Posted on 07/03/2006 1:14:47 PM PDT by freepatriot32
PHILADELPHIA - Lil' Kim celebrated Independence Day one day early with her release from a federal detention center Monday morning after nearly 10 months behind bars.
The rapper, who was sent to prison for lying about a shootout outside a New York radio station, walked out of the jail looking glamorous in sunglasses and an all-white, cleavage-baring outfit.
Carrying a balloon and a bouquet of white roses, she waved to dozens of cheering onlookers _ some carrying signs that said, "Welcome Home, Queen Bee" _ before getting into a silver Rolls-Royce. The car pulled into a nearby parking lot where she re-emerged to greet the throng.
"I love you," she said, blowing kisses.
Some fans stayed up all night to ensure they made it downtown in time for her 6 a.m. release.
"It was worth it," said Shakiyla Williams, 16. "She was the same Queen Bee _ fabulous."
The 4-foot-11 entertainer, whose real name is Kimberly Jones, began serving her time in the detention center Sept. 19. She was sentenced to a year and a day in prison, but was released early for good behavior.
There seemed to be no hard feelings from the rapper. In a statement released Monday, Lil' Kim thanked the city and federal corrections officials _ as well as her fans _ for the support she received while incarcerated.
"Today is a joyous day for me and my family," she said. "I am extremely grateful and happy to be home."
She stopped Monday to visit with her parole officer in Newark, N.J., and then returned home, where she was greeted by friends, family and a catered spread including barbecue chicken, macaroni and cheese, and salmon pasta salad.
Though several high-profile rappers _ including Beanie Sigel and Tupac Shakur _ have done jail time, Lil' Kim is the first prominent female artist to serve a prison sentence.
"She has accepted responsibility and handled herself in an exemplary manner," her attorney, L. Londell McMillan, said in a statement released by Lil' Kim's publicist.
Lil' Kim will remain under house arrest for 30 days at her home in Alpine, N.J., and be under supervised release for three years.
Her conviction for lying to a federal grand jury and in the subsequent trial stemmed from a gun battle in 2001 that erupted outside WQHT-FM, known as Hot 97. Lil' Kim's entourage had crossed paths with a rival rap group, Capone-N-Noreaga, whose song "Bang, Bang" contains an insult to her from rival Foxy Brown. One man was hurt in the shootout.
Lil' Kim, who won a Grammy in 2001 for her part in the hit remake of "Lady Marmalade," maintained she hadn't noticed two of her close friends _ who later pleaded guilty to gun charges _ at the scene of the shootout.
Jurors at her trial saw radio station security photos of one of the two friends opening a door for her, and witnesses said they saw her at the station with both.
Rapper Lil-Kim waves to fans after being released from the Federal Detention Center in Philadelphia, Monday, July 3, 2006. The rapper, who was sentenced in September to a year and a day in prison for lying about a shootout outside a hip-hop radio station, was released Monday after serving nearly 10 months. She will remain under house arrest for 30 days after her release. (AP Photo/ Joseph Kaczmarek)
Rap is to music as etch-a-sketch is to fine art.
ROTFLMAO! Post of the Day candidate.
Well, she now has some serious cred.
Looks like she was in ClubFed. She came out with a fresh manicure!
I stumbled across VH1 Classic yesterday. I grinned ear-to-ear looking at concert performances of really talented people like the Eagles, Squeeze, Neil Young, and the classic video "Mickey" by Toni Basil.
That's right, I said Toni Basil, who is perhaps just as diminutive as Lil' Kim but infinitely more talented. Basil only had one real hit, but by that time she was already an actress (Easy Rider, Mother, Jugs & Speed) a dancer, and a choreographer. In fact, it was Basil's mid-70s street-dance group called The Lockers -- including Fred "Rerun" Berry -- that laid the groundwork for the breakdancing craze in the early '80s. The dancing done in the hip-hop videos these days look more like they are based in aerobics, and not authentic dance.
BTW, while I'm on the subject of talent: I will be shocked if Taylor Hicks' second CD goes platinum. I know his first one will, but I just don't think he's got the chops to conquer radio. Blue-eyed soul doesn't have a good track record nowadays, with the rap crap like the aforementioned Lil Jon topping the charts. And when you get right down to it, does Hicks deserve to cover "Taking It To The Streets" as if he's the next Michael McDonald? Is he even the next Joe Cocker? Leon Russell? Daryl Hall? Huey Lewis? Heck, Paul Young? I don't think so.
She probably ran out of the pounds of daily makeup she usually wears.
looks like the jail kitchen crew provide generous portions.
There is one called EVE who is also bad, but engineering enhanced in the studio to sound alright.
Who did those two have to blow to get to where they are?
That is a bad question, forget I asked that.
she's the fatshizzle.
Looks like she enjoyed the chow.
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Isn't this the girl who can "swallow" a whole can? What's more "cred" than that?! |
Serious cred...with a crib in Alpine, NJ. Why not Newark?
Her neighbors are as follows:
P. Diddy rap artist
Lil' Kim rap artist
Chris Rock comedian, movie star
Gary Sheffield baseball player
Wesley Snipes actor
Stevie Wonder musician
...and a number of Good Fellas
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