Rap Women: They’ve Come a Long Way : Pop music: The first-ever all-female rap revue will be held tonight at the Los Angele Sports Arena. ‘This concert is a milestone,’ says popular rapper Queen Latifah.

Make way for the Motherlode.

Tonight is women’s night at the Los Angeles Sports Arena, where concert promoters say 17,000 fans are expected to attend the first all-female rap revue in history.

“This concert is a milestone in rap,” Queen Latifah, arguably the most popular female rapper, said. “The idea of presenting an all-female revue is thrilling and long overdue.”

Hosted by MTV’s Fab 5 Freddy and Fox TV’s Dee Barnes, the five-hour, 12-act extravaganza is scheduled to feature performances by Latifah, Monie Love, Yo-Yo, M.C. Lyte, Nikki D, M.C. Trouble, Mitchi Mee, M.C. Peaches, Nefertiti, M.C. Smooth, Ms. Melodie and Harmony.

East Coast male rap stars L.L. Cool J and Boogie Down Productions leader KRS-One, while not performing, are also expected to participate in the proceedings.

“The fact that this show is happening is proof that the industry has finally opened up to women,” Latifah said. “It shows us what direction things are headed in.”

Rap music has indeed come a long way since it started in the late ‘70s on the streets of New York--originally a male art form whose top stars frequently portrayed women as vain and selfish sex objects.

Female rappers were largely ignored until the late ‘80s when the East Coast female duo Salt-n-Pepa shattered the sexual barrier with their platinum-selling “Push It” single. The duo’s success led to the signing dozens of artists who now write about everything from teen pregnancy to premature ejaculation.

Los Angeles rapper Yo-Yo, founder of the 2,000-member Intelligent Black Woman’s Coalition and a musical ally of controversial hard-core rapper Ice Cube, believes women have broadened the creative perimeters of the medium.

“There is so much more to female rap than just a beat,” Yo-Yo said this week. “No guy has ever rapped what I rap. My message is about how women should not let men physically abuse them. Let’s face it, this isn’t a man’s world any more. Those days are over.”

While some female rappers are not above insulting men, most choose to address the battle of the sexes from a feminist perspective. East Coast rapper Nikki D believes tonight’s concert should help dispel “the myth” that women approve of the misogynistic put-downs popular on the male rap circuit.

“With guy rappers, all you get is a lot of talking bad about women, grabbing between the legs and bragging,” Nikki D said in a phone interview from New York. “What can a guy like that do for me? That’s what I want to know. Some people label me a feminist, but I don’t play that. I just tell the girls exactly like it is.”

Ironically, the emergence of feminist ideology in rap has done little to diminish the interest of male fans. In fact, the consummate rapping techniques of female artists like Latifah and Yo-Yo have drawn praise in male rap circles. Edith Gursel, national director of Go Productions, the company promoting tonight’s concert, said she expects a large male turn-out at the Sports Arena.

“Guys don’t want to just hear tales about gangbanging,” Gursel said. “I think female rap provides the youth of America with a peaceful positive message. Women aren’t into violence. They rap about love and knowledge. Who can’t relate to that?”

Tonight’s concert will be the first major rap performance presented in the Los Angeles area since a violent outbreak occurred Dec. 27 at the Celebrity Theatre in Anaheim at an Ice Cube/Too Short show. Gursel has been working since then with Los Angeles police and a grass-roots coalition of community leaders, ex-gang members, underground record companies and high school volunteers to prepare a comprehensive security plan for this evening’s show.

Los Angeles Police Sgt. Earl Paysinger, who is coordinating security for the event, said that more than two dozen off-duty officers will be deployed inside the facility to complement the facility’s private security force. Sports Arena general manager George Gonzalez said he doesn’t foresee any problems.

“We are aware of the problems that occurred at the last rap show in Anaheim,” Gonzalez said. “We have been working closely with police to ensure that fans at the Sports Arena have a safe experience.”

Gursel, who intends to book the feminine rap revue into arenas across the country this spring, suggested that tonight’s concert will prove that female rappers can pack the house peacefully.

“This is the start of a new day in rap,” Gursel said. “The time has come for women to unite together and take a stand on the issues. After all, we’re the ones who bear the children and bring new life into the world. I believe 1991 will go down as the year that female rap came of age.”