The Lady of Rage (born Robin Yvette Allen on June 11, 1975 in Farmville, Virginia) is a female rapper & actress.
She is known for collaborating with rappers such as Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg & has been described as “one of the most skillful female MCs” with a “mastery of flow” & “hard-core lyrics.”
The Lady of Rage met Shahkim (from rap group the Original Outlaw Brothers) in the summer of 1988. After convincing her that he could get her a record deal, he brought her to his group.
The Original Outlaw Brothers made the Lady of Rage a member of their group. They signed to a production deal with the L.A. Posse (who produced several hits for LL Cool J).
In 1991, the Lady of Rage met rapper Chubb Rock & provided vocals on his album “The One” on the track “Bring ‘Em Home Safe” under the name “Rockin’ Robin.”
Dr. Dre discovered her after the L.A. Posse let him listen to some of their tracks on their album & the vocals that the Lady of Rage recorded for their 1991 album “They Come in All Colors.”
The Lady of Rage appeared on Dr. Dre’s 1992 album “The Chronic” on several tracks & a year later, she appeared on Snoop Doggy Dogg’s album “Doggystyle.” In 1994, she scored a hit with the single “Afro Puffs” (which was featured on the “Above the Rim” soundtrack).
The song peaked at #57 on the Billboard Hot 100, #5 on Billboard’s Hot Rap Singles chart, #5 on Billboard’s Hot Dance Music\Maxi-Singles Sales chart and #31 on Billboard’s Hot R&B Singles chart, staying on the chart for 15 weeks.
The Lady of Rage also appeared on Tha Dogg Pound’s album “Dogg Food” on the track “Do What I Feel.”
Even though she made various appearances on soundtracks & albums from her Death Row Records labelmates, she didn’t release an album until 1997. On June 24, 1997, the Lady of Rage released her debut solo album “Necessary Roughness” which peaked at #32 on the Billboard 200 and #7 on Billboard’s R&B Albums chart.
The original title of the album was called “Eargasm” and was pushed back continuously (it was meant to have been the next album on Death Row Records after “The Chronic” album & later after “Doggystyle”).
The two singles from the album “Get With Da Wickedness (Flow Like That)” and “Sho Shot” didn’t appear to make the Billboard charts at all.
After the release of her album & appearing on Gang Starr’s single “You Know My Steez (Three Men and a Lady Remix)” (which also featured Kurupt), the Lady of Rage left Death Row Records & later the music business to focus on acting. She appeared in an episode of Nickelodeon’s “Kenan & Kel.”
She appeared on the WB’s “The Steve Harvey Show” as Coretta Cox from 1997 to 2000. She also appeared in the movie “Next Friday.”
In 2000, the Lady of Rage appeared on Snoop Dogg’s album “Tha Last Meal” on the track “Set It Off,” had a solo track called “Unfucwitable” on the album “Snoop Dogg Presents Doggy Style Allstars Vol. 1” and “Batman & Robin” which appeared on Snoop Dogg’s album “Paid tha Cost to be Da Boss.” The Lady of Rage later signed to Shante Broadus’ record label, Boss Lady Entertainment and released a mixtape called “From VA 2 LA” in 2005.
She made appearances on albums such as “Bigg Snoop Dogg Presents Welcome to the Chuuch: Da Album” and “Cali Iz Active.”
In 2008, the Lady of Rage performed with female rappers MC Lyte, Yo Yo and Salt & Pepa at the BET Hip Hop Awards.
In the summer of 2010, she joined Snoop Dogg during his headlining set at the “Rock the Bells” festival concert series along with Warren G, RBX and Tha Dogg Pound for a performance of the entire “Doggystyle” album.
These days, the Lady of Rage is part of the group N’Matez (along with rappers Daz Dillinger, Kurupt and RBX). She is also part of the FEM (or Females Earning Money) Movement along with female rappers Babs, Lady Luck and Amil.
To see the music video for “Afro Puffs,” go to:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yNqIJ3e0OJw
To see the music video for “Get With Da Wickedness (Flow Like That),” go to:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9skrQS7iJhQ
To see the music video for “Sho Shot,” go to:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zuMUasrkOQI