On Tuesday (which would have been the Notorious B.I.G.’s birthday), Lil Kim hosted the first annual B.I.G. Family Dinner at Nomo Kitchen in Soho of New York City, and she and her former Junior M.A.F.I.A. group member, Lil Cease reunited in person for the first time in 13 years.
“It’s been a long time since we’ve been together on his birthday or doing any event together at all. For me, it was a spiritual awakening, ” Kim told Vibe. “This was his heart. So it’s sort of for me, mending Big’s broken heart. All of us were Big, head to toe. Putting him back together is putting all of us back together.”
“I’ve been waiting on this day for years. This is somebody that held me down since B.I. passed, and somebody I knew before B.I. passed,” Cease said. “She always acted in my best interests … This was God’s timing. I’ve been trying to reach out to her for years but when God was ready for us to make it happen, He made it happen. No questions asked, no old rehashing, let’s start over from here and keep it traditional.”
Lil Cease also said that he and Kim would see each other while out and about, but wouldn’t speak, and on Tuesday, what would have been the Notorious B.I.G.’s 47th birthday was the first time they were literally face to face.
Although Cease and Kim hadn’t been “face to face”, the two rappers had been communicating since March to plan the dinner.
The “Crush On You” rappers relationship had been strained since the mid-2000s. Lil Kim did a one-year prison stint after she was convicted of perjury and conspiracy for lying to a federal grand jury about her and her fellow Junior M.A.F.I.A. members’ involvement in a shoot out that transpired outside of a New York City radio station.
During the event, Lil Cease gave a speech explaining how Lil Kim took him in to live with her after Biggie was fatally shot, and he apologized for their friendship ending.
“I apologize for things I may have done that may have hurt you or affected you or made you feel bad,” Cease said. “I genuinely apologize, and I love you from the bottom of my heart. I thank you for bringing this energy here.”
Cease went on to explain that he feels like his energy was “right” for him and Kim to reunite. He said that one day he texted the “How Many Licks” rapper and surprisingly she texted him back.
Check out the heartfelt moment above.
Glennisha Morgan is a Detroit-bred multimedia journalist and writer. She writes about intersectionality, hip-hop, pop culture, queer issues, race, feminism, and her truth. Follow her on Twitter.