With her 1988 debut, Lyte As a Rock, MC Lyte upped the ante for hardcore female MCs. Classic tracks like “Paper Thin” and “10% Dis” (a scathing attack on rival rapper Antoinette) established Lyte's reputation for sharp lyrics and raw vocal tone. Her next two LPs, Eyes on This and Act Like You Know, spawned golden-age classics “Cha Cha Cha” and “Poor Georgie,” respectively. But she would enjoy her greatest commercial successes with her 1993 single “Ruffneck” and a pair of '96 hits, “Keep On, Keepin' On” and the Sean “Diddy” Combs-produced “Cold Rock a Party”, the latter of which featured a pre-fame Missy Elliott—just one of many feisty female rappers to follow Lyte's blazed trail. After a decade-plus absence, Lyte returned in 2015 with the deservedly named Legend.