Monday 26th May 2014 by Alexandra Pollard Gaby Whitehill | Photos by WENN.com

Tags: Lauryn Hill

Today (26 May), Lauryn Hill celebrates her 39th birthday. From the early '90s, first with the Fugees and then as a solo artist, Hill has been one of the biggest stars in an industry that has been historically dominated by men. Though she's had several periods of self-imposed exile (and one of law-enforced exile) since she rose to fame twenty years ago, Hill's ongoing legacy as a tour-de-force in the R&B and Hip Hop scene remains.

To celebrate Hill's birthday, we've put together a gallery of the greatest female rappers of all time. These are the people who have climbed onto a platform that's far too frequently littered with misogyny, and given as good as they've got. We salute you.