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April 5, 2008

Remy Ma plans wedding in New York City jail to fellow rapper as she awaits sentencing

NEW YORK (AP) — Rapper Remy Ma isn't letting jail derail her wedding plans.

The Grammy-nominated artist aims to marry her fiance, fellow rapper Papoose, at the city's Rikers Island jail while she awaits her sentencing for shooting a friend she suspected of stealing $3,000, lawyer Ivan Fisher said.

"They're much in love," Fisher said. "They're very committed to each other, and they had intended to marry one way or another."

Remy Ma, whose real name is Remy Smith, was convicted last month of assault, weapon possession and attempted coercion in the July 2007 shooting after a party at a Manhattan nightclub.

The 26-year-old performer is being held without bail until her sentencing, set for April 23. She faces the possibility of up to 25 years in prison.

About 200 weddings are performed each year at Rikers Island, which offers chaplains and chapels, said city Department of Correction spokesman Stephen Morello. Only two guests will be permitted, and the couple won't be allowed to wear rings with protruding gems.

Remy Ma was nominated for a Grammy as part of the Terror Squad for the 2004 hit "Lean Back." She also has recorded with rap stars Busta Rhymes and Eminem.

Papoose's "Born To Win" was featured on the top-selling football video game "Madden NFL 06," and the music magazine Rolling Stone named him one of its "10 Artists to Watch" in 2006.

The Brooklyn rapper, whose real name is Shamele Mackie, also attracted attention with a track called "50 Shots," in which he vented his anger about a fatal 2006 New York City police shooting of an unarmed man who was hours away from getting married.

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