I was a fan first. Before I had the chance to talk and laugh and join him in his world, I was a fan of Notorious B.I.G.. From “Juicy,” “Warning,” “Unbelievable” and “One More Chance” to “Things Done Changed,” “Dreams…,” and all the cameos and remixes, there was a lot of music to love. I actually played “Get Money” so often that the vinyl began to sound dead, and I remember rushing to the club the night I got “Hypnotize” so I could blow it up three or four times in a row.
It was fun. Fun to hear his growls at the beginning of records and to mimic the way he slurred some of the words in his rhyme. I loved watching him play the playa role in a ridiculously huge suit and enjoyed dancing all night to his tracks with women who loved his “Big Poppa” steelo. And when he rose out of bed, naked and unashamed, roaring down the phone in all of his 300-pound glory in the “Warning” clip, I knew that for now and always, Big was a star.
In February 1997, a few weeks before his death, I was assigned to do a feature for Trace magazine on the life and times of Biggie Smalls. I was determined to write a piece that kept clear of what I saw as the bullshit controversy surrounding his life: the drug busts and criminal charges, the hoopla around Lil’ Kim, the break-up with his wife Faith, and of course the conflict with Tupac Shakur.
I wanted to see what was behind all that, concentrate on the music, and explore some of the peculiar dilemmas that the nineties have held for African-Americans. See, for many of our young folk, Big was a hero. A hero because he gave expression to the thoughts and feelings of those who have never been heard. Biggie, as the best hip hop artists do, narrated as artistic fantasy what for so many, is a cultural reality. And that is essentially, the nature and purpose of the art form.
Like the blues, jazz and the best of African-American art, hip hop is one person’s expression of self that is representative of some part of ourselves. Big was Brooklyn’s finest, the brotha who dedicated his album to “all the teachers that told me I’d never amount to nothing…and the niggas in the struggle.” And he was a real person.
I remember the first night I spent with him, his peeps and I laughed for hours about his exploits on the road. Stories of Luke, Shaq, and rolling with R. Kelly had us in tears about as much as the numerous sex tales of groupies along the way. But there was no pretentiousness, no over-confidence, no cocky mask to hide any deep-seated insecurity. Big let you love him or leave him alone. And it was hard to do the latter because as he said so often: “To know me is to love me.”
“Dolly My Baby (Remix)”
But those who have the least, have to sing the loudest. So it was no surprise that Chris Wallace, former hustler, former dealer, former survivor, frequently expressed in his music the anger and frustration inherent in a life from the ‘hood. And the materialism. For over the past two decades, the most significant shift in the culture of African-Americans has been that we have fallen victim to the individualism and greed that have always defined the larger American society.
James Baldwin once asked in his classic discussion of the Civil Rights Movement, The Fire Next Time, “Do I really want to be integrated into a burning house?” Without ever answering, black folks find ourselves today within that burning house, robbing and stealing and “going for mine” either on Wall Street in a Ralph Lauren three-button suit or on the streets of Brooklyn in a Korean-made Polo sweatshirt. Biggie wasn’t ashamed about being in hip hop for the money. And why should he be? Goldman Sachs makes no apologies. Everything we learn and are taught by America tells us to go for the paper because with money there is success and happiness. Don’t try to improve your community or change the ghetto, just buy your way out. By any means necessary. And Big did that through hip hop.
A generation ago, Chris Wallace wouldn’t have had a chance to make “tremendous cream.” There wouldn’t have been a space for a “Notorious B.I.G.” or a “Biggie Smalls” or a “Puff Daddy.” And a generation ago, our parents feared we would be killed by someone in a white sheet, not someone that looks like us. So where are we now? And who’s to blame?
“Juicy”
Do we blame rappers themselves for often talking about the worst of their environments or the media industries for promoting and selling unhealthy words and images? Do we blame the parents who are not around to teach and guide their children or the kids who don’t take responsibility for their own actions? Do we blame an indifferent white government or ineffective black leadership? Or shouldn’t we just blame ourselves as a collective?
If I asked my former students, twelve and thirteen year-olds living in inner-city Baltimore, how many of them had seen or known someone who had been killed, every hand would go up. And so the drive-by murder of Biggie Smalls becomes not an anomaly, but a part of the macabre reality we call black life.
Hip hop is the primary way we are all socialized. In the absence of a strong family unit, the church, or any reliable systems of education, young people learn how to talk to each other, treat each other, and feel about themselves and their world using the rhymes they listen to every day.
The tragedy about the death of B.I.G. is here was a young brotha struggling to figure himself out. Life After Death represented for him a new beginning. A path away from a life he knew to be self-destructive, but one which until recently, he was unable to escape. That is not to say his second album is free of the pathos that made him so Ready to Die, but there is a growth there. A progression he would have continued in his music, a journey that so many young people could have learned from.
“Warning”
Big wanted to be alive, to laugh and cry and act out the lessons he had learned from his past. He also wanted to love. Love his children, his fam, and his moms. Mrs. Wallace was all over Ready to Die. She was an object of stress and bitterness, but also a symbol of strength and survival. Big spoke of her in his rhymes more than any other rapper I know–except of course, Tupac.
Many will point out that Biggie and Tupac’s deaths are more examples of life imitating art. But aren’t we all on stage? Murder is often the leading cause of death for young black men and most of us do very little about it. Can that be a reality? It seems that we have become increasingly unable to differentiate between fantasy and what is real. And for that reason, our art is our life.
Hip hop is our dominant culture, and it’s the way we learn how to live. Kids act like the stars they see in their favorite videos, and find a rhyme for the situations that confront them every day. That power of the art form surprises even many of those who wield it. It’s what makes hip hop so compelling, but aren’t we allowing ourselves to be entertained by our own tragedy?
Tupac, in his martyrdom, became a cultural hero. Biggie will be the same. Tupac asked brothas to die for him…Big found new life. But ultimately, the music couldn’t save either of them.
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at 6:17 pm
Biggie and Tupac were two different individuals.Biggie in my opinion was more humble and laid back,Tupac was more aggressive and outspoken.Nevertheless both are great in their on right as well as their artistic abilities.When people argue over whether who’s the greatest rapper it’s just an matter of opinion from fans,record sells,critics and some on.1.When people say Biggie is the greatest rapper its because of his flow and his delivery.2 When people sayTupac is the greatest rapper because of his lyricism and what he had to say.Besides you have to look at the facts,Tupac had the 90’s on lock and he was untouchable in the rap game.When All Eyes On Me come out it went quadruple platinum in a matter of months and it still flipping.So no matter what people say about Tupac he’s the greatest in my book,no matter what he was and what he did,he was a human being first and no ones perfect so who are we to judge Biggie or Tupac both are ledgenary in their own right.R.I.P Biggie and Tupac(The G.O.A.T.)
at 9:15 am
“SWEET_P1958 I AGREE WITH YOU 1000%… BECAUSE I JUST LOVE TUPAC… WHOLE HEARTLY NO QUESTION ASK… R.I.P. TUPAC I KEEP YOU IN MY HEART ALWAYS… IN FACT MY WHOLE FAMILY LOVES YOU… YOU ARE TRULY MISSED BLACK KING…. YOU LEFT US WAY TOO SOON… LOVE ALWAYS AND FOREVER…
at 12:26 am
I feel that it was sad that his life was taken after he had decided to change it for the better.
at 7:15 pm
I am a die hard fan of Tupac Shakur. Frankly, I believe that Biggy took a “BIG BITE” out of Tupac’s repetoire. The fact that Tupac felt that Biggy was behind the attempt to kill him certainly discredits Biggy in my book. The fact that Biggy was a big black degenerate doesn’t negate his talent, and he definitely had his own style. I am sorry that they both are no longer entertaining us, but Biggie can’t compare with Tupac’s style and charisma. So sincere, Michael Sydney Perkins aka SWEET P)
at 11:07 pm
I remember when Notorious the movie was about to come out,and i girl at work asked me was I going to see it,and my responds to her was no,I can wait for it to come out on DVD.Then she asked why.and my responds was,look,people act like he was the damn President.He was just a rapper,and a average one at that.People make it seem like he invented rap.I liked Biggie,but again,he was not the president. as for Pac,that nigga been talking s**t forever,not just on records.i remember when Oakland Police whooped his ass right in the middle of downtown Oakland.For what,for talking s**t.
at 12:51 am
this is 4 light bright, unless you’re a psychic or something you cant talk on how much props or praise b.i.g. would get. i hate when people stereotype people they never got a chance to know or sit down and talk with… some of these lyrics might be fact some might be a fantasy but it’s music people listen and groove to and it’s funny that you got his whole verse down word for word… anything goin’ off in ya head now, before you try to put down brothers you need to find something thats worth talking about like the ratio of innocent black men in jail, or fathers who don’t want nothing to do with they’re kids. look at scarface and blow, look at pearl harbor. like big’s lyrics that was real life depicted in those films. but no 1 talks about the graphic nature thats seen, but people want to talk about lyrics you have to paint a picture to, im speaking on this because i am from brooklyn bedford stuyvesant me and my family knew b.i.g aka fat chris, so think about things thats making a impact on the world today rather than talk about someone who’s lyrics are a window to escape the harsh reality of life and the “everyday struggle” peace.
at 7:51 pm
I feel like people are making these two guys out to be some kind of god. Yall putting them on some kind of pedastal when their lyrics were just as violent and disrespectful to women as current rap artists. In Big Booty Hoes, Biggie raps:
“I got a b***h that suck my diick til I nut.
Spit it on my gut and slurp that shiit back up.
Ain’t that a s**t, she even take it in the butt
Fuc for bout a hour, now she want a golden shower.
You didn’t know that we be pissin on hoes, biitch.
Leave it up to me, I get fuccked all day (yeah)
Sucked all day, smokin blunts, countin cheese
Fuccking biitches til they a*****es bleed”
REALLY? Those lyrics are about as graphic and downright disrespecful as they come. Yet people complain that todays rap lyrics are infused with negative messages. If these two men were still alive today I guarentee people wouldnt be giving these two as much props and praise as they do. But since there dead, they’re automatically martyrs.
at 1:58 pm
Wow,great article
at 11:53 am
the passing of Biggie brought the rise of Puffy & Jay-Z
at 11:12 am
I’ve read every post in this topic and thought hard about the subject. So here is my $19.06 worth.
While BIG and Tupac where both great rappers, that’s all they were. And both were hypercritical to some degree. B.I.G. rapped about growing up poor in the ghetto. His mother, like my mother, was a nurse who sent him to PRIVATE SCHOOL!! That’s middle class by ANYONE’S standards. I’m only four years older than B.I.G. and I know the NY he grew up in. (I grew up in Harlem) While he could have made other choices, he like so many of that generation CHOSE to break his mother’s heart and become a thug. The fact that he could rap just gave him an edge and a way out.
Tupac was the son of a Black Panther whose work should have been on par with that of Public Enemy. But again, he CHOSE to go the thug route. He talked about sisters on welfare keeping their heads up in one breath then was calling them b***hes and hoes the next. Both of these very talented men squandered their gifts to make a fast buck.
Then the black community got in on the madness by getting into the East Coast/West Coast rap war. You know who started that? TIME MAGAZINE!! Not Biggie OR Tupac. A white owned, white run magazine started the feud and black folk who had never been to EITHER coast were taking up arms for the cause. We continue to fall for the BS then blame others when WE can’t get our stuff together.
I know what true Hip Hop sounds like. I remember being out on the corner until three in the morning battling with rhymes that I wrote. I remember going to “Jams” in the projects to watch people like KRS-ONE, RUN DMC, Spoonie Gee, The Funky Four and Dougie Fresh long before they had record deals. I remember when watching Video Music Box with Ralph McDaniels and listening to the Rap Attack with Mr. Magic on WBLS. I remember when Hip Hop was still ours and it meant something. Now it’s run by house niggas in three button suites and white conglomerates. As a people we deserve better and our children need better roll models then what “Rap” provides these days.
at 2:15 pm
I can definitely relate to what the writer of this article. The way B.I.G could drop a hot 16 so effortlessly is still impressive by today’s standards and most of his stuff from 10 years ago sound way better than what most of these cats puttin out these days. Yet when reading this I see the legacy that rap and black culture is leaving behind.”Don’t try to improve your community or change the ghetto, just buy your way out.” And thats what it is exactly to this day. Cats whether have a beamer and live in a house not even worth as much as the rims they put on it. The struggle is long and hard, I mean damn I’m residing in the killer capital 2 years running: Detroit. I never hate another black man for trying to get his but at the same time we must realize that selling ur soul for a dollar aint gone get u happiness in return. in the the great words of B.I.G: Mo’ Money, Mo’ Problems. The blame can’t rest on our rappers, although they should know 85% of they audience livin in the hood, it should be on the Record Execs. They influence a rapper on what to put out. And who run most labels? Nowadays its the black man. And we still sell our people these false hopes that if u pick up a nine and a eightball u gon be the next big thing on ur block. Its crazy, the feds use to think of ways to destroy rap. Guess they found the best way, give em’ some money and let em destroy the minds of the rest of the niggas. I love rap with a passion, but if we dont grow up and move away from this petty materialistic s**t, and dont add some real passion, real knowledge for our young black people Hip Hop is going to Die, for real this time!
at 1:23 pm
2Pac & Biggie were true artist of hip hop…..their music was tight and they were good young brothers that left us so soon….R.I.P….
at 10:54 am
THE MURDER OR 2PAC AND THE GREAT ONE THE NOTORIOUS BIGGIE SMALLS WAS A TRAGIC LOSS FOR THE FANS AND FAMILY OF THESE GREAT ENTERTAINERS TO DIE SO TRAGICALLY OVER BULLS**T PERPERTRATED BY THE WHITE DEVILS OF THIS WORLD THE ONES THAT WANTS TO ELIMINATE THE AFRICAN-AMERICAN RACE BY TURNING US AGAINST EACH OTHER.BIGGIE SMALLS(CHIS WALLACE) AND TUPAC WAS 2 OF THIS WORLD GREATEST ENTERTAINERS AND WE SHOULD REMEMBER THESE INDIVIDUALS NOT BY HURTING EACH OTHER BUT BY HONORING THEM IN PRESERVING THE PEACE AND UNITING WITH EACH OTHER AND NOT HURTING EACH OTHER.BY WALKING SIDE BY SIDE,HAND IN HAND.IN DOING THIS WE CAN SHOW THE WORLD THAT THESE 2 GREAT ENTERTAINERS DID NOT DIE IN VAIN.TO ME THEY WERE TEACHERS THRU THEIR MUSIC AND SHOWING WHAT WAS OUT THERE IF WE DID NOT USE ON MIND TO EDUCATE OURSELVES.TO BECOME BETTER AFRICAN-AMERICANS.
at 10:47 am
Big was the most naturally gifted MC, but not the best ever. David Thompson was probably the most naturally gifted basketball player but he wasn’t the best ever either.
at 8:49 am
I agree with a lot you have stated DrCampb3ll. In my opinion Big was an MC, his only motivation was to be the “flyest” and party.. to achieve some form of infamy, and he was VERY good at it. I feel Pac had pressure to live up to his family history. His motivation was to “make a difference” in some way. I’m not here to debate who is the best really as that is just a matter of opinion. Both were/are still influential to this day, which in itself speaks volumes. I listen to songs now and can’t even remember a hot line by the next season.. they all sound the same, no originality the market is saturated with copycats. Remember when biting was a bad thing? I still recall what a good friend of mine told us one day back in like 87′ “Man these white cats going to take over hip hop just like they did rock n roll,it’s going to turn into garbage! Mofukka’s going to be just like these hair bands, all cookie cutter and sh*t! Then they’ll have some white boy become the greatest MC ever..just like Elvis! We need to keep these crackas out of our sh*t! Word!” We laughed and mocked him because he was always on some “white devil” sh*t… little did we know Ruff was a hip hop prophet and if I were to see him today he’d say: “Nigga I told you…”
at 8:24 am
Just listen to JUICY.. he tells about his life !! That isnt a far cry from the truth by any sense, because i think every person in poverty can relate to that. How can that be thought of as being fake. Hes not making false allegations like some MC’s out there.
at 8:07 am
After reading every single comment posted, I see alot of opinions as to the who is the Best Rapper. I am an Extremely Huge Notorious B.I.G fan. This blog is not celebrating Notorious B.I.G its actually extending the argument of who is the best rapper of all time. I dont think anyone is discrediting Tupac as one of the greatest lyricist of all time. Being from New York i might be biased, But Through my investigation (Please Correct me if i am wrong) Tupac was not what he portrayed at all. I quote a biography about Tupac … “In June 1988 Tupac and his family moved to Marine City, California. Shortly after Tupac moved he was introduced to the drug trade by his neighbor, after being robbed numerous times, his career as a Drug dealer became short lived.” To me that seems as though the thug life that he portrayed to live was exagerated. But there is no reason why that life should be glorified and the only thing he is remembered for, Because it seems that we as fans of Hip-Hop are forgetting how educated and deeply embedded into history Tupac’s linage is. His aunt is Joanne Chesmard ( Cuban Political Prisoner) His mother was a prominant figure Along side Huey P. Newton during the Black Panther struggle for civil rights. I am not glorifying these people but In my opinion their fights helped black people achieve some civil liberties expressed today. These are the sentiments about Tupac that should be remembered not about how thug he was. But I digress from my point, Notorious B.I.G, was an excellant story teller and he spoke with a certain confidence because he talked of things he lived. Growing up, I have heard stories of how personable he was, unlike artists today who make it and forget where they come from. Remembering your up bringing doesnt neccesarilly mean participating in activities (Namely Unlawful activities) that you were involved in prior to “making” it, but remembering the small people who supported you and encouraged you to get to the point you have reached. Like the Author says artists now are still trying to be like Notorious B.I.G and Tupac without any reverance as to what made them so respected. Think about artists thought of to be Great Rappers today, They all exhibit some of the same signs as Notorious B.I.G and Tupac. Very well read, Knowlegeable, the ability to diferentiate in the importance of family or thier provider (Be it single parental unit). These are what our youth need to see in these artists instead of seeing the negative, because there is alot of positive to be inferred. Please give me feedback. Tell me where i am wrong or right.
at 7:27 am
FOR THE LOVE OF GOD WHY HAVENT THEY FOUND THE PERSON OR PEOPLE THAT MURDERED HIM OR TUPAC….THEY STILL LOOKING FOR THE PERSON THAT KILLED JON BENET RAMSEY BUT THEY HAVE GIVEN UP ON FINDING THESE TWO NICCAS MURDERER..SAD SHYT…R.I.P TO BOTH
at 6:52 am
Sadly enough his death meant nothing, dead 13 years and many of these rappers are still beefing with each other over foolishness and we as fans continue to feed into it. When will we wakeup!
at 2:48 am
R.I.P Biggie your legacy forever lives on!
at 1:47 am
and Snoop would go right in front of Lil Brother
at 1:44 am
Nas (definition of lyricist), KRS1, Slick Rick, Biggy, Dead Prez, Ice Cube, Kanye, DMX, Styles, JadaKiss, Jay Z, Mos Def, Talib, Lil Brother, Young Jeezy, T.I.,and Tupac