Leslie and the LYs

Leslie Hall is the reigning female geek of 2005. A graduate of the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, the 23-year-old rapper is riding the crest of a dork-chic phenomenon that began with Napoleon Dynamite and will inevitably end with an entirely new generation of system administrators. And though she's unlikely to displace Lil' Kim as the "first lady of hip-hop," the Iowa native undoubtedly has hip-hop's most extensive collection of nylon gold jumpsuits and Gem sweaters (her RV doubles as the first Gem Sweater Museum). As a live performer, Hall is known for doing aerobatic b-boy moves and rapping about her clothes. Granted, this is not the most "street life" of lyrical topics, but this chick knows how to freestyle over a Debbie Deb beat and break out into church choir at the drop of a hat.