Lady Slang

There are many slang words for ladies in the english language. Wes himself is a gentlemen who does not believing in disrespecting women. Still, from an academic standpoint it's important to analyze these words in the context of our modern vernacular. I have formed my own theories on these words, and what has held each back from mainstream acceptance.

Skeeo

The closest synonym to skeeo would be hoe. Skeeo is a much friendlier term though. A girl might endearingly call her friend a skeeo, in the way that some old man from a 60's sitcom might call his friend a "rascal" or a "so and so". There is a connotation of upward-mobility with the word as it relates to the class structure. As one definition in the urban dictionary puts it, a skeeo "looks like a flawless dimepiece, but really ain't got a dime."
The term saw it's most significant mainstream use when Jay-Z uttered it in Mariah Carey's 1999 pop anthem "Heartbreaker". The word has appeared on various hip hop tracks, and has been used in a few films since, but the public has never latched on to it. Some people theorize that Jay-Z himself is to blame for this words relative failure. According to Wikipedia, "When the (Heartbreaker) video was released, Jay-Z had recorded the single "Girl's Best Friend" for the soundtrack to the film Blue Streak and was subject to a short-term exclusive deal with Epic Records that stipulated that he could not appear in any other videos. During the part of the song that Jay-Z raps, an animated sequence featuring cartoon versions of Carey and her friends was shown instead." Jay-Z later recorded a performance scene that would be added to the video. In the scene Jay-Z rapped from a red bath-tub, paying homage to the famous "Who do I trust? Me, that's who!" scene in scarface. Some say that this was the moment when rappers doing Scarface scenes officially became played out. The damage was done. The term skeeo would forever be linked to an animated Jay-Z.

Biddy

A biddy is an attractive young lady. The closest synonym would be chick. The term doesn't necessarily have any connotations of disrespect. The English language is suffering from a lack of friendly and endearing terms for young ladies. The lack of mainstream acceptance of this word has puzzled some. Some people have theorized that cheesy males have incorporated this word too many times into the same conversations, thus burning it out before it had a chance to catch on. Legend also has it that Pauly Shore used the word for a period of time in the 90's. This claim has never been confirmed, but the stigma still remains.
Probably the biggest strike against the term is that it has already existed in British slang for many years. The term refers to an ill-tempered, un-attractive old woman. Very few people in the U.S. use the term in this fashion, but the potential for percieved insults exists. It should be noted that if you are going to use such words, The Gramercy Riff officially endorses this term for 2007.

Minivan

As far as I know, this is a newer term. It's biggest mainstream use came in 2005 on Kanye West's Diamonds from Sierra Leone remix: "If a stripper named Porscha and you get tips from many men, then your fat friend her nickname is minivan". While certainly not a flattering term, minivan isn't all bad. The term denotes one that is good, large, and reliable though generally not exciting or attractive. There are a lot worse terms out there for plus-sized women. The jury is still out on this term. It's only officially been broadcast to the mainstream for 2 years. It's also a much more specialized term so you don't get as many chances to use the term in day to day conversation. The Gramercy Riff does not endorse making fun of large women, but if you insist on doing so, please do it with class like Kanye would.