Lil Jon Tweets Out Loud

Which rapper does push-ups with a bottle of Patron at his side, shows off Verne “Mini-Me” Troyer holding a bottle of his award-winning wine, and lets his fans know he’s hard at work in the studio by emphasizing the use of capital letters, all via Twitter? It’s none other than the King of Crunk, Lil Jon.

Rap-Up featured the grill-wearing rapper as one of “15 Stars You Should Be Following on Twitter” in the magazine’s Summer 2009 issue. Reading Lil Jon’s tweets are as entertaining as listening to his music or being in his presence. He shares exclusive music, funny pictures, and personal candid photos on the real-time blogging service. What tends to set Lil Jon apart from his community of friends and followers: his use of capital letters. Why does the King of Crunk stray from using lower case? “I turned the caps off one time and somebody was like it didn’t even sound like Lil Jon,” he explains. “I use all caps because it tends to get the point across a little better. It’s visual so people can see me saying the shit that I say.”

While some artists use the social networking site to inspire others, don’t look to the Atlanta native to do the same. “There’s a lot of f***ed up shit going on in the world and you need to smile and be more happy,” Jon says. “On my Twitter, I like to show some humor. I tell people funny stuff that goes on in my life [and] show funny shit that I see on the Internet. I’m not one of those motivational Twit motherf***ers.”

Lil Jon admits he follows everyone from OJ Da Juiceman to John Mayer, who tops his list as the funniest. The pimp cup holder also enjoys reading tweets written by rappers, singers, and fans when they’re drunk. He’s even read his fans’ tweets and incorporated them into his raps. “I was doing a song with LMFAO called ‘Shots’ and I Twittered out, ‘What’s y’all favorite shots?'” Jon states. “Within the hour I got 300 responses and I used the top responses and put that shit in the song. The best thing about [Twitter] is you have an instant connection with your fans.”

Follow Lil Jon on Twitter at twitter.com/liljizzel and pick up the latest issue of Rap-Up to find out who else made the list.

–Monique Balcarran