REMY MA

                                                                                                                                                                       Tuesday (May 13) was a rough day for Remy Ma. One day after her planned jailhouse nuptials to fellow rapper Papoose were called off due to a misunderstanding about an alleged skeleton key Pap was wearing when he showed up at Rikers Island prison, the MC was sentenced to eight years in prison.

On March 27, Remy Ma (born Reminisce Smith), 26, was found guilty of two charges of assault, in connection with an argument she had with a friend, Makeda Barnes-Joseph, last July, during which Barnes-Joseph was shot two times while the two women struggled in a car.

According to Remy Ma's lawyer, Ivan Fisher, the New York Supreme Court sentenced her to eight years in prison on Tuesday for charges of assault, weapons possession and attempted coercion. Fisher said the prosecution had originally requested a 13-year sentence - less than the max of 25 years she was facing - but the judge in the case gave the rapper eight years, which Fisher plans to appeal very soon. Though he couldn't say for sure, Fisher said it's possible the judge in the case was swayed by an emotional address Ma gave the Court during the proceeding, during which She addressed the victim directly.

"Remy Ma spoke to the Court and movingly spoke to the victim, who was in court, to share with her how sorrowful she was about what happened to her," Fisher said. "It was an extremely moving moment, where She expressed how badly she felt about the tragedy of being shot and that she was very, very sorry it happened to Makeda."

Remy Ma grew up in the Castle Hill section of The Bronx, originally from Castle Hill Houses. Her life was anything but pleasant, where drug addictions, child prostitution, and HIV/AIDS-infections were present in her family, ultimately leaving the children and home to Remy herself; she was forced to look after her four younger brothers and sisters, as well as perform household chores. She did rather well in school, but needed a way to vent anger, so began to write poetry (which turned into raps). She held freestyle battles against children in her school's cafeteria and even citizens on the streets of Castle Hill. Eventually, word of mouth began to spread of Remy and her impressive skills. After hearing of her, Big Pun instantly showed an interest in working with the aspiring rapper, whom he mentored up until his untimely death in 2000, a tragic event in Remy and Fat Joe's lives.