Catch up…Charli Baltimore: The B.I.G. Picture, Pt. 1
AllHipHop.com:
They show in Notorious Biggie building the character of Lil’ Kim. How
instrumental was Biggie in the building of Charli Baltimore?
Charli Baltimore:
I’ve always been me. My style is my style. I guess that’s why Big liked me. Big
would come to me for advice about Kim. He was building an artist. As far as I
was concerned, I never really had the chance because Big passed before we were
able to capitalize or move forward with The Commission, which was our group. As
far as [Kim’s] style is concerned, I don’t think you can make somebody an
anything. He definitely asked me my advice like what do you think about Kim and
how should I approach this and that. I always offered my input. At the end of
the day, she still came out the way she came out.
AllHipHop.com:
The VIBE article that recently came
out talks about how Kim had a problem with this film; she didn’t like how she
was portrayed. In the film, she’s a really sympathetic character because she’s getting thrown around the soundbooth by Big, and she’s
crying like, “Why doesn’t he love me?” Another thing that she had a problem
with was Naturi Naughton being too dark and how she wanted Christina Milian to
portray her because she felt it was more accurate.
Charli Baltimore:
Wanted Christina Milian to portray her as Lil’ Kim? I wasn’t aware they were
the same complexion [laughs]. Again I didn’t see the movie but last I checked,
well I don’t know what color she is right now, but she was brown-skinned. Maybe
she’s light-skinned now. I don’t know. People change skin tones in this day and
age. I can’t see Christina Milian portraying Lil Kim. That’s not…that seems
really weird to me, but you know, to each his own.
Junior M.A.F.I.A. f/ The Notorious B.I.G. “Get Money” Video
AllHipHop.com:
They showed some violent scenes between Lil’ Kim and Big. Did you witness any
of that?
Charli Baltimore:
The only violence I ever saw was a situation where Big and I were together on
the bus and my clothes were strewn all over the bus and I couldn’t figure out
why…I didn’t know what was going on at the time. I said, “Why are my clothes
all over the bus like this? They were folded up nice and neat.” We were in the
back of the bus and I walked off the bus and when I was coming back on…Kim was
getting kicked off the bus…foot to her butt, onto the ground. She had rummaged
through my clothing, Big was upset about it and he kicked her on the butt off
the bus. That was the only violence I’ve ever seen between them.
I mean he’s never touched me on a physical level of any
sort, so I don’t know. But like I said, it was a while before I knew they had a
personal relationship. We were in videos and everything together, Kim and I. We
spoke, we had conversations and everything. Things got a little out of hand
towards the end, but it was never anything physical, nah. Not with me and her
anyway. I’ve never seen Big strike her. I’ve overheard conversations…later, not
during that time…when I came into the industry where it was a weird
conversation I overheard that said when you have a female artist, there’s
always someone that needs to have sex with that person to gain control over the
female.
I felt like that was the most ignorant thing I’ve ever heard
and it was a conversation actually between Un and Big. So I guess they were
debating who should have sexual control over the situation to garner control of
the project, because towards the end of Kim’s project there were a lot of
problems. So I would say other than that, no I’ve never seen anything.
AllHipHop.com:
You and Kim were in the “Get Money” video together…you play Faith.
Charli Baltimore:
That’s another thing I’d love to clear up, please, if we can. I’ve said this a
zillion times and for some reason people just never listen…I was not playing
Faith in that video. I’m a Philly girl. They dye their hair all different
colors. I actually had blonde short hair at the time, and I’m a teenager. I’m a
teenager, never been in a video…I’m not thinking if I have blonde hair I’m
going to be perceived as Faith. That was not the intention. I would never as a
woman, a self-respecting woman, portray another woman in a video. Unless we’re
doing a movie and we’re doing some sort of biopic, I’d never portray Faith in a
video.
I was portraying the person that Big was talking about in
the song. It wasn’t Faith either, it was just a record. It was never directed
towards Faith. If I had brown hair, they would have never said anything of the
sort. Just to clarify that, Big told me, “Yo, before we do this video ma,
please dye you hair back brown.” I’m a Philly girl, at the time I’m wearing
weave, I’m like, “No n***a I done dyed my hair blonde, I’m not dying it back
brown. I’m standing my ground with the blonde hair.”
If I would have known the repercussions that came behind me
having this hair, and people saying I was dissing Faith or portraying her in
any sense, I would have never done it. Big did definitely asked me to change my
hair color. So no, as a self-respecting female, I would never portray another
woman, especially someone’s wife in a video. I would never do that so I’d like
to clear that up. That was never the case. I just so happened to coincidentally
have blonde hair and that’s that.
AllHipHop.com:
Ok, thanks for clearing that up. It sounds like there’s no animosity between
you and Faith. Was it always cool with you guys or is it just that you’re so
far past it now that it’s just like kind of whatever?
Charli Baltimore:
We had our bad moments, but at the end of the day once her and Big were
completely separated, she was quite respectful towards me and vice versa. I
mean we’ve had slight disagreements. Nothing ever physical, not to that extent.
We’ve had conversations about Big just like any other women do. They weren’t
together. People make it seem like mistress, blah blah blah…they weren’t
together. Faith had moved on with her life. You know and soon after Big died
she was married. I don’t know how long after he died but she remarried so, you
know.
AllHipHop.com:
You had been living with Big around the time of his passing. Is that correct?
Charli Baltimore:
I had my own place. I stayed with Big from time to time…I had keys. I wasn’t
living there per se but I would stay there from time to time. Big had n****s
that lived in that house. If I’ma live with somebody it needs to be just be me
and that person.
AllHipHop.com: So
Kim obviously knew that you were with Biggie?
Charli Baltimore: Umm-hmm. She saw us
together many times, I guess she was just not allowed to speak on it. I don’t
know. I have no idea. I don’t know how that situation goes, because if I’m with
somebody and I’m their girlfriend and there’s somebody else involved, I’m going
to speak on it. I’ve been in the studio with Kim, I’ve been in Kim’s company,
she’s seen all types of jewelery and cars and everything else Big bought me and
never had much to say so I don’t understand where the girlfriend thing comes in
at.
AllHipHop.com:
When you learned that something was still going on between the two of them, was
this when Big was still alive or you found out after the fact?
Charli Baltimore:
I knew towards the end, me and Kim had an argument. Me
and Kim had a pretty heated argument where…oh yea that turned into a little
violent incident [between Big and Kim] from what I understand. I didn’t
witness, it but I heard about it.
AllHipHop.com: Oh
between him and her?
Charli Baltimore:
Between Big and her for her disclosing information to me that I guess she
wasn’t supposed to disclose.
AllHipHop.com:
Did you know Big the longest out of you, Faith, and Kim?
Charli Baltimore: No I didn’t actually. They knew him way
before I did. From what I understand Kim was Big’s babysitter or something to
that effect. I came in during the whole separation period. Big had his own
place, Faith had her own place and I don’t know where Kim lived. I only saw her
in the studio and on the road.
AllHipHop.com:
Any final thoughts that you wanted to clear up regarding you and Biggie?
Charli Baltimore: Well anybody that knows Big, or D-Roc or
Cease or any person that lived in Big’s house…even Ms. Wallace whether she
wants to believe it or not, knows that I was Big’s girl. I don’t need to say it
every five minutes, I don’t need to throw Big a dinner every year on his
birthday and sit his picture there and pray all praises be to Big. I know what
I had with Big, and I don’t need to explain it to everyone.
The only reason I’m really speaking out on it at this point
is because something got misconstrued over something else that went on. This
really has nothing to do with the movie. This has something to do with an
interview I did that got totally misconstrued last year before the movie was
even popular and getting ready to come out. Honestly, I wasn’t even going to do
any sort of interview or anything about this, but my best friend sort of made
me do it and I did it on the strength of let’s just clarify this right fast.
Because there are some things, there are some facts that are totally wrong and
it’s not cool.
As far as the movie’s concerned, I could care less because
it doesn’t really make me a difference. I know what I had with Big and I don’t
feel as though I need to constantly go over it and explain it to anyone. Big
would turn over in his grave if he saw the circus that was made of his life. I
think the people should focus on his music and leave his personal life where it
is. He has a son and a daughter and that’s great. It’s a shame he’s not here to
see his son and his daughter grow up, and I think that’s what people should think
about. Not about who Big was banging. It was a long time ago. I’m sure every
woman in this world has someone in their past that they’re like geez and I was
dealing with this person, why?
At the end of the day, I was young. People learn from their
mistakes. We all were young at the time. I’m not sitting here saying that
anything anyone was doing was the right thing. The only person that had any
legal obligations to Big was his wife. I’m not going to disrespect anyone in
this conversation, because I don’t know what Big was saying to anybody. Big I’m
sure was saying one thing to Kim, one thing to Faith and another whole thing to
me. I was a teenager so that was one of my first real relationships that I was
a part of. I had never vibed with someone that was separated from a wife. So I
don’t know the ins and outs of how that goes, so you know I learned as I went
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