People wondered where Lil Kim’s new music was before 2009 when Nicki Minaj started turning the female rap game into a Harajuku Barbie World and now we finally have some answers. While fans thought she had backed out of the rap game for good, she was legally barred from releasing new music.
This past weekend, she sat down with DJ Envy for MTV’s ‘Sucka Free’ and revealed that she’s been dodging lawsuits over the years which has prevented her from recording and releasing music She attempted to by-pass the lawsuits and release her Black Friday mixtape in 2011 (through orders on Paypal), however, she’s been in a legal chokehold for six years after she attempted to switch labels when she was released from prison.
“When I came home from prison in 2006, I was really unhappy with my label so I wanted to get off, and I didn’t get released. I wasn’t dropped. I had to pay them. So, at the end of the day, it’s like that takes time. For two years, I fought and fought and fought and finally there was a break. During those two years, I did my Hollywood thing, I mean doing reality shows, ‘Dancing With The Stars’ and all that good stuff. But in between me doing ‘Dancing With The Stars’, I struck up another deal. I did deal with Track Masters, and it didn’t work out, but that took another year or two.“Contractually, by the courts, I could not record any music. I wasn’t supposed to put any music out. Technically ‘Black Friday’ was a mixtape, so I was able to get away with that. But technically they could have come after me if I were to put out an album. I couldn’t do it. So, this is something that my fans don’t know, but now you know. Legally I wasn’t allowed or able to do music. And ’til this day I’m not going to say I’m glad that the lawsuit happened with Trackmasters, but it made me more of a business woman.”
In 2008, Lil Kim was sued by Brookland Media (Trackmasters) for 2.5 million dollars and barred from recording any new material after they accused her of backing out of her record deal. The company had paid Atlantic Records $200,000 to get her out of her previous contract, spent $240,000 to produce eight songs for her unfinished LP and shelled out over $12,000 in rent for a home near her crib.
It looks as though her legal troubles may be over for now. She’s back to releasing music and recently put out a hood banger featuring Young Jeezy titled ‘Keys To The City’ where she gets back to spitting real verses, throwing in a line about why she went to jail for not snitchin’ and a shout out to Willow Smith.
Take a listen below
