Kimberly Denise Jones, known as Lil' Kim, is an American rapper, songwriter, record producer, model, and actress born on July 11, 1974 or 1975 in Brooklyn, New York. She began her music career in 1995 with Junior M.A.F.I.A., whose debut album Conspiracy produced two top 20 singles in the US. Her debut solo album, Hard Core (1996), was certified double platinum and included three consecutive No. 1 rap hits. Her next albums, The Notorious K.I.M. (2000) and La Bella Mafia (2003), were certified platinum, making her one of the few female rappers with at least three platinum albums.
Lil' Kim was featured on the No. 1 single "Lady Marmalade" alongside Mýa, Pink, and Christina Aguilera, which won two MTV Video Music Awards and a Grammy Award in 2002. She served a year in prison in 2005 for lying to a jury about a shooting incident. Her fourth album, The Naked Truth, was released during her incarceration. Lil' Kim returned to public attention in 2009 with an appearance on Dancing with the Stars. She has received multiple accolades, including rankings on Complex Magazine's and VH1's lists of top rap and hip-hop songs, and was ranked 45th on VH1's 2012 "100 Greatest Women In Music," the second highest for a solo female hip-hop artist.
United States
