[Music] foreign
although her 1989 debut album all hail the queen sold less than 500
000 copies it still made a major impact and just like that Queen Latifah became a spokesperson for
a neglected constituency young black women as the author of 11 out of the Project's 12
original tracks Dana Elaine Owens later more famously known as Queen Latifah developed her
writing and rhyming skills at a very young age while growing up in a project in East Orange New
Jersey the always smart Latifah was identified as a gifted in elementary school and went on to
skip a grade she adopted the latter part of her stage name meaning gentle kind and pleasant in
Arabic when she was just eight years old she said the queen in her name is more about strength and
about women being treated as such she started rapping in high school after initially finding
her voice singing in church and honed her skills performing at talent shows and parties after her
demo got the attention of the powers that be at Tommy Boy music she was signed by the label and
released her first single Wrath of my madness in 1988 at the age of 18. her debut album dropped the
following year Latifah's signature hit ladies first a duet with British rapper Monie Love
became a rap feminist Anthem and Manifesto and Latifah became a legend she cultivated
a Regal image that matched her moniker she was beautiful and intelligent with natural Charisma
and gregarious nature that made her a star all hail the queen established her voice and vision
as a rap original and the record would become a contemporary Classics though much of her follow-up
nature of a sister is centered on her exceptional prowess as a rapper her third effort Black Rain
would not only become her most successful album up to that point but also showed a more bold Brasher
and World weary side of her the album's biggest social statement can probably be attributed
to the modern women's Anthem Unity as it posed one of the most memorable questions of the 90s
and with that she addressed the topic of being a woman more specifically a black woman coming
of age during the era each verse addressed Street harassment domestic violence and gang
violence topics that unfortunately are still very relevant today perhaps the universality of
the grammy-winning song is why it remains her highest charting single to date and her only
single to make it to the top 30 of Billboard's Hot 100. the early 90s was also the era that
Latifah was on the brink of crossover success in her budding acting career having just secured the
lead role in the fox sitcom Living Single prior to that she'd already made her small screen debut
on The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air and taking on supporting roles on the big screen in films
jungle fever House Party 2 and Jews you well you might have a small throughout Latifah's childhood
as well as her adult years she's had to deal with many personal traumas and tragedies along
her journey of the ladder of success one possibly not so bad thing since she may not even remember
the event resulted in the scar on her forehead she accidentally tripped over and inconveniently
located telephone cord while playing a game of tag when she was 3 years old hitting her head
on the corner of the bathroom wall she ended up getting three stitches but that wasn't the end
of it later she fell on her grandmother's steps and busted the old wound open again
after choosing to keep the incident to herself for years lativa Finally Revealed Essence magazine in
2009 that for a short period of time when she was five years old she was the victim of sexual abuse
at the hands of a teenager charged with her care he violated me I never told anybody I just buried
it as deeply as I could and kept people at an arm's distance I never really let a person get
too close to me then at the age of nine her parents divorced while it's easy to link her
1993 album black Reigns harder Edge to the sound ushered in by other hip-hop albums released around
the same time one can't help but also think that the death of her older brother also contributed to
the feel of the record Lancelot Owens Jr or winky as he was affectionately nicknamed dreamed of a
career in law enforcement and he would eventually become a Newark policeman for his 24th birthday
his sister and some friends decided he deserved a present a motorcycle he'd been yearning for they
figured since he was a cop and was going to get one anyway at some point they go ahead and make
it happen sooner rather than later sadly the birthday gift would carry him to his death only
weeks later in a tragic Road accident Latifah and her mom were devastated the rapper's grief led to
substance abuse and depression both of which she eventually resolved she also retrieved the key to
the bike he'd been riding had it dipped in gold and wore it on a chain around her neck for years
visible in many live performances and public appearances in 1995 Latifah was the victim of
a late night carjacking while waiting for a group of friends who were following her in another car
two men one brandishing a revolver walked up to the car and demanded that the occupants get out
they complied but for an unknown reason as her bodyguard and boyfriend at the time was
exiting one of the gunmen fired a shot hitting him after the assailants fled in Latifah's BMW
she flagged down a cab that raised him to the hospital where he was found to be in critical
but stable condition he ultimately made a full recovery and the carjackers just teenagers at the
time were later arrested it charged and convicted the following year Latifah was arrested on charges
of carrying a loaded pistol and possession of marijuana after being pulled over for speeding
the officer noticed a familiar odor and asked Latifah if she'd been smoking she said yes the
officer also asked her if she had drugs or weapons in the car and she allegedly replied yes to both
of those inquiries a search of the vehicle did reveal drugs and a 38 caliber handgun in the
driver's side door pocket she wasn't prosecuted for possession but she was fined 810 dollars for
driving with no license and carrying a loaded weapon Latifah faced another arrest in 2002 for
misdemeanor reckless driving to which he pleaded no contest and avoided a DUI charge she was
sentenced to three years of informal probation ordered to pay 300 in fines and to participate
in an alcohol education program in 2018 Latifah lost her mother and best friend Rita Owens who
passed away after struggling with heart failure for more than a decade one topic of persistence
speculation throughout Latifah's career has been her sexuality no doubt that has a lot to do with
her never having talked about it in any capacity she told the New York Times in 2008 I don't have
a problem discussing the topic of somebody being gay but I do have a problem discussing my personal
life you don't get that part of me sorry I don't feel like I need to share my personal life and I
don't care if people think I'm gay or not assume whatever you want you do it anyway
over the years Queen Latifah has been the recipient of a Grammy award a Golden Globe
award two Screen Actors Guild Awards two NAACP image Awards One Primetime Emmy Award and an
Academy Award nomination at the BET Awards in 2021 she received yet another honor when she
was given their Lifetime Achievement Award during her acceptance speech she publicly acknowledged
her partner Ebony Nichols and Son Rebel for the first time her declarations included shout outs
of ebony my love while touching her heart in salute Rebel my love warmingly acknowledging
the sun she and her partner reportedly welcomed together in 2019 and finishing
off with an exclamation of happy Pride so who's Ebony Nichols she's a former Los Angeles Lakers
girl dancer who went on to work as a professional choreographer on major Hollywood Productions she
and Latifah reportedly met on the set of Dancing With the Stars in 2009 but didn't
embark on their Ultra private relationship until several years later in the last two years the
couple have taken things up a notch appearing at premieres and on red carpets together including
the amphar gala in Cairns France in May 2023 holding hands and grinning from ear to ear
thank you