Remy Ma (formerly known as Remy Martin) is a female rapper who first emerged on the New York hip hop scene in 1998 when she was recruited by fellow Bronx rapper Big Pun and Fat Joe to join their crew, The Terror Squad.
Remy Ma (real name Reminisce Mackie), like Pun, lived in the New York borough of The Bronx during the 1990s in the Castle Hill Houses, a housing project in the South Bronx. Big Pun happened to live in the Soundview neighbourhood, a mere five minutes from Castle Hill.
In 1999 Mackie joined the Terror Squad and, by 2001, after being signed to Loud Records, ended up on the remix of M.O.P’s legendary track ‘Ante Up’. Following this, she continued to thrive as part of the Terror Squad, and in 2004, alongside Fat Joe, she topped the charts with their smash hit ‘Lean Back’.
Across 2004 and 2005, Remy Ma worked on her debut solo album, There’s Something About Remy, which was released at the start of 2006. For the album, the rapper recorded new material and did a series of photoshoots and interviews. In 2005, Remy Ma gave an interview and previewed some of the behind-the-scenes ongoing for the underground hip hop DVD series Hustle Up.
Shortly after her album release in 2006, the rapper found herself having a severe brush with the law after an accident with a firearm led to one of her friends being shot. In 2007 the rapper was sentenced to 7 years in prison.
However, since her release, Mackie, with her husband Papoose, has showcased their relationship for years on the American reality TV programme Love And Hip Hop: New York and, by doing so, have helped change the negative narratives and preconceptions surrounding hip hop and its presentation of relationships.
Below you can watch some 2005 footage from the Hustle Up DVD, filmed two years before the rapper’s sentencing.
