Inga DeCarlo Fung Marchand aka Foxy Brown, is a Trinidadian-American rapper who hails from Brooklyn, NY.

After signing to Def Jam in 1996, she released her debut album, Ill Na Na, later that year on November 19, 1996. The album was certified platinum by the RIAA and has sold over 7 million copies worldwide. She was also part of the hip hop supergroup the Firm, along with Nas, AZ and Cormega (who was later replaced by Nature). The Firm’s solo album arrived in 1997 and was released by Dr. Dre‘s Aftermath Entertainment. In 1999, her second album Chyna Doll, debuted at the top of the Billboard 200, making her the second female rapper to top the chart after Lauryn Hill in 1998.

Her third album, Broken Silence, was released in 2001, which featured the Grammy-nominated track “Na Na Be Like.”

Cited as a fashion icon, Elle writer Janelle Harris wrote that Brown celebrated “the beauty of her mahogany skin as the self-professed ‘dark-skinned Christian Dior poster girl,’ boasted about being ‘dripped in Gabbana […] starring in billboards as big as the pride of the Black girls who saw themselves in her likeness.”

Described as one of the “illest to ever do it – regardless of gender,” Scott Glaysher of HipHopDX noted that “If those aforementioned male rappers epitomize the menacing New York City mobster of the late 90s then Foxy represents the mob wife that is even more sinister with weaponized sexuality.” He stated that “the sheer confidence and astute rhyming Foxy brought to Ill Na Na makes it one of the 90s most memorable albums and a catalyst for the fierce feminine rap wave that followed. In 2020, Spin ranked her at 20, as one of the 30 Best Female Rappers Ever.

Brown’s sophomore studio album Chyna Doll debuted at number one in 1999, making it only the second female rap album to debut at the top spot after The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill in 1998 by Lauryn Hill and eventually joined by Let There Be Eve…Ruff Ryders’ First Lady in 1999 by Eve, Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded in 2012 by Nicki Minaj and Invasion of Privacy in 2018 by Cardi B. Her work has been paid homage to by numerous artists including, Nicki Minaj, Kash Doll, Megan Thee Stallion and Maliibu Miitch. Minaj has even gone so far as to say that without Foxy, she “may have never even started rapping” and that she is “the most influential female rapper.”

Foxy’s impact is undeniable, and for that, we thank her for her contributions to Hip Hop.

Sources: Wikipedia