Performer – Lil’ Kim
Date – September 24, 1997
Venue – The Strand, Providence, RI
It was freshman year of college and hip-hop was my music of choice. Bad Boy Records had many of the top artists, including Notorious B.I.G, who was killed only a few months earlier.
On this night the headliner was his label-mate Lil’ Kim, the self proclaimed ‘Queen of Hip-Hop.’ I had been to this same venue, a few months earlier to see Bad Boy’s Ma$e, but unfortunately I lost the ticket stub for that show.
At most hip-hop performances a DJ and a number of MCs back up the headliner. In this case Kim toured with Junior M.A.F.I.A., a group best-known for their hit Players Anthem (also featuring B.I.G.). Listen to the announcer at the end of this clip teasing the Apollo kids competition coming up next. Can you imagine what these kids were thinking as they watched this performance while waiting to take the stage?
Unfortunately the most memorable thing about the night I saw Lil’ Kim was the speeding ticket I received on the way home. My license was tied to my home address so the ticket was mailed directly to my parents. Needless to say, they were not happy to find out I was over an hour away from school after midnight in the middle of the week.
Venue notes: The Strand is an old theater that was originally built in 1915. The seats had been permanently removed to accommodate concerts and club nights. It’s now known as Lupo’s Heartbreak Hotel at The Strand.
Artist relevance today: 6
Kim is back in the news for the first time in a while. She’s battling with the extremely popular female rapper Nicki Minaj who is on Lil’ Wayne’s Young Money Entertainment label. Kim should be thanking Nicki for this career boost because she hasn’t had a hit in a while. In this case, the competition could bring her back to the mainstream.
Do you think Nicki is better than Kim was in her prime?
absolutely not