In my area, there was never really a lack of what was acceptable for females to play. Girls played drums and guitars and cellos and basses. We even had some female tenors. I suppose I've never really considered it before, but we were pretty fortunate, huh? There was one thing I noticed, however. In all my schools, elementary through high, the orchestra and chorus teachers were females, while the band teacher was a guy. Why this is, I suppose I have an inkling, but I certainly don't understand.

          From what I hear, it's only recent that females be the director of any sort of musical ensemble. Society is gradually adapting to the fact that having a certain organ shouldn't dictate what is and is not acceptable. I guess that in this area, it'll just need a little more time. The conducting of Converse's female director has been marvelous to watch. I do admire the vigor and life she bring to the stage, music, and atmosphere. Watching her makes me excited to see a rise of more female conductors and all that they may have to offer. I've had a chance to conduct. It was just the concert chorus at my high school, but I enjoyed more than most of my musical endeavors. I can say, from experience, that the thrill of conducting; of having the power and respect enough to take the performers and performance, as a whole, to the next level is exhilarating, to say the least. I hope more females find their way into positions of directing large ensembles. I definitely encourage the female musician population to do whatever they find interested in. If you've got the stuff, that's the kind of thing that makes history.

          Another area I've noticed that it, for whatever reason, seems strange for women to partake in is rap. When you think of a female rapper, is Nikki Minaj not one of, if not the, first to come to mind? Rapping was turned in recent times into more of a thuggish art. It is often about and representative of the struggle of growing up surviving in the hood and living as a "gangsta" as precedented by artists such as Dr. Dre. Every now and then, there will be an artist who takes things to a level of more depth and intuition, such as Hopsin or Lupe Fiasco, but they, too, are males. Why is it so out of the norm for there to be a decent female rapper. Is it that we supposedly have less to write about? Or maybe all we think of is sugar plums and gumdrops. I consider myself a decent rapper. If you ever want to hear, just let me know. Always happy to share. I don't specifically aspire to be a rapper, but if it happened, I wouldn't mind. Breaking boundaries and staying fly-- sounds like my kind of lifestyle.