Women are an integral part of Hip Hop culture. They provide an opportunity to champion women empowerment and to serve as role models for young girls who seek to be a part of the Hip Hop community.
Mildren Ashong, known professionally as Eazzy, is a female Hip Hop, Afro-pop, and Afro-beat artist. So far in her career she has released two complete albums: Twinkle (2010) and Against All Odds (2014). More recently, in 2019 she released an EP titled Solo. During the course of her career she has won three awards including: Best Story-Line Video of the Year (2011), Best Female Video of the Year (2014), and Best Fashion Icon (2015).
In one of her most recent hits “Away”, Eazzy imbbeds messages of women empowerment using her lyrics and scenes thrughout the music video. Eazzy successfully accomplishes this while also incoorporating a fun dance beat to keep the song and video lighthearted.
In particular, throughout the video there are images of Eazzy dressed up as a woman in a suit who is answering questions from the press. Although it is unclear what her profession is, it is clear that she is a woman in power. Additionally, throughout the videos there are moments where women are dissing men. Through these images it is clear that Jazzy is invoking a sense of women empowerment.
The message of women empowerment in the video echoes her understanding of her unique position as a woman in the Ghanian Hip Hop scene. In a BBC interview, Eazzy describbes the struggle for women in the African Hip Hop community. Rather than the struggling with getting the spotlight, Eazzy discusses that it is even more difficult to stay in the spotlight. She notes that many women struggle to maintain their relevance for more than one to two years. Eazzy has been able to overcome this challenge by hosting music awards and serving as a judge on various Hip Hop competition shows.
Eazzy also discusses that female Hip Hop artists also struggle to balance their work life and personal lives. Especially when having to decide between starting a family versus continuing to pursue her passion. While she did not offer an answer to reconcile this tension, it is clear through her recent music that she is attempting to normalize women in Hip Hop, and encourage women to pursue their dreams in general, and not worry about men’s perceptions of what women should do.
You can download Eazzy’s song “Away” here.