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A woman who works hard to keep
herself surrounded by controversy, Lil' Kim (born Kimberly Jones) is one
of more prominent female rappers working today -- and certainly one of the
most explicit. Brought up in Brooklyn, she received her street training
when, following the divorce of her parents, she moved out on her own as a
teenager. She began her music career in the early 1990s after meeting
Biggie Smalls (also known as Notorious B.I.G.); Smalls brought her into
the rap collective Junior M.A.F.I.A., with whom she would record the
popular album Conspiracy (1995). The sex-spouting persona she presented
with the band paved the way for her solo career, launched the following
year with the release of Hard Core. Aided by contributions from B.I.G. and
Puff Daddy, this debut effort reached #11 in the mainstream charts and
spawned 3 hit singles.
In 1997 her mentor Biggie Smalls was assasinated in the culmination of a
heated rivalry between hip-hop camps on the east and west coasts; a
posthumous B.I.G. album Born Again would appear two years later, featuring
contributions from Kim. A four year gap occured before the appearance of
her second album, but during the interim Kim managed to keep herself in
the news through publicity stunts such as appearing barely-clothed in
numerous magazine spreads and whipping some tit on Diana Ross and the MTV
Video Music Awards audience in 1999. That same year she launched her own
label, Queen Bee Records, as well as launching an acting career with an
appearance in the film She's All That. Occasional appearances on other
artist's projects, including Puff Daddy's second album Forever filled in
the time until her own return to music.
Her second record, The Notorious K.I.M. (2000), lingered at the top of the
R&B charts for a week and was certified platinum. Ultimately it proved
somewhat less popular than her debut, but she made up for this the
following year with her involvement in the song Lady Marmalade (also
featuring Missy Elliott, Christina Aguilera, Pink, and Mya), which would
reach #1 on the pop charts and earn Kim her first Grammy Award.
In 2003 Lil' Kim maintained her momentum with a contribution to the
soundtrack to the film Chicago and the release of her third album La Bella
Mafia, featuring the most popular single of her career -- the not-at-all
veiled euphemism Magic Stick. Her music would be somewhat overshadowed
over the following year, however, by attention to her legal troubles. An
arrest warrant was issued later in the year after Kim missed a series of
court dates concerning a marijuana possession charge from 1996; in 2004
charges of perjury and obstruction of justice were brought against the
rapper in relation to a shooting 3 years earlier -- allegedly a result of
her public feud with fellow rapper and former friend Foxy Brown.
Known for her provocative outfits, pornographic lyrics, edgy rhythm, and
groundbreaking success, this diva sure packs more punch than her name
implies. |
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Lil' Pimp (2005) (V) (voice)
.... Sweet Chiffon
Nora's Hair Salon (2004) (as Kimberly Jones) .... Lil' Kim
"American Dreams" .... Shirley Ellis (1 episode, 2003)
... aka Our Generation (Australia) (USA: working title)
- Another Saturday Night (2003) TV Episode .... Shirley Ellis
Gang of Roses (2003) (as Lil' Kim) .... Chastity
Those Who Walk in Darkness (2003) (V) .... Soledad
Fuse's Summer Jam X (2003) (TV) .... Performer
Juwanna Mann (2002) .... Tina Parker
"Moesha" .... Diamond (1 episode, 2001)
- Paying the Piper (2001) TV Episode .... Diamond
"DAG" .... Gina Marie (1 episode, 2001)
- Guns and Roses (2001) TV Episode .... Gina Marie
"V.I.P." .... Freedom Fighter (1 episode, 1999)
... aka V.I.P. - Die Bodyguards (Germany)
- Mao Better Blues (1999) TV Episode (as Lil' Kim) .... Freedom
Fighter
She's All That (1999) .... Alex Sawyer |
