The rap game since it was created has been dominated by mostly male characters. Lil Kim is one in a very short list of female rappers who have managed to break into the mainstream alongside some of the best female rappers to ever make it. Lil Kim’s fame hasn’t come easy. She had a difficult childhood and a tough time bursting into the limelight, but she finally made it. In this article, we’ll look at everything you should know about the lady sometimes dubbed the “Queen of Rap.”
Everything you need to know about Lil Kim
Lil Kim was given the name Kimberly Denise Jones when she was born on July 11, 1974. She was born to Linwood Jones and Ruby Jones in a New York neighborhood. She and her older brother Christopher grew up in Brooklyn and for elementary school, Lil Kim attended Queen of All Saints Elementary School. Her family unit collapsed when she was only nine years old and Lil Kim remained in her father’s care. The two had a very tough relationship, so after a while Linwood Jones kicked his daughter out of their house. Homeless Lil Kim, now living on the streets, dropped out of high school.
It was while on the streets that she met Christopher Wallace, better known as The Notorious BIG Biggie Smalls. He became very important to Lil Kim’s career but also to her personal life. As Biggie Smalls rose in popularity and met Sean Combs as part of Bad Boy Records, he was able to help her even more. To further her education, she attended Sarah J. Hale Vocational High School, but after only two and a half years she transferred to Brooklyn College Academy to complete her high school education because she continued to leave classes to meet with friends.
When Biggie Smalls started the Brooklyn-based group Junior MAFIA in 1994, Lil Kim was part of the group. It was then that she adopted the stage name, which was only 19 at the time. The group was working on an album they called Conspiracy together . It received mediocre reviews upon its release in 1995, but still managed to debut at number 8 on the Billboard 200. In its first week of release, it managed to sell 69,000 copies. On December 6, 1995, the Conspiracy was certified gold by the RIAA. The popularity Kim received from Junior MAFIA and the album allowed her to launch a solo career and in the same year she began working on her debut album.
In 1996, Lil Kim released her debut album, which she titled Hardcore . It has sold over 6 million copies worldwide and was certified double platinum by the RIAA. Next, she released The infamous KIM in 2000 and La Bella Mafia in 2003 which also went platinum. Lil Kim can also be seen in the remake of Ms. Marmalade with other singers like ChristinaAguilera, Pink and Mya. The song won the 2002 Grammy Award for Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals and the MTV Video Music Video Award for Video of the Year.
To date, Lil Kim has sold over 15 million albums and 30 million singles worldwide in her career. She was ranked #45 on VH1’s list of the 100 Greatest Women in Music. She is also considered a fashion icon and a source of inspiration for many people. Ultimately, however, Lil Kim’s music remains what she is best known for and she is often called the hip hop goddess or the queen of rap.
Lil Kim dated Biggie Smalls who died in 1997. In 1996, she actually became pregnant with his child, but decided not to keep the baby. Biggie called Kim just three days before his death to tell her he loved her. Her other serious relationships occurred in 2002 with Damion Hardy. It lasted a year but unfortunately Lil Kim became a victim of physical abuse to the point that she explained that she had to get multiple nose jobs afterwards because she was beaten.
Where is she now?
Lil Kim might not be heard dropping lines as often these days, but she’s a mom now who had a daughter, who she named Royal Reign, in June 2014. Her daughter’s father is a man named Mr. Paper, who is also a rapper. The two had a nasty custody battle over their daughter shortly after her birth.
As for music, Lil Kim announced in 2017 that she was working on a new album to be released in 2018. A single called Böse was released from the forthcoming album on July 11, 2018 and she announced that the album’s release date will be in November 2018.
Meanwhile, Lil Kim fights hard to rescue her home from lockdown. The New Jersey home is still facing foreclosure, and the judge on the case has ordered her to pay her creditor $32,297.41 immediately. To keep her home, she must provide proof of home insurance and continue to pay $10,155.47 per month.