The clever twist on a traditional hip-hop narrative shows why the groundbreaking female rapper is so underrated nowadays
Published : 19 Apr 2023, 07:30 PM
The year 2000 was a great year in music with timeless albums like Erykah Badu’s Mama’s Gun, Radiohead’s Kid A, and Britney Spears’s Oops!... I Did It Again. However, one of 2000’s best albums is not as well remembered. Lil’ Kim’s The Notorious K.I.M – released after the amazing success of her debut Hard Core – has largely been forgotten. It’s a shame because it’s an incredible record.
And it starts off hard with the opener ‘Lil’ Drummer Boy’, where Kim has been put on trial for killing six police officers. She tries to defend herself from the charges as CeeLo Green plays her lawyer and Redman her judge.
Over sparse instrumentation and a driving beat, Kim says she was only defending herself when the police burst into her bedroom and shot her boyfriend.
The song feels like an honest, hard-hitting critique or racial prejudice in the justice system like NWA’s ‘F—k the Police’ and KRS ONE’s ‘Sound of da Police’. But, in its final verse, it veers off in a different direction as the judge tells Kim that the initial bust was a set-up and her boyfriend was an undercover cop.
Still, impressed by her drive and determination to free herself from the trap, the judge decides to help her escape.
It’s extremely clever, allowing Lil’ Kim’s to show off her chops as a no-nonsense girl from the streets, while also undercutting the traditional narrative of hip-hop with a fun and silly twist. It’s an excellent demonstration of Kim’s talents and a clear illustration of why she doesn’t get the attention she deserves.
This article is part of Stripe, bdnews24.com's special publication focusing on culture and society from a youth perspective.