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She Rockers (London Rap/Dance Crew) Shepherd's Bush Green, London

Photograph
1988 (photographed), 2011 (printed)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

Norman ‘Normski’ Anderson was born in Northwest London in 1966 and became a documenter of British youth culture in the 1980s and 1990s. Normski was part of the UK hip hop scene during this period and his photographs record the styles adopted by hip hop artists like the London-based She Rockers.

Donna ‘She-Roc’ McConnell, Dupe Fagbesa and Alison ‘Betty Boo’ Clarkson made up the rap trio She Rockers, which gained attention in the late 1980s alongside other British female hip hop groups like Cookie Crew. She Rockers worked with the American hip hop group Public Enemy, after performing an impromptu rap with them at a McDonalds in Shepherd’s Bush. British hip hop fashion was influenced by the style of clothing worn by Public Enemy and other popular American hip hop artists, such as Run DMC and the female group Salt-n-Pepa. The baseball jackets, snapback caps, Adidas high-top trainers and large earrings worn by the She Rockers show the way in which these trends were adopted in Britain.

The V&A acquired seven photographs by Normski as part of the Staying Power project. Staying Power is a five year partnership between the V&A and Black Cultural Archives. The project aims to explore black British experience from the 1950s to the 1990s through photographs acquired by the V&A and oral histories conducted by Black Cultural Archives.


Object details

Categories
Object type
TitleShe Rockers (London Rap/Dance Crew) Shepherd's Bush Green, London (assigned by artist)
Materials and techniques
Fujifilm C-type colour print
Brief description
Photograph by Normski, 'She Rockers (London Rap/Dance Crew) Shepherd's Bush Green, London', C-type print, Shepherd's Bush, 1988, printed 2011
Physical description
A colour photograph of three young women posing together on the pavement of a busy street. Behind them are a block of flats, a shopping centre and an elevated walkway over the road. Two of the women wear baseball caps and they are all wearing large earrings and other adornments. They wear baggy trousers with thick roll-ups, Adidas trainers and baseball jackets.
Dimensions
  • Image size height: 55.8cm
  • Image size width: 37.0cm
  • Paper size height: 68.0cm
  • Paper size width: 57.0cm
Style
Gallery label
Text label for the exhibition, 'Staying Power: Photographs of Black British Experience, 1950s-1990s 16 February – 24 May 2015 Normski (born 1966) Islam B-Boys – Brixton African Homeboy – Brixton She Rockers (London Rap/Dance Crew), Shepherd’s Bush Green 1987 – 88 Norman ‘Normski’ Anderson was part of the hip-hop music scene of the 1980s. He photographed British youth culture for magazines including The Face, i-D and Vogue. The hip-hop style was seen as a modern expression of black consciousness. It often combined branded sports clothing with items that reflected black heritage, such as the West African fabric, or Kente cloth, modelled here by the ‘African Homeboy’. C-type prints (printed 2011) Museum nos. E.110 to 112-2012(16/02/2015-24/05/2015)
Credit line
Supported by the National Lottery Heritage Fund.
Object history
The V&A acquired this photograph as part of the Staying Power project. Staying Power is a five year partnership between the V&A and Black Cultural Archives. The project aims to explore black British experience from the 1950s to the 1990s through photographs acquired by the V&A and oral histories conducted by Black Cultural Archives.
Subjects depicted
Summary
Norman ‘Normski’ Anderson was born in Northwest London in 1966 and became a documenter of British youth culture in the 1980s and 1990s. Normski was part of the UK hip hop scene during this period and his photographs record the styles adopted by hip hop artists like the London-based She Rockers.

Donna ‘She-Roc’ McConnell, Dupe Fagbesa and Alison ‘Betty Boo’ Clarkson made up the rap trio She Rockers, which gained attention in the late 1980s alongside other British female hip hop groups like Cookie Crew. She Rockers worked with the American hip hop group Public Enemy, after performing an impromptu rap with them at a McDonalds in Shepherd’s Bush. British hip hop fashion was influenced by the style of clothing worn by Public Enemy and other popular American hip hop artists, such as Run DMC and the female group Salt-n-Pepa. The baseball jackets, snapback caps, Adidas high-top trainers and large earrings worn by the She Rockers show the way in which these trends were adopted in Britain.

The V&A acquired seven photographs by Normski as part of the Staying Power project. Staying Power is a five year partnership between the V&A and Black Cultural Archives. The project aims to explore black British experience from the 1950s to the 1990s through photographs acquired by the V&A and oral histories conducted by Black Cultural Archives.
Associated objects
Collection
Accession number
E.112-2012

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Record createdJanuary 31, 2012
Record URL
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