National Recording Registry’s new additions: Queen Latifah and Super Mario

Madonna’s “Like a Virgin” and John Lennon’s “Imagine” are among the 25 recordings that will be added to the Library of Congress’s National Recording Registry.

It’s a year of firsts for the list of recordings picked for preservation. Songs are chosen “based on their cultural, historical or aesthetic importance in the nation’s recorded sound heritage,” according to the library. The additions, which were announced Wednesday, include Queen Latifah’s “All Hail the Queen” album from 1989, making her the first female rapper to join the ranks.