The Source magazine named him the greatest rapper of all time in its 150th issue. Rolling Stone has called him the "greatest rapper that ever lived", and Billboard named him the greatest rapper of all time. With two more posthumous albums released, Wallace has certified sales of over 28 million copies in the United States, including 21 million albums. It reached number one on the Billboard 200, and eventually achieved a diamond certification in the United States. Wallace's second album Life After Death, a double album, was released two weeks later. On March 9, 1997, six months after Shakur's death, Wallace was murdered in a drive-by shooting while visiting Los Angeles. Following Tupac Shakur's death in a drive-by shooting in Las Vegas in September 1996, speculations of involvement in Shakur's murder by criminal elements orbiting the Bad Boy circle circulated as a result of Wallace's public feud with Shakur. The following year, he led his protégé group Junior M.A.F.I.A., a team of himself and longtime friends, including Lil' Kim, to chart success.ĭuring 1996, while recording his second album, Wallace became ensnarled in the escalating East Coast–West Coast hip hop feud. Wallace was awarded the 1995 Billboard Music Awards' Rapper of the Year.
The album made him the central figure in East Coast hip hop, and restored New York's visibility at a time when the West Coast hip hop scene was dominating hip hop music. His debut album Ready to Die (1994) was met with widespread critical acclaim, and included his signature songs " Juicy" and " Big Poppa". īorn and raised in Brooklyn, New York City, Wallace signed to Sean "Puffy" Combs's label Bad Boy Records as it launched in 1993, and gained exposure through features on several other artists' singles that year. His music was often semi-autobiographical, telling of hardship and criminality, but also of debauchery and celebration. Wallace became known for his distinctive laidback lyrical delivery, offsetting the lyrics' often grim content. Rooted in the New York rap scene and gangsta rap traditions, he is widely considered one of the greatest rappers of all time. All rights reserved.Christopher George Latore Wallace (May 21, 1972 – March 9, 1997), better known by his stage names the Notorious B.I.G., Biggie Smalls, or simply Biggie, was an American rapper and songwriter. “Big Poppa (House mix)” is now available on Spotify and Apple Music.Ĭopyright © 2020, ABC Audio. “And I hope they appreciate and enjoy it.” “Ready to Dance sets a foundation to discuss and re-imagine his music for my generation, while also giving the O.G.’s who grew up on my dad’s music and house music a new way to enjoy his work,” says CJ. hopes the album will introduce a whole generation of marginalized Black youth to new art forms, as producers, performers and listeners, believing that “music continues to live if we think about it in new ways.” “ Big Poppa (House Mix)”will be featured on Ready to Dance, which re-imagines some of Biggie’s biggest hits as house music, e xecutive produced by Wallace, Willie Mack, and Jonathan Hay of R.U.S.H.
Obviously, people really want to hear his voice, they really want to hear new verses, but I feel like the spirit is there without his voice.”
“I knew if I did touch his music, it would have to be something different. “I have been running away from doing anything with music, especially my dad’s music, for a long time because I always thought it would be kind of expected,” CJ says. Its hip-hop and house music fusion proves you don’t need lyrics to remember legendary songwriting. The 23-year old son of the late music icon and singer Faith Evans is further expanding his father’s hip-hop legacy with a house mix of the single “ Big Po ppa,” from B.I.G.’s 1994 debut album, Ready to Die. Courtesy Photo Christopher CJ Wallace, the son of legendary rapper The Notorious B.I.G, is continuing his father’s legacy with a new album, Ready to Dance.