Cheeky Blakk: The New Orleans Music Legend Who Helped Introduce “Twerk” to the World

#NOLAZINE - Long before bounce music became recognized around the world, artists in New Orleans were creating an energetic sound built around neighborhood pride, call-and-response chants and nonstop dancing. Among the women who helped establish that movement was Cheeky Blakk, a fearless rapper whose music and personality made her one of the city’s most important bounce pioneers.

Born Angela Woods, Cheeky Blakk entered a New Orleans music scene that was largely controlled by male artists. Instead of allowing that environment to intimidate her, she brought the same confidence, aggression and stage presence as any of her competitors.

With songs such as “Twerk Something,” “Let Me Get That Outcha” and “Bitch Get Off Me,” Cheeky Blakk created music that took over school dances, talent shows, block parties and clubs across New Orleans. Her records became part of the soundtrack to an important period in the city’s musical history.

From Backup Dancer to Bounce Pioneer

Cheeky Blakk began her career as a backup dancer before becoming an artist herself. During that period, she met New Orleans rapper Pimp Daddy, another important figure from the early bounce movement.

Their relationship eventually became part of their music. The two artists reportedly recorded diss songs about one another, transforming personal disagreements into entertaining musical battles. Those records helped generate excitement in the streets and attracted fans who wanted to see the two confront each other through their music and live performances.

Cheeky proved that she was much more than someone’s backup dancer or girlfriend. Once she stepped behind the microphone, her delivery, attitude and ability to control an audience demanded attention.

At a time when artists such as DJ Jimi, DJ Jubilee and Pimp Daddy were helping bounce music dominate locally, Cheeky Blakk kicked open the door for women who wanted to participate in the movement on their own terms.

The Importance of “Twerk Something”

In 1994, Cheeky Blakk released the album Gots 2 Be Cheeky, which included one of her most influential songs, “Twerk Something.”

The record contains one of the earliest known uses of the word “twerk” in recorded music. Years before the term became part of mainstream pop culture, Cheeky Blakk was already using it in New Orleans bounce.

The dance itself existed within New Orleans culture before it gained national recognition. However, “Twerk Something” helped give the movement a name that would eventually travel far beyond the city.

As artists such as Beyoncé, Drake, Miley Cyrus and others incorporated bounce music or twerking into mainstream entertainment, conversations about the culture’s origins became more important. Those conversations repeatedly led back to New Orleans—and to pioneers such as Cheeky Blakk.

Her contribution has also been recognized in academic research examining the relationship between bounce music and dance. A study published by the University of California Press identifies Cheeky Blakk as the artist who used the term in her 1994 recording “Twerk Something.” University of California Press

Creating the “Cheeky Blakk Beat”

Cheeky Blakk’s influence extends beyond introducing “twerk” to a wider musical audience. She also became connected to a production style known as the “Cheeky Blakk beat.”

Created by legendary New Orleans producer Mannie Fresh, the beat was a variation of the “Brown Beats” instrumental that became closely associated with Cheeky’s music. It would become one of the recognizable building blocks used throughout bounce.

Tulane University’s Music Rising project lists the “Cheeky Blakk beat” among the foundational sounds that helped define the genre. That places her name directly within the musical structure and history of New Orleans bounce—not only as a performer, but as an artist whose work influenced the sound itself. Tulane’s Music Rising

Her Mannie Fresh-produced record “Let Me Get That Outcha” became another local favorite. With its commanding vocals and dance-driven production, the song captured everything people loved about early bounce music.

Giving Women a Voice in Bounce Music

Cheeky Blakk’s career was important because she refused to soften herself to fit expectations placed on female performers. She was outspoken, competitive and unapologetically New Orleans.

Her records gave women permission to be loud, bold and fully present in a genre that often placed men at the center. She demonstrated that a female rapper could control a crowd, challenge male artists and create records capable of dominating the city.

That influence can be heard in generations of New Orleans women who followed her. Whether they performed traditional bounce, hip-hop or music influenced by the city’s dance culture, Cheeky helped create space for them.

She was not asking the male-dominated music industry for permission. She was demanding to be heard.

More Than a Local Hitmaker

Some artists are measured entirely by national record sales or Billboard positions. That standard does not fully explain the importance of regional legends such as Cheeky Blakk.

In New Orleans, an artist’s impact can be measured by what happens when the DJ plays a record at a party. It can be heard in the way a crowd responds to a familiar chant, seen in the dances passed from one generation to the next and felt through songs that remain connected to specific neighborhoods and memories.

Cheeky Blakk created that kind of impact.

Her records were part of daily life in New Orleans during the rise of bounce. They were played at school functions, clubs, house parties and neighborhood gatherings. People did not need national television or major radio campaigns to tell them that Cheeky was a star. The city had already decided.

Helping Preserve the History of Bounce

As bounce gained national attention, Cheeky Blakk continued representing the artists who built the culture before mainstream audiences discovered it.

She has participated in interviews, educational discussions and cultural events examining the history of the genre. In 2018, she helped lead Tulane University’s “Business of Bounce” experience, which explored the music’s cultural importance and its connection to New Orleans communities.

Her participation in those conversations matters because bounce history should be told by the people who lived it. Cheeky was present during the genre’s formative years. She understands the clubs, personalities, rivalries and neighborhood energy that cannot be fully explained by someone observing the culture from the outside.

By telling her story, she also protects the contributions of early female artists who could easily be overlooked as bounce becomes increasingly popular around the world.

Cheeky Blakk’s Lasting Legacy

Cheeky Blakk deserves to be remembered as more than an artist with a few popular local records. She is a foundational figure in New Orleans bounce culture.

She helped bring female energy into a male-dominated genre. She worked with Mannie Fresh during an important period in the development of the city’s sound. Her name became connected to one of bounce music’s signature beats, while “Twerk Something” placed her at the center of the history surrounding one of the world’s most recognizable dance terms.

Today, the word “twerk” is used internationally. Bounce-influenced production can be heard in songs by some of the biggest artists in music. Yet many listeners still do not know about the New Orleans pioneers who helped create the culture being celebrated.

Cheeky Blakk is one of those pioneers.

Her music represents a time when New Orleans artists created movements from the ground up—without waiting for national approval. Through confidence, originality and an undeniable ability to move a crowd, Cheeky Blakk earned her place in the history of the city.

She did not simply participate in New Orleans bounce music. She helped shape it.

That is why Cheeky Blakk should always be recognized as a true New Orleans music legend.