The Wee Papa Girls
This commercial UK female rap duo's lyrics floated on lively hip hop and house tracks. The two components were sisters TV Tim (b. Timmie Lawrence, London, England) and Total S (b. Sandra Lawrence, London, England). They had been introduced to the world of US hip hop by their club DJ friend Junior G. Finding this new music infectious, they abandoned their previous loves of soul and hard rock to establish themselves as a rap act, taking their name from their father's habit of muttering Wee Papa to himself when he got over-excited. The ‘girl rappers’ was a natural extension. Snapped up by Jive Records, they debuted with a rap version of George Michael's Faith, which just dented the UK Top 60. It was followed by Heat It Up, recorded with Cox and Steele (as Two Men And A Drum Machine) of Fine Young Cannibals fame. Reaching number 21 in the charts, it prefaced their most successful single, Wee Rule. Nodding to reggae (and remixed by Aswad), it peaked at number 6 in the UK charts, while the accompanying debut album achieved massive sales in Europe. When they returned after a year and a half away with a second album, it saw them pursue a more commercial-dance direction, with the introduction of producers of the calibre of Cliville and Cole ( C+C Music Factory), Coldcutand Danny D ( D-Mob). However, their last significant chart position came with Blow The House Down. Innocuous and obvious at best, they amicably dissolved in early 1991. Their most enduring legacy, perhaps, a revamped theme for UK television programme JIM'LL FIX IT.