Biggie Smalls, also known as The Notorious BIG or Biggie, was an American rapper who was widely regarded as one of the most influential rappers in the world. Despite having a short life (he died at the young age of 24), he still found so much success in hip-hop and to this day is considered by many to be one of the greatest rappers who ever lived. Find out more about the life of The Notorious BIG here
Biography – Who Was Biggie Smalls (Christoper Wallace)?
Biggie Smalls was born Christopher George LatoreWallace on May 21, 1972 in Brooklyn, New York. He was the only known child born to his Jamaican parents. His mother, Voletta Wallace, was a preschool teacher, and his father, Selwyn George Latore, was a welder and local politician. Biggie grew up in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn. From a young age, he was of massive size, and of course that’s how the nickname Biggie came about.
Biggie had a tough life growing up, his father abandoned the family when he was young and as such his mother had to work two jobs to support her family. This left him unsupervised and by the age of 12 he was dealing drugs on the street unknown to his mother.
Christopher George Latore Wallace was educated at various schools, including Bishop Loughlin Memorial High School and George Westinghouse Career and Technical Education High School, all in different parts of Brooklyn. Despite having excelled in school, he dropped out at age 17.
As a teenager, he entertained people on the streets with his rap skills, but continued to dabble in petty crimes. At 17, he was charged with gun possession but received a suspended sentence. However, when he was 18, he was charged with drug trafficking and ended up in prison for nine months.
music career
After his release from prison, Biggie made his foray into the music industry. In 1991 he released his first work (a demo tape) called Biggie Smalls. The name “Biggie Smalls” came from a character in the 1975 American action crime comedy film Let’s Do It Again . His work caught the attention of acclaimed hip-hop magazine The Source, and they identified him in their magazine as one of hip-hop’s most promising talents.
On the back cover of this advert, Biggie produced another demo that was signed in 1992 by Uptown Records, which was home to record producer Sean Combs (P. Diddy), who would become his very good friend. Shortly thereafter, Combs started his own label, Bad Boy Records, and Biggie moved there. Between 1992 and 1994 he starred on the songs of other label mates, including Mary J Blige. They released two hits True Love and What’s the 411?
Biggie released his first album entitled Ready to Die on September 13, 1994. The album was a critical and commercial success, peaking at number 13 on the Billboard Top 200 chart.
The album had monster hits such as Noch eine Chance, Saftig and Großer Poppa . Biggie also decided to go by the official name TheNotorious BIG Following its success, he befriended fellow rapper Tupac Shakur, who was already a popular artist by the time. Biggie followed his debut success with more success in 1995. Junior MAFIA (a hip hop group he mentored and which featured Lil Kim and Lil Cease among others) released a successful debut album entitled Conspiracy .
Biggie also starred in the songs of other artists and received numerous awards. Billboard Awards named him Rap Artist of the Year, while the Source Awards named him Lyricist of the Year and Live Performer of the Year, among others.
Death of the infamous BIG
On the 8th of March 1997, Biggie attended the Soul Train Awards where he was booed. This was an indication that people still suspected him of knowing what happened to rival Tupac, who was shot 6 months ago. Afterwards, Biggie and his entourage attended the awards ceremony at the Petersen Automotive Museum. On the way back to their hotel, they stopped at a red light. While they were waiting for the light to turn green, a black car carrying Biggie approached the vehicle and shot the truck. Biggie suffered multiple gunshots and was taken to the hospital, where he died shortly thereafter.
Biggie’s funeral was held on March 18th at a Manhattan funeral home. Attendees included Lil Kim, Mary J. Blige, Queen Latifah, Busta Rhymes, etc., among others. After the service, his remains were cremated and given to his family.
While Biggie’s murder (and Tupac’s) has been the subject of much speculation, conspiracy theories, crime reports and investigative reports, it has never been officially solved and no one has been convicted.
Life After Death: After Death Album and Awards.
Biggie’s 2nd studio album Afterlife was released on March 25, 1997, just weeks after his death . The album was a great success. Two singles from the album Mesmerize and No Money No Problems reached #1 on the Billboard Top 100, while the album itself achieved similar status on the Billboard Top 200. The album sold over 10,000,000 units and was certified Diamond by the RIAA in 2000.
Sean Combs later released his own debut album in 1997, which included a beautiful evergreen tribute to Biggie entitled I’ll Miss You . The song featured Faith Evans and won the 1998 Grammy for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group. Since then, two more posthumous albums have been released by Biggie, including Born Again (1999) and Duets: One Final Chapter (2005). In 2009, a biography was published documenting Biggie’s short but accomplished life. The biopic is titled Infamous .