*Notorious B.I.G. was killed on March 9, 1997 in Los Angeles, and to mark the 19th anniversary on Wednesday, rapper
*On Wednesday, March 9, Lil’ Kim honored the 19th anniversary of Notorious B.I.G.’s death by releasing a new track with Maino called “I Did It For Brooklyn.”
“He became my friend, my lover, my everything,” Kim tells EW of B.I.G., whose real name was Christopher Wallace. “I was his biggest fan.”
Listen below:
“I Did It For Brookyln” is said to be the first of many new project due from Kim in 2016. Last month, she released a remix of Desiigner’s “Panda” and her own new track “#Mine,” featuring rapper Kevin.
Below, excerpts from Lil Kim’s Q&A with EW.com
So are you in the studio?
I’m in the studio every other day. Whenever I can find a break from the little one [daughter Royal Reign].
Who else are you working with?
I have a couple people but I really don’t want to say. I want to leave a little mystique.
Are you aiming to put out an album this year?
I never “aim” to put out an album. When I was with my record company, they would aim to put out an album but I’ll be honest with you, I’d aim for certain days to drop an album and it would never happen. We’d get so caught up in making good singles and good music where we would just be vibing. When the time was right we’d drop an album. Honestly I’m just having fun making music right now.
Was there a time when you weren’t having fun?
It came to a point when life got serious. Sometimes the music won’t always be the focus but it’s always there in the back. Music is what I am. It’s what I’m made of. When I had my baby, music definitely wasn’t my focus. When I was pregnant, music wasn’t my focus. My focus was making sure I had a beautiful healthy baby and raising her, to be the best mother I can be.
Has being a mother influenced the way you want to make music? [Lil’ Kim gave birth in 2014.]
No. Not at all, because it’s like watching a good movie. It’s all entertainment. Entertainment is what I do. When she gets older I’ll make sure I show her the difference. If anything it makes me a better artist.
You’re working on a fashion line too. How’s that going?
When people set out to do fashion – and I know this from talking to my friends Marc Jacobs and Donatella [Versace] – you never know who your core base of fashion is going to be. You have some girls who are a little bigger and cant’t fit into certain things and you got some girls who are very slim and they feel like certain clothes don’t make them feel great. Sometimes I’m representing for the juicy girls and sometimes I’m representing for the slim girls.
Which artists are you interested in today?
I listen to a little bit of everyone – Future, Rihanna, Drake. I like J Cole. I love Adele. I could be listening to Taylor Swift then change over to Kevin Gates.
What did you think of the Kanye West’s Yeezy Season 3 show? Your photo with Kim Kardashian was a hit.
Kanye’s a super creative artist and I had the pleasure to be one of the first artists he worked with. When no one knew who he was, he and I were just working. I knew he was different.
Different from other rappers?
He was different from the music at the time. I didn’t realize he was such a fan of mine. If I had the authority back then I would have done everything to get his music out there when he was trying. I was on the Kanye wave before everyone was.
How has rap music changed since then?
Honestly, when you’re a real artist you don’t ever separate the genres. If you’re a good artist, you’re going to be reinventing your musical style every single time. When we were in our prime back in the day when Bad Boy were moving around, we were changing music. I don’t feel one person is one way all the time. If you are one way all the time then you need to get an enema out of your butt.
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