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Lil Kim’s career just got some new energy injected into it. The La Bella Mafia rapper recently announced that she is now under new management. With a new book and tour well on the way, Lil’ Kim is taking her career to the next level. Let’s take a look at the Queen Bee’s Hardcore journey.
Lil’ Kim’s iconic career began when she met and began to rock with fellow Brooklyn rapper The Notorious B.I.G. From there, she would join the rap group Junior M.A.F.I.A., and ultimately sign with Bad Boy Records. After the group released their debut album, Lil’ Kin embarked on a solo career. This would prove to be a great move for the rapper as she began to set the tone for many of today’s female rappers. It would also be the last album that featured both Lil’ Kim and Biggie Smalls as group members.
Early in Kim’s career, she was managed by Damion “D-Roc” Butler’s management company, “Roc Management.” She was introduced to him via Big, who was his best friend as well. Butler is credited for launching her career along with others like Biggie Smalls and Faith Evans.
While being managed by Butler, an incident occurred in 2001 outside of Hot 97’s Manhattan studios. This stemmed from a raging beef between Lil’ Kim and Foxy Brown. After Lil’ Kim and her entourage crossed paths with rapper Capone (one half of rap group Capone-N-Noreaga) and their crew, a battle enraged that would come back to haunt Kim a few years later. It would also cause her to sever ties with Butler as her manager.
In 2005, Lil’ Kim found herself on trial for the incident after lying to a grand jury. Initially telling the court that she was not at the scene of the crime, footage retrieved from security cameras at the scene placed Lil’ Kim at the scene along with her former manager, Damion Butler, according to the New York Times. She was eventually sentenced to one year in July of 2005. Additionally, her former manager was sentenced 12 years in 2001. He was released in 2008 after serving his time.
At the time of her split with Butler, Hilary Weston, who had been co-managing along with D-Roc, took on the primary management role. Weston helped to produce her sophomore album and both of its follow-ups. But she would also soon find herself involved in Lil’ Kim and D-Roc’s legal troubles. When news of the 2001 incident hit media, manager Hillary Weston issued a statement denying any involvement on behalf of her client, Lil’ Kim. However, according to a report from Today, Weston was soon indicted.
Next, Lil’ Kim would begin to be managed by Big Fendi, who was the ex-manager of Nicki Minaj, in the attempt to make a major comeback. Their relationship, however, would not work out for the best, and fans begged for Kim to fire him. Big Fendi used appearances with Lil’ Kim to speak on his then-current issues with Nicki Minaj, while fans felt his focus was off. Finally, in 2015, she dropped Big Fendi as her manager and signed on with the concert promotion firm The Commission. In a statement provided to Billboard, the company explains that they would be entering the artist management realm, with Lil’ Kim as one of their first acts. “We are beginning with a bang,” the company promised in a statement.
But it appears Lil’ Kim’s business relationship with The Commission has ended. Recently, Lil’ Kim appeared on Complex‘s “Hiking With Rappers” series where she revealed that one of her best friends for years is now managing her. This person would be none other than Nick Cannon.
Speaking with King Keraun, Lil Kim shared that their friendship extends many years. She states that because of him, she will also star in Miracle Across 125th Street, which she calls the “Friday Of Christmas movies.”
It will be interesting to see how Nick Cannon handles Kim’s career. He has also previously managed Amber Rose and Kehlani.
