The Notorious B.I.G.
The greatest rapper that ever lived, according to Rolling Stone.
Christopher George Latore Wallace (May 21, 1972 – March 9, 1997), known professionally as the Notorious B.I.G. or Biggie Smalls, was an American rapper and songwriter. Rooted in the East Coast hip-hop and gangsta rap traditions, he is widely considered one of the greatest rappers of all time. Wallace became known for his distinctive, laidback lyrical delivery, offsetting his lyrics' often grim content. His music was semi-autobiographical, telling of hardship and criminality but also of debauchery and celebration.
Quick Facts
- Birth name
- Christopher George Latore Wallace
- Born
- 21 May 1972
- Birthplace
- New York City, U.S.
- Died
- 9 March 1997
- Place of death
- Los Angeles, California, U.S.
- Other names
- Biggie Smalls
- Biggie
- Big
- Frank White
- Big Poppa
- MC CWest
- Cause of death
- Drive-by homicide (gunshot wound)
- Occupation
- Rapper, songwriter
Lore & Background
Wallace was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York City. In 1993, he became the first artist to sign with Sean Combs's Bad Boy Records and gained recognition for his guest appearances on other artists' singles. His debut studio album, Ready to Die (1994), received acclaim and included the successful singles 'Juicy', 'Big Poppa', and 'One More Chance'. Ready to Die made Wallace the central figure of East Coast hip-hop and helped restore its prominence at a time when the West Coast was dominating the genre.
In 1995, Wallace was named Rapper of the Year at the Billboard Music Awards, and with his protégé group, Junior M.A.F.I.A.—which included longtime friends like Lil' Kim—released the album Conspiracy. While working on his second album in 1995, Wallace became embroiled in the growing East Coast–West Coast hip-hop rivalry, including a feud with his former friend Tupac Shakur. After Shakur was murdered in a drive-by shooting in Las Vegas in September 1996, rumors circulated suggesting that Wallace might have been involved, given the two artists' feud.
On March 9, 1997, six months after Shakur's murder, Wallace was also killed in a drive-by shooting by an unknown assailant, while visiting Los Angeles. Two weeks later, Life After Death (1997) was released as a posthumous double album; it debuted atop the Billboard 200, yielded the Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles 'Hypnotize' and 'Mo Money Mo Problems', and received diamond certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).
Three more posthumous albums followed: Born Again (1999), Duets: The Final Chapter (2005) and The King & I (with Faith Evans; 2017). Wallace's certified U.S. sales exceed 28 million copies, including 21 million albums. Rolling Stone called him the 'greatest rapper that ever lived', and Billboard named him the greatest rapper of all time in 2015. The Source named him the greatest rapper of all time in its 150th issue.
In 2006, MTV ranked him at No. 3 on their list of The Greatest MCs of All Time, calling him possibly 'the most skillful ever on the mic'. In 2020, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Reader's Guide
Wallace was born at Cumberland Hospital in Brooklyn, New York City, on May 21, 1972, the only child of Jamaican immigrant parents. His mother, Voletta Wallace, was a preschool teacher; his father, Selwyn George Latore, was a welder. His father left the family three months before Wallace's third birthday. He grew up in Brooklyn's Clinton Hill, near the border of Bedford-Stuyvesant.
As a child, he spent most of his time on Fulton Street, where he was introduced to drug dealing, alcoholism, and gambling. Raised as a Jehovah's Witness, he attended St. Peter Claver Church in Brooklyn, graduating from the parish elementary school in 1982. He excelled in English at Queen of All Saints Middle School. He attended Westinghouse High School, where he weighed 91 kg and earned the nickname 'Big'.
He dropped out at age sixteen due to his growing interest in drug dealing. In 1989, he was arrested on weapons charges and sentenced to five years of probation; the following year he was arrested for violating that probation. A year later, he was arrested in North Carolina for dealing crack cocaine and spent nine months in jail before making bail. After his release, he produced his first demo tape in 1991 called Microphone Murderer.
Local disc jockey Mister Cee discovered and promoted it, sending it to The Source magazine, which featured the track in the 'Unsigned Hype' section in March 1992. Sean Combs arranged to meet him and connected Wallace to rhyme on the remix of Mary J. Blige's 'Real Love'. In 1992, Wallace's girlfriend Jan Jackson became pregnant, and he was signed to Uptown Records in March by Combs. His first solo track was 'Party and Bullshit' in 1993.
In July 1993, Combs was fired from Uptown Records; Jan gave birth to T'yanna Dream Wallace on August 8, 1993. Combs started Bad Boy Records and signed Wallace. Wallace adopted the name Notorious B.I.G., explaining that 'B.I.G.' stood for 'Business Instead of Game'. Around this time, he formed a friendship with fellow rapper Tupac Shakur in Los Angeles.
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