Queen Pen

Queen Pen
Birth name	Lynise Walters
Born	1972 (age 44–45) Brooklyn, New York City
Genres	Hip hop
Occupation(s)	Rapper
Instruments	Rapping
Years active	1996–present
Labels	Lil' Man, Motown
Associated acts	Teddy Riley, Blackstreet, Nefu Da Don, Dr. Dre, Ridley

Lynise Walters, better known by the stage name Queen Pen, (born 1972) is a Grammy-nominated American rapper.

Her music career started as a protégé of Teddy Riley, a record producer and member of the R&B group BLACKstreet in the mid-1990s. She was a featured rapper, along with Dr. Dre, on BLACKstreet's 1996 hit, "No Diggity". She signed to Riley's Lil' Man label, and released My Melody (1997), her solo debut album, produced by Riley.

Her first album produced the charting singles "All My Love", "Man Behind the Music", and "Party Ain't a Party". Queen Pen earned a 1998 Soul Train nomination for Best New Artist. She also gained notice from her song "Girlfriend" (featuring Me'Shell NdegeOcello), where she explored same-sex affairs.

She took a three-year hiatus from rapping, and returned with Conversations With Queen (2001), her second album. She is now a novelist. Her son is also a rapper, who uses the stage name Nefu Da Don.

With the release of the controversial lesbian-themed single, "Girlfriend", media sources often presumed Queen Pen as being an openly gay or bisexual woman for her daring decision in releasing a song that was taboo in the hip-hop community. During the song's release, Pen remained coy about her sexuality and would not disclose it unless it was going to be a "front page" story. She also added that if she told the press she was straight, she would be viewed as a liar; in turn, if she were to say she was gay, she would be viewed as someone trying to get publicity. In 2001, Pen officially disclosed to the press that she was neither gay nor bisexual. However, by 2008, Pen rebutted the aforementioned remark, and confirmed that she was indeed bisexual and had sexual relationships with both men and women.

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