HIP HOP NEWS: Queen Latifah to Return to Hip Hop

Actress/rapper Queen Latifah, who has become widely known for her work in the movie world (including an Oscar nod for Chicago), has taken a sebatacle from the silver screen to produce her first Hip Hop album in over 15 years.

The new album which was described by Latifah as "banging" in a recent interview with Rolling Stone magazine, is set for release in December. The majority of the project, according to the Queen, was completed with the help of fellow Hip Hop icons LL Cool J and Dr. Dre. In addition, fans can look forward to contributions from Missy Elliott and Swizz Beatz on the album, which is currently being mixed.

The rapper-turned-actress has stated that Dr. Dre also helped her write some of the material, along with Ludacris, writing the rest of the material herself.

Latifah, who has endured much speculation about her sexuality, partly fuelled by her role in the 1996 film Set It Off where she plays a lesbian, jokingly told Rolling Stone that she considered naming the currently untitled album The L Word "just to mess with people's heads. L was gonna stand for love though or La. Since people want to play games, I like to jab back sometimes just for fun, but I'm like, 'Nah, that’s too much energy wasted.'"

With her parts of the album completed, Latifah's associates are putting the final touches to the project. The album's first single is still currently undecided, as she admitted that she's not sure who's on the album, aside from Busta Rhymes. "They've been waiting to talk to me to surprise me," Latifah says. "I'm actually supposed to talk to them and find out who the hell is on that damn album. I'm sure there is no one on there I don't like."