7 Reasons We Love Megan Thee Stallion

In the very competitive field of contemporary female rappers, one name stands out in the crowd. Well, three names. Megan Thee Stallion a.k.a. Tina Snow a.k.a. Megan Pete possesses the coveted blend of talent, charm, and looks that have propelled her to the top of the pack. The Houston native first caught the attention of rap fans for her fierce freestyles starting in 2013, but she didn’t hit true mainstream success until 2020’s “Savage,” her single that inspired about a bajillion TikTok dance videos and a remix with Beyoncé. Since then, she has released two albums (and is working on her third) and has collaborated with fellow superstars Dua Lipa (on “Sweetest Pie”) and Cardi B (on “WAP,” another TikTok hit). Her burgeoning career hasn’t been without some drama: she was in a legal battle with her former record label that she accused of an unfair deal; shot in the foot by rapper Tory Lanez, who’s now serving a ten-year sentence; and feuding with Nicki Minaj. But for all her glitz, glamour, and bravado, she comes off as extremely relatable. She enjoys anime, musical theater, and her home state. This summer, her fans, affectionately called Hotties, can catch her at the Hot Girl Summer Tour (the viral catchphrase she coined, thank you very much). And if you aren’t a card-carrying member of Hottie Nation yet, let us convince you.

She’s an Advocate for Mental Health

With an album called Traumazine and a song titled “Anxiety,” Megan clearly values using her platform to talk about mental health. She frequently raps about the how the death of her mother—Holly Thomas, also a rapper, who died from brain cancer in 2019—has affected her, as well as the highly publicized violent incident with Tory Lanez. But her commitment goes beyond words. Her website badbitcheshavebaddaystoo.com (inspired by a line from “Anxiety”) features mental health resources, such as curated podcasts, help lines, and therapist directories.

She’s Social Media Gold

If there’s one thing we’re going to do on TikTok, it’s check to see if @theestallion has posted a new “day in the life” video. Her opening line, “What’s up y’all, it’s ya girl Megan Thee Stallion a.k.a. the Hot Girl Coach,” is like music to our ears. When she isn’t doing vlogs with hilariously unscripted voiceovers, Megan shares a glimpse into her intense workout routine that seems on par with military training. Now we know how she maintains that body-ody-ody-ody.

She’s Apparently Untouchable

One of the most terrifying experiences we can imagine is learning that Nicki Minaj has released a dis track about you. Minaj is one of the fiercest rappers to ever pick up a microphone, but when she released “Big Foot,” aimed at Megan, in late January, every attack seemingly missed its target. The details of why the two were feuding are unclear, but it ignited when Megan’s “Hiss” included a line that listeners decoded as an attack on Minaj’s husband. Nicki’s response stretched more than four minutes, but—unlike the most effective rap disses—it didn’t seem to damage Megan’s credibility or make her look foolish.

She’s Not Too Cool for Musical Theater

By any measure, Megan should have said no to a role in last year’s Dicks: The Musical. The joyfully deranged film is a madcap, queer retelling of The Parent Trap. But not only did Meg sign on to play the boss at the vacuum cleaner parts sales business, she raps “Out Alpha the Alpha,” the movie’s best song. In a showstopping number, she raps about the secret to her success. By the end, she’s got all her male employees walking around the office floor on leashes. “They say ‘boys will be boys’ / Man, what a crock of sh—t / These men, they hold all the cards / It makes me wanna spit” are some of the more printable lyrics. As costar and cowriter Josh Sharp said on Late Night, “Our gay asses wrote a bunch of words and [thought], she won’t say them . . . and then she rapped every single one of those words.”

She’s Taken Creative and Financial Control of Her Career

After breaking off from Carl Crawford–owned 1501 Certified Entertainment in 2023, Megan announced she was funding her career herself. In early 2024, she signed a deal with Warner Music Group that would allow her to use their resources and distribution while owning her own masters and publishing, and releasing music through her own label, Hot Girl Productions.

She’s an Unapologetic Anime Fan

If you didn’t know Megan was an anime fan, her recent trip to Japan has made it abundantly clear. Over the years, she’s discussed some of her favorite shows and frequently dressed up in outfits inspired by some of her favorite characters. Anime, and fans of it, often gets a bad rep as being childish, but for Megan, her love for the medium is due in part to its underdog stories. “I can relate to [Asta, from “Black Clover”] and any of the other main characters in anime because a lot of people, they try to count you out when they feel like you ain’t s— or you ain’t got something yet,” Megan said on her 2021 appearance on “Hot Ones.” And her cosplays—including when she presented at the Crunchyroll Anime Awards as Bruno Bucciarati from “JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure”—are incredibly fun and sexy.

She Proudly Reps Texas

Born in San Antonio and raised in Houston and Pearland, Megan is a Texas girl through and through. Not only does she drop references in her songs—in “Money Good” she raps, “clique full of bad friends, we at Pappadeaux,” nodding to the Houston-based seafood restaurant—Megan also gives back to the local community. She gave out scholarships at her alma mater, Texas Southern University, launched the Pete and Thomas Foundation to support cancer care and food insecurity, and raised funds though “Hotties Helping Houston” to rebuild and repair homes for those affected by Winter Storm Uri. For her efforts, she was awarded the Eighteenth Congressional District Humanitarian Award by Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee in 2021, and with a Key to the City by Houston mayor Sylvester Turner in 2022.

Lauren Castro, Kimya Kavehkar, Doyin Oyeniyi, Leah Prinzivalli, and Dan Solomon contributed to this article.