I wanna fight whoever told Kimberly Denise Jones she was ugly. -JBH

The deeper we look at the history of Hip-Hop, the more women you see at it’s foundation.

Hol’up. Rewind.

The deeper we look at the history of Hip-Hop, the more Black women we see. The more influential you see Black women are, were the bedrock of this genre, of this music, of this art form.

We always been here. The world don’t move without us.

And if we gon’ keep it a stack? Lil’ Kim made it that much more possible to be pretty, slick mouthed, woman and Black. If you took the roar of MC Lyte, seasoned her with Roxanne Shante, and let her bake on HIGH in BedSty? You got Kim.

I remember when The Notorious B.I.G. started shouting out Junior M.A.F.I.A., and happy when I heard Lil’ Kim. I remember I heard her rap, before I ever heard her actually speak! My first thought was how that sound come out that small frame!

Even now, I remember how pretty Lil’ Kim always was. There is a softeness to her, with eyes that always read “Don’t fuck with me!” With HARD CORE (1996) now a 20+ year-old album, I remember the original cover and the controversy over it! Even this many years later if you Google it, you only get half the image.

As a 15-year-old girl, I wanted to feel sexy and seen and powerful. I saw that in Lil Kim. The first song I memorized with her as a feature was CRUSH ON YOU. Thank you to THE BOX being for the culture still! When her part came on? I got so extra with it!

That was my girl. I loved her so much!

To see her now? I almost don’t know who that dame is! Where is our Kim! Who was so mean to her that she said to her reflection, “I hate this bitch!”

WHO DID THAT TO HER?

Is the talent still there? Yes.

Would Nikki Minaj even exist without Lil’ Kim? No.

This debate about her GOAT-ness ain’t even a thing! Because she is in her own right!

I think the industry didn’t know what to do with a confident, sexual, dark-skinned Black woman—her and Foxxy Brown were ahead of their time that way.

And yet—here we are.

I believe she should have been on more features, allowed to flex, even get some more producing and writing credits! More should have been done for her.

I said what I said.

Lil’ Kim deserves all her flowers, all her praise and deserves her role in Hip-Hop’s lineage! Y’all remember her celebration at the Hip-Hop Honors!

I don’t think Hip-Hop can reach its next level of potential without honor women, unboxing women, and realizing what the Urban Prophet Tupac said:

“We all came from a woman, got our game from a woman, and our name from a woman.”

Don’t spit on or sleep on, Lil’ Kim.

She ain’t gone yet.