Biggie: Revisiting the Legacy

With the release of what’s said to be his final album, to coincide with the tenth anniversary of his death I wonder if we can finally lay Biggie to rest?

Words by BoyWonder

By now everyone should be pretty familiar with Biggie’s story right? A young, 6’3 big-boned kid from the mean projects of Brooklyn and an even meaner rhyme flow releases his debut album on Bad Boy records and is hailed the greatest. Repping the East coast to the fullest Christopher Wallace soon develops a beef with 2 Pac (signed to West Coast label Death Row) and days before the release of his second album gets gunned down. His death, six months after the demise of 2 Pac is one that left the hip hop world stunned and shaken to its very (hard)core. The events played like a hip opera or a Shakespearean tragedy of which the repercussions are still felt today.

However, events could have been so different as the night of the fatal shooting, Biggie was supposed to have been in the UK! “I was on the phone to his manager as he was meant to be flying that night and I was expecting him, but his manager said he was going to go to the Vibe party” says Mervyn Lyn who at the time worked as Head of R&B Repertoire for Arista Records. “Then I remember taking my dog for a walk down the common early in the morning and the phone ringing and they said that Biggie went to the party and had been shot dead... that was quite a moment to be so far away but yet still be involved in the whole thing in a superficial way.”

After the rappers befitting burial in Manhatten which was attended by thousands, Bad Boy released Life after Death which has now been certified diamond (boasting sales of more then 10 million worldwide). The double disced collection recorded before his death featured collaborations from the likes of R Kelly, Jay Z, Lil Kim and 112 who sang the hook on Sky’s The Limit. “Working with Biggie was incredible, he was like a big brother” remembers Slim from 112. “I miss him a lot. He definitely took us underneath his wings and when we first moved from Atlanta to New York, he was one of the first people that really took us around and to his shows. He had just come out and he was letting us see what he had to deal with and what we should be ready for.”

Well known for his laid back delivery and semi autobiographical rhyming, not a lot is made of Biggie’s talents outside of the rap game. “He could definitely sing” continued Slim “he had great melodies and he was an incredible comedian (laughs). When you look at him he looks intimidating but he was very peaceful and he’d give you the shirt of his back… he was very, very kind.”

Since his passing, posthumous releases such as 1999’s double platinum Born Again and 2005’s Duets: The Final Chapter have reintroduced the big friendly giant to a younger and wider audience further keeping his legacy alive.
With the latest release being Notorious B.I.G’s Greatest Hits which is also said to be his final and with his death still unsolved (despite the tireless campaigning by his mother Voletta Wallace) it’s a wonder whether we can actually finally lay Biggie to rest?

However it seems that for as long as there’s a new crop of rappers citing Biggie as their influence and while there’s still inner city kids benefiting from the ‘Christoper Wallace Memorial Foundation’ Biggie’s status will always be cemented in hip hop history. In the words of friend and collaborator P. Diddy:
“Christopher Wallace was more than an artist, he was my friend. The Notorious B.I.G, as most knew him, was a rapper, a story teller, and a prolific poet. Through his words, persona, life and music, he was able to open doors and create opportunities for hip-hop as a whole. The release of Greatest Hits makes it clear to the world why the Notorious B.I.G is the greatest rapper of all time”

Notorious B.I.G’s Greatest Hits is out now on Atlantic Records!