Artist:Lil' Kim f/Left Eye, Da Brat, Missy Elliott, Angie Martinez
Song:Not Tonight: Ladies Night Remix
Album:Nothing to Lose: Music from and Inspired by the Motion Picture
Rapper Kimberly "Lil' Kim" Jones had success in the late 90s. The 1997 single Not Tonight was a top ten hit. She was also on the 2001 chart topper Lady Marmalade but I wouldn't say she was the leader on that song. At the time she was called The Queen of Rap. But she was used more as a guest rapper on other folks music than a lead artist. So she may have seemed like a big deal at the time. But maybe she wasn't. She was born July 11, 1974 in Brooklyn, NY. Her father was a US Marine. After her parents divorce, she lived with her father. But they didn't get along and she left home and lived in the streets. She met rapper Christopher "Notorious B.I.G." Wallace and he got her to return to high school. He got her into the rap group Junior M.A.F.I.A. That's when she started calling herself Lil' Kim. They released a couple of albums. But they split up after Wallace's 1997 murder. Kim started her own label Queen Bee and signed with Atlanic's Big Beat label. The original version of Not Tonight is from Lil' Kim's 1996 debut album Hard Core. It was produced by Jermaine Dupri and he appeared on the song. But the version of Not Tonight that reached #6 on the Billboard Hot 100 is from the 1997 comedy film Nothing to Lose starring Tim Robbins and Martin Lawrence and written and directed by Steve Odenkirk. It's called the Ladies Night Remix and features Left Eye, Da Brat, Missy Elliott and Angie Martinez. This was produced by remix specialist Rashad "Ringo" Smith. The obvious sample is Kool and the Gang's hit Ladies' Night. Maybe a little too obvious which is probably why it was a hit. The soundtrack album is available as a budget CD. So I guess it's a discography orphan. Lil' Kim was on the 2001 #1 hit Lady Marmalade featuring Christina Aguilera, Mya and Pink from the film from the film Moulin Rouge. And her 2004 single Magic Stick featuring 50 Cent reached #2 on the Billboard Hot 100. He was hot at the time. So Kim released four albums on Atlantic. It all came to an end after Kim served a year in prison for lying to a jury. Since then she has released music independently. These days she appears a lot on reality TV like Hip-Hop Evolution. A lot of rappers end up doing that. Maybe she wasn't that famous in the first place. Here's the video for Not Tonight: Ladies Night Remix by Lil' Kim featuring Left Eye, Da Brat, Missy Elliott and Angie Martinez.
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