#musicmonday: Dessa, Kick (some) Ass Lady Rapper

I was introduced to Dessa through my husband's friend who brought him along to review a show. He thought it would be funny since my husband used to be in DESA (I would link to this really awesome video that he and our friend made here, but Warner Music Group has decided it has rights to something written, sung, produced, directed and filmed by people whose content they have no rights over, and YouTube believes them, so here's my second favorite, but anyway...). Adam gave Dessa a DESA shirt and brought me home a CD, 'cause you know bad-ass lady, means Stephanie will totally dig it.

Of course he was right. Dessa cannot only sing, she can rap, and she writes some pretty amazing lyrics. At first listen I was a little disturbed by a theme that runs through both Dixon's Girl and Alibi, but after a couple of listens they still resonate.



In both, she reaches out to another woman who is being exploited or abused by a man. But, rather than offer to help them get services she offers an "alibi" or "bad advice." The alibi also pops up in the Dixon's Girl video, and while I won't publicly condone subverting taking the law into your own hands...the songs bear the truth of the many reasons women rely on friends rather than social services or the police, particularly financial dependence, whether it is providing shelter (Alibi) or income (Dixon's Girl).

They also reflect the relationships between women that provide this kind of support. Dixon's Girl is an amazing look at the life of a female rapper, from lack of women in the scene, to getting shows snowed out, and its pretty fun to watch.