Lil Kim Had Creative Control Over Retouching Ebony Cover Shoot

BYLavender AlexandriaPublished on September 19, 20231015 Views

US rapper Lil' Kim performs during the Hip Hop 50 Live concert, marking the 50th anniversary of the birth of hip hop, at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx borough of New York City on August 11, 2023. A genre, a culture and a lifestyle all at once: hip hop has traveled from the block party to the billionaire's club, soundtracked protest and celebration, and asserted seismic influence over the course of pop. The reigning music style evolved in rapid, anarchic ways, rocking the industry establishment that long resisted its power, and fully embodying the culture of youth even as it grew. This year hip hop turns 50, an anniversary that's offered its elders, its fans and the city that birthed it a milepost to reflect on its cultural weight. (Photo by ANGELA WEISS / AFP) (Photo by ANGELA WEISS/AFP via Getty Images)

Fans couldn't believe that Lil Kim was allowed to retouch the cover herself.

Earlier this week, Ebony Magazine celebrated the 50th anniversary of hip-hop. Their celebration included interviews with rappers like 50 Cent, Rick Ross, Busta Rhymes, and Lil Kim. They shared the results of Kim's cover shoot to Instagram with a caption explaining their reasoning for choosing her. "When it comes to this Hip Hop Game, you don’t wanna bumble with the bee, and for almost three decades, Lil Kim has continued to show us why. From her days with Junior Mafia to now, she has always come correct with bars slicker than honey with an impeccable charisma that is impossible to duplicate."

But despite their high praise for the rapper fans in the comments were mostly focused on one thing. Her face in the cover image had all the trademarks of over-editing and many pointed out how amateurish it looked. In the comments, one of the photographers shared how the picture ended up the way it did. "Man, she wanted to be in creative control of the retouching so this is what we got." Check out the post below.

Lil Kim Retouched Ebony Cover Herself

Unsurprisingly, fans in the comments cracked jokes. "So Kim edited this on her phone and sent it back?" one comment joked. "She look like a IMVU character" and "She edited this on what? Like a flip phone? A sidekick? Wtf happened here?" other comments agreed. While nobody has officially confirmed how exactly the photo ended up the way it did that didn't stop fans from speculating.

Last month, Lil Kim took part in another Hip Hop 50th Anniversary celebration and it also didn't go over perfectly. She suffered a wardrobe malfunction during a performance and Yankee Stadium alongside dozens of rap legends. Thankfully, she didn't seem phased at all by the incident and continued crushing her performance. What do you think of Lil Kim demanding creative control over her Ebony cover shoot? Let us know in the comment section below.

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About The Author

Lavender Alexandria

Lavender Alexandria is a music and culture journalist based in Los Angeles, California. She’s covered dozens of musical genres and styles from the most mainstream to the most experimental and underground on her blog and accompanying YouTube channel that looks at music, pop culture, and Billboard charts since 2017: Lav’s Music Corner. Lavender has produced editorial and listicle content both in written and video form over the past far years and has also interviewed up-and-coming artists like Censored Dialogue. Her experiences covering culture have taken her from Hyperpop parties in LA to underground rap shows in Atlanta, to DIY punk shows in Charlotte. Lavender has also written for iHeartRadio, covering some of the biggest artists in Hip Hop such as Ice Spice, Drake, Doja Cat and Cardi B. She also has bylines with ScreenRant and continues to write for Ringtone magazine. Lavender is a lifelong Charlotte Hornets fan and her favorite rap artists include Clipping, Little Simz, Earl Sweatshirt, and Kendrick Lamar.