countdown to wha?!

"In 14 days, I am going away," the Queen Bee confesses directly to the camera. The forebodance in her voice is veiled by her attempt to remain poised, to present a carefully constructed persona to her fans. The "strong," streetwise Bella Mafia may be down but she ain't out. If anyone can hold it down while locked up, she can ... she can.

March 9 marked the first episode of BET's "Lil' Kim: Countdown to Lockdown." Now while I'm not a fan of BET's programming (actually I'm wondering when they'll feature a remake of Amos 'n Andy), I couldn't miss witnessing the last 14 days of Lil' Kim's "freedom."

The premiere episode was rather chaotic. Kim and her staff are busy preparing for the release of her most recent album Naked Truth and the videos that will accompany it. Kim's doing appearances, ranting about how much she hates the video for her first single and greeting fans. The signature moment in this first episode is when a young fan of Kim's hands her a note to read in her limo. So touched by this young girl's admiration of her, Kim calls the girl's cellphone. I'm not saying all this affect is for the camera's benefit ... but I'm not saying it isn't either.

While I'm skeptical about the "realness" of "reality tv" in general, it will be interesting to see if Lil' Kim's show offers any insight into a woman I think is quite fascinating. I've always wondered about what lies beneath all the makeup, the hair, the plastic surgery... What's Lil' Kim's story? Really. And how might that story impact her young blackgirl fans in a different way than rapping about money, fame and fucking does? Maybe we'll find out. I'll certainly stay tuned.