M C Lyte

Yo-Yo doesn't strike one on first glance as a young woman who would swap insults with hard-core rapper Ice Cube on his volatile "AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted" album. The former Los Angeles school bus driver seems more like a cheerful, easygoing teen-age member of, say, the Whitney Houston fan club than an associate of one of America's most controversial pop figures. "Forget how I seem now," the 19-year-old said when she stopped by her manager's Crenshaw District office on a recent morning.

Yo-Yo doesn't strike one on first glance as a young woman who would swap insults with hard-core rapper Ice Cube on his volatile "AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted" album. The former Los Angeles school bus driver seems more like a cheerful, easygoing teen-age member of, say, the Whitney Houston fan club than an associate of one of America's most controversial pop figures. "Forget how I seem now," the 19-year-old said when she stopped by her manager's Crenshaw District office on a recent morning.

The worlds of hip-hop and hopscotch collided at the Greek Theatre on Thursday night, as the preteen set's current idols, the two members of Kris Kross, rapped their way through a short set of catchy beats and rhymes with all the verve and stage savvy of men three times their age and twice their height.

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."

When LL Cool J speaks, it's hard not to pay rapt attention. During interviews, the hip-hop singer exudes the intensity and self-confidence befitting a rapper who has managed to win over music critics and fans alike during a fruitful 12-year recording career. If LL Cool J were on a football team, he'd be a prime candidate for captain, if not player-coach.

When LL Cool J speaks, it's hard not to pay rapt attention. During interviews, the hip-hop star exudes the type of intensity and self-confidence befitting a rapper who has managed to win over both critics and fans during a lengthy and fruitful 12-year recording career. If LL Cool J were on a football team, he'd be a prime candidate for captain, if not player-coach. The 28-year-old is no shrinking violet, especially when it comes to defending his street credibility.

"Do rich people live there?" asked Sinead O'Connor, gazing at the hillside homes opposite her Hollywood hotel room. The question didn't seem entirely academic. The 21-year-old Irishwoman is looking for a sunny place to live. And what better city to launch the acting career she has thought about ever since watching those Barbra Streisand movies with her mother in Dublin? And if she is not exactly rich yet, she is on the way, having emerged as one of the past year's hottest new pop-music arrivals.