With a career spanning almost twenty years, Lil Kim is undoubtedly one of Rap’s more popular living legends.
Yes, while recent years have seen her ‘mainstream’ appeal fall prey to irrelevancy, there is no denying the ‘No Time’ Rapper’s mark on Hip Hop culture and the short but sweet time she enjoyed as Pop’s reigning MC circa 2001.
So now, weeks after confirming the release of new material, That Grape Juice presents…
‘Relighting Lil Kim’
Let’s face it, up until joining forces with Bad Boy‘s ‘Diddy’ in 2010, Rick Ross found himself in a similar position to that of Lil Kim– forced to watch their cause bashed and belittled by a commercially potent rival.
In Ross’ case, this rival was 50 Cent and while it’d be unrealistic to hope Kim could match sales boasted by Nicki Minaj, there’s no reason she can’t be just as popular as her.
This, we’d say, might be achieved by Ms.Jones lending her skills to as many cuts as possible- by way of verses as fiery as the lines held in Mobb Deep‘s ‘Quiet Storm’.
Of course, thought it’d do little to stop fans asking for the release of her own material, it would guarantee the star heavy rotation on Urban radio- thus forcing her back into the zeitgeist.
As far as labels goes, it’s pretty fantastical to assume Kim will be scoring a six figure contract any time soon, especially with her stock being as low as it is.
Perhaps, in making the most of her touring power (see success of ‘Return Of The Queen Tour’, her best bet would be to ink an independent deal which would see her efforts dedicated to pushing digital releases but more importantly- generating revenue via live shows.
By no means are we comparing Kim to Madonna, but as the sales of ‘MDNA‘ can attest to, an act doesn’t have to a mega seller album to enjoy a successful touring run.
A run, which would see Kim cut out the middle man and take new music directly to her fans who’d show their support by purchasing tickets and not downloads.
Wrapping up, if Britney Spears can survive 2007, Janet the ‘Superbowl’ and Rihanna ‘Battleship’, nothing is impossible for Kim…if armed with the right financial backing, stylist and material that speaks to her layered and inspirational story.
A story, which saw her overcome the loss of Biggie Smalls, domestic abuse and the sexism she faced upon arrival. A story, we believe is far from over.