Lil Kim made sure to give Janet Jackson all her flowers and then some when she filled in for Ludacris on one of the legendary singer’s recent Together Again tour stops.
The Queen Bee performed at the Allentown, Pennsylvania stop on Thursday (May 18) – where she paid homage to Michael Jackson during her set. Afterward, Kim joined Janet backstage where she was moved to tears as she excitedly expressed her love for the “Rhythm Nation” star.
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“She needs to know this,” Lil Kim began. “First of all, I have to start from the beginning. Michael was my favorite, my number one. And then when Janet came, I said, ‘Oh hell no? You mean to tell me there’s a girl Michael?!'”
She continued: “When I tell you I was just in love from the moment I saw her. I always felt like we looked alike. I always felt we have the same energy. She just gets it. Superstar, talented, just everything! Beauty. And she always represented. And I’ma tell y’all right now — she is so pulled up, so graceful. But you know she can [fight]. That’s her secret. Don’t tell nobody! She be getting with it. She is with it. So I love it.
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“She represented me, a hood girl! I’m from the hood. I knew I could rap, but I was like, I wanted to do something different. I didn’t want to be the normal rapper. I love MC Lyte, I love Salt-N-Pepa, I love Queen Latifah – but I was like, ‘I want to do something different! I want to be a rap Janet Jackson.’
“Don’t play wit it!” Kim added. “Love her. There’s no one who understands the business and who can fight through the adversities and still remain poised, still hold that crown.”
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Janet soon after returned the love, posting a selfie with Kim on Instagram and sharing some kind words.
“Kim, thanks so much for filling in while Luda was out getting his much deserved star on the walk of fame,” she wrote. “Love u sis ”
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Lil Kim isn’t the only special guest who has joined Janet Jackson on the tour. Earlier this month, Busta Rhymes surprised the crowd at Madison Square Garden when he popped up to perform his and Janet’s 1998 hit “What’s It Gonna Be?!” live for the first time.
After their performance, Busta heaped massive praise on Janet while showering her with gifts and elaborating on how their collaboration came about.
“We’re going to give you your flowers…. your botanical garden while you can smell them,” Busta Rhymes said as someone rolled out a huge bouquet of flowers. “In 1998, 25 years ago, I’m on the Belt Parkway going from Long Island to Manhattan, I’m listening to Janet Jackson do an interview with Angie Martinez when she was on Hot 97.
“Janet Jackson was doing an interview promoting the Velvet Rope album. Angie Martinez asked her what rapper have you never worked with before that you would like to work with. She said Busta Rhymes. Excuse my language but I almost crashed my fucking car.”
He added: “To this day, our video is the most expensive Hip Hop video made in the history of Hip Hop culture.”
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The 37-city Together Again tour coincides with a series of anniversaries in Janet Jackson’s career — 30 years since the release of janet., 15 years since Discipline, and 50 years since she began her career in the entertainment business. The tour kicked off in April in Hollywood, Florida and will wrap at the end of June in Seattle.
