to their advances, that gained much attention and airplay.

Soon afterwards, 14-year-old Lolita Shanté Gooden was walking outside a New York City housing project called Queensbridge, when she heard Tyrone Williams, disc jockey Mr. Magic, and record producer Marley Marl talking about how U.T.F.O. had canceled their appearance at a show they were promoting.[1][2][3] Gooden offered to make a hip-hop record that would get back at U.T.F.O., with her taking on the moniker Roxanne Shanté, after her middle name. The three took her up on the idea, with Marley producing "Roxanne's Revenge." The single was released in late 1984, taking the original beats from an instrumental version of "Roxanne, Roxanne." It was very confrontational and laced with profanities, but was an instant hit that sold over 250,000 copies in the New York area alone. Legal action followed, and it was re-released in early 1985 with new beats and the obscenities removed.

Following this, U.T.F.O. and Full Force decided to release their own answer record. While not directly aimed at Roxanne Shanté, this record featured Elease Jack, who took on the moniker of the Real Roxanne (and was soon replaced by Adelaida Martinez).[4] This also was a hit, but it may have also produced an undesired result: while there had been answer records before (such as the semi-disco song "Somebody Else's Guy" and "Games People Play"/"Games Females Play"), they usually ended with the second recording. But in this saga, with a third record in airplay, a whole new trend began. The airwaves were so occupied with the three "Roxanne" records that other MCs decided to get into the act. Over the next year, anywhere from 30 to over 100 answer records (according to different claims) were produced, portraying Roxanne's family, or making various claims about her. The ones that were more well known were the following:

Aftermath

In due time, the "Roxanne" trend had run its course, and a sort of moratorium was called on new Roxanne acts (some later records even called for this). The response records finally died down; however, the battle continued amongst its core group of players:

The biggest successor to the Roxanne war was The Bridge Wars, in which Roxanne Shanté, as a member of Marley Marl's Juice Crew, was loosely involved. The Bridge Wars attacked the entire Queensbridge area. The tables were then turned, because this time it was a hit record produced by Mr. Magic and Marley Marl that garnered a response (MC Shan's "The Bridge"), sparking off a whole new battle saga.

It was in the midst of this battle, in the song "Go On, Girl",[19] that Roxanne Shanté dropped the name Roxanne, and was thereafter known only as Shanté. (The opening line says "it's '87, y'all, so no more Roxannes . . . "). Likewise, The Real Roxanne dropped "Real" from her name, and went by the name Roxanne, and was even addressed as such by Shanté in the track "Big Mama",[20] in a reference to their past battles. This lasted until her 1992 track, "Roxanne S*** Is Over", where she relinquishes the name Roxanne for good, and dubs herself Jo-Anne With The Plan. The album this was released on, Go Down But Don't Bite It, however, was her final record. Shanté likewise retired from the business a few years afterward.

Other Response Records

References

  1. OldSchoolHipHop.Com - Roxanne Shante Biography
  2. Roxanne Shanté | Music Artist | Videos, News, Photos & Ringtones | MTV
  3. MR. MAGIC HELPED MAKE RAP APPEAR, SO DJ TAKES A BOW. By DAVID HINCKLEY. New York Daily News Friday, March 5th 1999
  4. http://strictlybusinesshiphop.blogspot.com/2011/05/roxanne-wars.html New address retrieved 2013-01-01.
  5. "Sparky's Turn (Roxanne, You're Through)". YouTube Video. Retrieved on 2012-01-06.
  6. "Roxanne's Doctor-The Real Man" by Dr. Freshh. YouTube Video. Retrieved on 2012-01-06.
  7. "Do the Roxanne" by Dr. Rocx & Co.. YouTube Video. Retrieved on 2012-01-06.
  8. "The Parents of Roxanne" by Gigolo Tony & Lacey Lace. YouTube Video. Retrieved on 2012-01-06.
  9. "I’m Lil Roxanne" by Tanganyika. YouTube Video. Retrieved on 2012-01-06.
  10. "Yo, My Little Sister (Roxanne's Brothers)" by Crush Groove. YouTube Video. Retrieved on 2012-01-06.
  11. "Rappin' Roxy: Roxanne's Sister" by D.W. and the Party Crew featuring Roxy. YouTube Video. Retrieved on 2012-01-06.
  12. "Ice Roxanne" by Little Ice Retrieved on 2013-01-01.
  13. "Roxanne's a Man (The Untold Story—Final Chapter)" by Ralph Rolle. YouTube Video. Retrieved on 2012-01-06.
  14. "Roxanne, Roxanne, Pt. 2: Calling Her a Crab". YouTube Video. Retrieved on 2012-01-06.
  15. Roxanne Shanté "Queen of Rox". YouTube Video. Retrieved on 2012-01-06.
  16. Roxanne Shanté "Bite This". YouTube Video. Retrieved on 2012-01-06.
  17. "Round 1 - Roxanne Shanté Vs. Sparky Dee". YouTube Video. Retrieved on 2012-01-06.
  18. Roxanne Shanté "Go On, Girl". YouTube Video. Retrieved on 2012-01-06.
  19. Roxanne Shanté "Big Mama". YouTube Video. Retrieved on 2012-01-06.
  20. Anthony - Roxanne Is A Man. YouTube Video. Retrieved on 2012-01-06.
  21. Blowfly - Blowfly meets Roxanne Retrieved on 2013-01-01.
  22. DJ Spin Kut - Roxanne Girls Mega Mix 2. YouTube Video. Retrieved on 2012-01-06.
  23. Doctor JR Kool - Rap Your Own Roxanne. YouTube Video. Retrieved on 2012-01-06.
  24. G-Mann - Roxanne (Is My Girl) Retrieved on 2013-01-01.
  25. Korner Boyz - The Saga Of Roxanne Retrieved on 2013-01-01.
  26. Maggotron - Planet Detroit vs. The Roxanne Plague. YouTube Video. Retrieved on 2012-01-06.
  27. Mix-Trix 4 - Roxanne Can You Feel It? Retrieved on 2013-01-01.
  28. Potato Chips - Roxanne's Real Fat. YouTube Video. Retrieved on 2012-01-06; reretrieved on 2013-01-01.
  29. Ricardo & Chocolate Boogie - Do It Ricardo. YouTube Video. Retrieved on 2012-01-06.
  30. Rocksann - She Died. YouTube Video. Retrieved on 2012-01-06.
  31. "Rox and Roxanne: Just-when you thought it was over" Retrieved on 2013-01-01.
  32. The Invasions - Roxanne's Dis. YouTube Video. Retrieved on 2012-01-06.
  33. The Invasions - Roxanne's Man Retrieved on 2013-01-01.
  34. The Overnite Bandits - Roxanne's Baby. YouTube Video. Retrieved on 2012-01-06.
  35. Zelee featuring Osé - No More Roxanne. YouTube Video. Retrieved on 2012-01-06.

External links