Roxanne

Roxanne is not so much one artist but a general tag given to several female rappers and singers who made independently released reactions to U.T.F.O.’s hit single “Roxanne, Roxanne.” The song was condescending toward a woman named “Roxanne,” and stirred up quite the controversy among female listeners. The first-known reaction was from Roxanne Shante, who worked with producer Marley Marl to make possibly the best response, “Roxanne’s Revenge.” Suddenly, new Roxannes were popping up everywhere, spawning over 100 known singles from all sorts of rappers. Another reactor, a woman calling herself the Real Roxanne, built a minor career over claiming the rights to the Roxanne name with a single called “The Real Roxanne.” And many, many more appeared either under the Roxanne name or other goofy names like Roxanne’s Doctor and Roxanne’s Psychiatrist. The fad died down after the market was flooded with these singles, but at least two major careers developed out of the short-lived fad. ~ Bradley Torreano