# Remy Ma
**Remy Ma** (born Reminisce Smith) is an American rapper from the Bronx, New York City, who first reached a national audience in 2004 as the only female member of [Fat Joe](https://www.edgepedia.org/fat-joe)'s Terror Squad and has since become one of hip-hop's most recognized lyricists, with a career interrupted by a six-year prison term.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1922302/bio/) • [2](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/remy-ma-mn0000463742)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Birth name and origin | Reminisce Smith, the Bronx, New York City; sources give her birth year as 1980 (IMDb, AllMusic) or 1981 (99JAMZ)[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1922302/bio/) • [2](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/remy-ma-mn0000463742) • [3](https://www.99jamzmiami.com/lsp/artist/bio/remy-ma/) |
| Breakthrough | Terror Squad's "Lean Back" (2004), featuring her on the second verse, reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and was nominated for a Grammy for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group[2](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/remy-ma-mn0000463742) |
| Debut album | *There's Something About Remy: Based on a True Story* (February 2006), boosted by the Scott Storch collaboration "Conceited"[2](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/remy-ma-mn0000463742) |
| Prison term | Convicted on March 27, 2008 of assault, illegal weapon possession, and attempted coercion; released August 1, 2014 after roughly six years[3](https://www.99jamzmiami.com/lsp/artist/bio/remy-ma/) • [4](https://www.complex.com/music/a/thomasg/remy-ma-interview) |
| Signature comeback hit | "All the Way Up" with Fat Joe and French Montana (2016), double platinum, with Grammy nominations for Best Rap Song and Best Rap Performance[2](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/remy-ma-mn0000463742) • [4](https://www.complex.com/music/a/thomasg/remy-ma-interview) |
| Awards | BET Award for Best Female Hip-Hop Artist in 2005 and again in 2017, the latter ending Nicki Minaj's seven-year run[5](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/remy-ma/) • [6](https://time.com/4832344/bet-awards-2017/) |
| Latest project | Surprise *Alimony* EP, six tracks, released September 25, 2026, her first project in nine years[7](https://www.publicnow.com/view/905603CC8F2287BDD024C9849C8A4DE752E28BE3) |
## Early career and Big Pun
Remy Ma grew up in the Bronx in an environment affected by drug addiction, raising her younger siblings while writing and performing rhymes and poetry.[2](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/remy-ma-mn0000463742) While still a teenager she caught the attention of the Bronx rapper [Big Pun](https://www.edgepedia.org/big-pun), who mentored her and featured her on *Yeeeah Baby*, released in 2000 two months after his death; she recorded under the name Remy Martin at the time.[2](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/remy-ma-mn0000463742) • [8](https://www.universal-music.co.jp/remy-ma/biography/) She appeared on the remix of M.O.P.'s "Ante Up" and released the [Swizz Beatz](https://www.edgepedia.org/swizz-beatz)-produced single "Monster," and Fat Joe, Big Pun's close collaborator, featured her regularly on his own albums and tours.[2](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/remy-ma-mn0000463742) • [8](https://www.universal-music.co.jp/remy-ma/biography/)
## Terror Squad and "Lean Back"
**Breakthrough.** In 2004, as a member of Terror Squad alongside Fat Joe, Tony Sunshine, Prospect, and [Armageddon](https://www.edgepedia.org/armageddon), she appeared on "Lean Back," rapping the second verse.[2](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/remy-ma-mn0000463742) • [9](https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Billboard/00s/2004/BB-2004-07-24.pdf) The single topped the Billboard Hot 100 for three consecutive weeks in summer 2004, took the No. 1 position on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks chart, and earned a Grammy nomination for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group.[10](https://thatgrapejuice.net/2017/03/vault-terror-squad-lean-back-remy-fat-joe/) • [9](https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Billboard/00s/2004/BB-2004-07-24.pdf) • [2](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/remy-ma-mn0000463742) Billboard noted that it was the first hip-hop group of any kind to top the R&B chart since Bone Thugs-N-Harmony in 1996.[9](https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Billboard/00s/2004/BB-2004-07-24.pdf) She won the BET Award for Best Female Hip-Hop Artist in 2005.[5](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/remy-ma/)
Her debut album, *There's Something About Remy: Based on a True Story*, followed in February 2006 on SRC/Universal, detailing her upbringing in the Bronx and her struggle in a male-dominated rap world; the [Scott Storch](https://www.edgepedia.org/scott-storch) collaboration "Conceited" helped it debut in the Top Ten of the R&B/hip-hop chart.[2](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/remy-ma-mn0000463742) • [3](https://www.99jamzmiami.com/lsp/artist/bio/remy-ma/)
## Incarceration and comeback
On March 27, 2008, Remy Ma was convicted of assault, illegal weapon possession, and attempted coercion in connection with a shooting the previous July.[3](https://www.99jamzmiami.com/lsp/artist/bio/remy-ma/) She spent six years, four months, and five days at the Bedford Hills Correctional Facility for Women, during which she married the rapper Papoose, on May 12, 2008.[4](https://www.complex.com/music/a/thomasg/remy-ma-interview) • [1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1922302/bio/)
She was released on August 1, 2014, and went to the studio the same day, recording the "They Don't Love You No More" remix with [DJ Khaled](https://www.edgepedia.org/dj-khaled), followed within weeks by records with Jadakiss and [Ty Dolla Sign](https://www.edgepedia.org/ty-dolla-sign) and the mixtape *I'm Around*.[4](https://www.complex.com/music/a/thomasg/remy-ma-interview) • [2](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/remy-ma-mn0000463742) In 2015 she joined the cast of VH1's reality series *Love & Hip Hop: New York*.[4](https://www.complex.com/music/a/thomasg/remy-ma-interview)
## Plata o Plomo and the Nicki Minaj feud
Remy Ma reunited with Fat Joe for the 2017 album *Plata o Plomo*, whose lead single "All the Way Up," with [French Montana](https://www.edgepedia.org/french-montana), went Top 30 pop, was certified multi-platinum, and received Grammy nominations for Best Rap Song and Best Rap Performance.[2](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/remy-ma-mn0000463742)
In February 2017, weeks after the album's release, she dropped "ShETHER," a nearly seven-minute diss track over the instrumental of Nas's "Ether" that directly targeted [Nicki Minaj](https://www.edgepedia.org/nicki-minaj); it peaked at No. 2 on the iTunes rap chart, and she followed it with a second diss track, "Another One."[11](https://time.com/4684737/nicki-minaj-remy-ma-rap-feud/) • [4](https://www.complex.com/music/a/thomasg/remy-ma-interview) Minaj responded in March with "No Frauds," featuring Drake and [Lil Wayne](https://www.edgepedia.org/lil-wayne).[12](https://time.com/4698071/nicki-minaj-remy-ma-diss-track/) At the 2017 [BET Awards](https://www.edgepedia.org/bet-awards), Remy Ma won Best Female Hip Hop Artist, breaking Minaj's seven-year winning streak, and opened her acceptance speech with lines from "ShETHER."[6](https://time.com/4832344/bet-awards-2017/) • [11](https://time.com/4684737/nicki-minaj-remy-ma-rap-feud/)
## Later work
By the end of 2017 she had released the [Lil' Kim](https://www.edgepedia.org/lil-kim) collaboration "Wake Me Up," the first single from her second proper solo album, the autobiographical *7 Winters & 6 Summers*, which was announced for release on Columbia but did not debut in 2018.[2](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/remy-ma-mn0000463742) • [17](https://www.columbiarecords.com/2018/04/27/remy-ma-releases-new-single-and-video-for-company-featuring-a-boogie/) Off the microphone she founded Chrome 23, a battle rap league, and has hosted Revolt's *State of the Culture* and VH1's *My True Crime Story*, with acting roles in *Queen of the South*, *Queens*, *The Perfect Find*, *Girl in the Closet*, and *Big Fifty*.[13](https://www.dayafterdaymusic.com/artists/remy-ma/) She appeared on [DJ Premier](https://www.edgepedia.org/dj-premier)'s "Remy Rap" with Rapsody on *Hip Hop 50, Vol. 1* (2022), part of Mass Appeal's series marking hip-hop's fiftieth anniversary.[2](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/remy-ma-mn0000463742)
## Alimony and the divorce from Papoose
Papoose filed for divorce in May 2025, and the split became a public feud conducted through records.[14](https://www.tmz.com/2026/09/28/remy-ma-focused-on-her-music/) On September 25, 2026, Remy Ma surprise-released the six-track *Alimony* EP, her first project in nine years, led by "Why I Get Married?" featuring [Keke Wyatt](https://www.edgepedia.org/keke-wyatt) and including "W.Y.F.L." and "Cry In The Wraith" featuring Tink.[7](https://www.publicnow.com/view/905603CC8F2287BDD024C9849C8A4DE752E28BE3) • [15](https://www.complex.com/music/a/tracewilliamcowen/remy-ma-nicki-minaj-alimony-ep) She described the EP as designed to "feel like a conversation between women," and its opening track "Rem The Pen" name-checks Nicki Minaj, Cardi B, and Lil' Kim.[15](https://www.complex.com/music/a/tracewilliamcowen/remy-ma-nicki-minaj-alimony-ep) In a July 2026 interview with [Angie Martinez](https://www.edgepedia.org/angie-martinez) she said a full album was essentially finished, with enough recorded material for multiple projects, and that she hoped to release it in time for Grammy consideration.[16](https://power1051.iheart.com/alternate/amp/2026-07-24-remy-ma-talks-new-music-single-life-and-entering-her-soft-girl-era/)
## References
1. [Remy Ma - Biography, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1922302/bio/)
2. [Remy Ma - Biography, Discography, Albums & Expert Reviews, AllMusic](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/remy-ma-mn0000463742)
3. [Remy Ma - 99JAMZ artist bio](https://www.99jamzmiami.com/lsp/artist/bio/remy-ma/)
4. [The Rise and Fall and Rise of Remy Ma, Complex](https://www.complex.com/music/a/thomasg/remy-ma-interview)
5. [Remy Ma - Rapper, Songwriter, TV Insider](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/remy-ma/)
6. [Here Are the Best and the Worst Moments From the 2017 BET Awards, TIME](https://time.com/4832344/bet-awards-2017/)
7. [Remy Ma Fuels Feud Against Papoose With New Song 'Why Did I Get Married', iHeartRadio via Public Technologies](https://www.publicnow.com/view/905603CC8F2287BDD024C9849C8A4DE752E28BE3)
8. [BIOGRAPHY - REMY MA, Universal Music Japan](https://www.universal-music.co.jp/remy-ma/biography/)
9. [Terror Squad Scares Up An R&B/Hip-Hop No. 1, Billboard (July 24, 2004)](https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Billboard/00s/2004/BB-2004-07-24.pdf)
10. [From The Vault: Terror Squad - 'Lean Back', That Grape Juice](https://thatgrapejuice.net/2017/03/vault-terror-squad-lean-back-remy-fat-joe/)
11. [A Comprehensive Guide to the Feud Between Nicki Minaj and Remy Ma, TIME](https://time.com/4684737/nicki-minaj-remy-ma-rap-feud/)
12. [Nicki Minaj Responds to Remy Ma's Diss Track With Fiery New Song 'No Frauds', TIME](https://time.com/4698071/nicki-minaj-remy-ma-diss-track/)
13. [Remy Ma, Day After Day Productions](https://www.dayafterdaymusic.com/artists/remy-ma/)
14. [Remy Ma Denies Being In Relationship Despite Hanging With Millyz, TMZ](https://www.tmz.com/2026/09/28/remy-ma-focused-on-her-music/)
15. [Remy Ma Mentions Nicki Minaj on New 'Alimony' EP, Complex](https://www.complex.com/music/a/tracewilliamcowen/remy-ma-nicki-minaj-alimony-ep)
16. [Remy Ma Talks New Music, Single Life and Entering Her "Soft Girl Era", Power 105.1 FM](https://power1051.iheart.com/alternate/amp/2026-07-24-remy-ma-talks-new-music-single-life-and-entering-her-soft-girl-era/)
17. [REMY MA RELEASES NEW SINGLE AND VIDEO FOR “COMPANY (FEATURING A. BOOGIE)” » Columbia Records](https://www.columbiarecords.com/2018/04/27/remy-ma-releases-new-single-and-video-for-company-featuring-a-boogie/)
---
*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Music › Music scenes › Transnational genre scenes › Hip hop scenes worldwide › Artists, groups, and people: Hip hop scenes worldwide › East Coast rap (New York and Philadelphia) › East Coast rap's 2000s–2010s era*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 17, 2026; Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 17, 2026; Sep 30, 2026; Oct 12, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license