The Queen Raps Again

Queen Latifah is making another album! The Oscar-nominated actress will depart from her last two jazz albums and will release her first hip-hop album in 11 years.

“The last two albums have been kinda jazzy, standards, eclectic, but this one is hip-hop, dance. It’s back to the roots,” she told Jay Leno on “The Tonight Show” about her first rap album since 1998’s Order in the Court.

“It’s like all the original Queen Latifah, ‘U.N.I.T.Y.,’ ‘Ladies First’ feel, but bring that to now,” added the host of Wednesday’s 35th Annual People’s Choice Awards. “It’s sick, it’s a banger!”

The 38-year-old entertainer, whose real name is Dana Owens, made her musical debut in 1989 with All Hail the Queen, an album that spawned the female anthem “Ladies First.” Her arguably most-acclaimed hit came in 1994 when she released the Grammy Award-winning “U.N.I.T.Y.” off Black Reign.

Look for a March release for her hip hop album.

Photo:BBC