The saying, "one should always heed their mother’s advice," is also pertinent to the up and coming pop rapper who goes by "Lil Mama." Though she may still be young and not very tall, at 5’2, she sings her heart out for her young followers, all of whom would gladly accept her advice and in all circumstances think that she is much cooler than their own mamas at home who push the ideas of sparkling clean bedrooms and completed homework. Her voice reaches out to the younger generations and implores them not only to sing along to her words, but also to aspire to reach their individual goals and dreams. It is part of the reason why she is such a sensation on the airwaves these days and why she continues to rise on the hip-hop charts.Lil Mama grew up on the rough side of town, between Brooklyn’s East New York section and Harlem. As a girl and a young woman, Lil Mama established herself as someone who was capable of dealing with troubled times, even in the face of disaster. Her strength from those days is often attributed to her success in the music world today. As a child, Lil Mama who was then known by her given name, Niatia Kirkland, resorted to creativity as a means of expressing herself. She enjoyed poetry and dance and found them to be artistic outlets-a means to escape the often depressing world around her. By the time she was just 10 years old, she was writing lyrics and developing a growing interest in the world of rap music.Throughout high school she continued to write and record songs, with the encouragement and help of her father. When her mother was diagnosed with colon cancer in 2003, Lil Mama turned to music to help her settle her tumultuous emotions. One of her most successful tunes, "Lip Gloss" became an instant radio hit on the radio station Hot 97, New York City’s own place for hip-hop and R&B.Only a few years later, Lil Mama was signed to Jive Records, her very first major label deal. Her debut album, Voice of the Young People, was released in 2007 to major critical acclaim. The content of the songs on the record features a wide ranging variety of topics that aim to touch the heart and soul of her listeners. Some of her tunes focus on the journey of a foster child as well as the tough decisions faced by a pregnant teenager. All offer an important lesson to be learned and a deeper understanding of life itself.