Wallace was born and raised in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. His debut album Ready to Die (1994) made him a central figure in East Coast hip hop and increased New York City's visibility in the genre at a time when West Coast hip hop dominated the mainstream. The following year, he led Junior M.A.F.I.A.—a protégé group composed of his childhood friends—to chart success. In 1996, while recording his second album, Wallace was heavily involved in the growing East Coast–West Coast hip hop feud. On March 9, 1997, he was murdered by an unknown assailant in a drive-by shooting in Los Angeles. His second album, Life After Death (1997), released two weeks later, rose to No. 1 on the U.S. album charts. In 2000, it became one of the few hip-hop albums to be certified Diamond.
Wallace was noted for his "loose, easy flow"; dark, semi-autobiographical lyrics; and storytelling abilities, which focused on crime and hardship. Three more albums have been released since his death, and he has certified sales of over 17 million records in the United States, including 13.4 million albums.
Wallace was born at St. Mary's Hospital in the Brooklyn borough of New York City on May 21, 1972, the only child of Jamaican immigrant parents. His mother, Voletta Wallace, was a preschool teacher, while his father, Selwyn George Latore, was a welder and politician. His father left the family when Wallace was two years old, and his mother worked two jobs while raising him. Wallace grew up at 226 St. James Place in Brooklyn's Clinton Hill, near the border with Bedford-Stuyvesant. Wallace excelled at Queen of All Saints Middle School winning several awards as an English student. He was nicknamed "Big" because he was overweight by the age of 10. Wallace said he started dealing drugs when he was around the age of 12. His mother, often away at work, did not know of his drug dealing until he was an adult. He began rapping as a teenager, entertaining people on the streets, and performed with local groups the Old Gold Brothers and the Techniques. At his request, Wallace transferred from Bishop Loughlin Memorial High School to George Westinghouse Career and Technical Education High School, where future rappers DMX, Jay-Z, and Busta Rhymes were also attending. According to his mother, Wallace was still a good student but developed a "smart-ass" attitude at the new school. At age 17, Wallace dropped out of school and became more involved in crime. In 1989, he was arrested on weapons charges in Brooklyn and sentenced to five years' probation. In 1990, he was arrested on a violation of his probation. A year later, Wallace was arrested in North Carolina for dealing crack cocaine. He spent nine months in jail before making bail.
Wallace's lyrical topics and themes included mafioso tales ("Niggas Bleed"), his drug-dealing past ("10 Crack Commandments"), materialistic bragging ("Hypnotize"), as well as humor ("Just Playing (Dreams)"), and romance ("Me & My Bitch"). Rolling Stone named Wallace in 2004 as "one of the few young male songwriters in any pop style writing credible love songs".
Guerilla Black, in the book How to Rap, describes how Wallace was able to both "glorify the upper echelon" and "[make] you feel his struggle". According to Touré of The New York Times in 1994, Wallace's lyrics " autobiographical details about crime and violence with emotional honesty". Marriott of The New York Times (in 1997) believed his lyrics were not strictly autobiographical and wrote he "had a knack for exaggeration that increased sales". Wallace described his debut as "a big pie, with each slice indicating a different point in my life involving bitches and niggaz... from the beginning to the end".
Ready to Die is described by Rolling Stone as a contrast of "bleak" street visions and being "full of high-spirited fun, bringing the pleasure principle back to hip-hop". AllMusic write of "a sense of doom" in some of his songs and the NY Times note some being "laced with paranoia"; Wallace described himself as feeling "broke and depressed" when he made his debut. The final song on the album, "Suicidal Thoughts", featured Wallace contemplating suicide and concluded with him committing the act.
On Life After Death, Wallace's lyrics went "deeper". Krims explains how upbeat, dance-oriented tracks (which featured less heavily on his debut) alternate with "reality rap" songs on the record and suggests that he was "going pimp" through some of the lyrical topics of the former. XXL magazine wrote that Wallace "revamped his image" through the portrayal of himself between the albums, going from "midlevel hustler" on his debut to "drug lord".
AllMusic wrote that the success of Ready to Die is "mostly due to Wallace's skill as a storyteller"; in 1994, Rolling Stone described Wallace's ability in this technique as painting "a sonic picture so vibrant that you're transported right to the scene". On Life After Death, Wallace notably demonstrated this skill on "I Got a Story to Tell", creating a story as a rap for the first half of the song and then retelling the same story "for his boys" in conversation form.
Considered one of the best rappers of all time, Wallace was described by AllMusic as "the savior of East Coast hip-hop". The Source magazine named Wallace the greatest rapper of all time in its 150th issue in 2002. In 2003, when XXL magazine asked several hip hop artists to list their five favorite MCs, Wallace's name appeared on more rappers' lists than anyone else. 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". Editors of About.com ranked him No. 3 on their list of the Top 50 MCs of Our Time (1987–2007). In 2012, The Source ranked him No. 3 on their list of the Top 50 Lyrical Leaders of all time. Rolling Stone has referred to him as the "greatest rapper that ever lived". In 2015, Billboard named Wallace as the greatest rapper of all time.
Since his death, Wallace's lyrics have been sampled and quoted by a variety of hip hop, R&B and pop artists including Jay-Z, 50 Cent, Alicia Keys, Fat Joe, Nelly, Ja Rule, Eminem, Lil Wayne, Game, Clinton Sparks, Michael Jackson and Usher. On August 28, 2005, at the 2005 MTV Video Music Awards, Sean Combs (then using the rap alias "P. Diddy") and Snoop Dogg paid tribute to Wallace: an orchestra played while the vocals from "Juicy" and "Warning" played on the arena speakers. In September 2005, VH1 held its second annual "Hip Hop Honors", with a tribute to Wallace headlining the show.
Wallace had begun to promote a clothing line called Brooklyn Mint, which was to produce plus-sized clothing but fell dormant after he died. In 2004, his managers, Mark Pitts and Wayne Barrow, launched the clothing line, with help from Jay-Z, selling T-shirts with images of Wallace on them. A portion of the proceeds go to the Christopher Wallace Foundation and to Jay-Z's Shawn Carter Scholarship Foundation. In 2005, Voletta Wallace hired branding and licensing agency Wicked Cow Entertainment to guide the estate's licensing efforts. Wallace-branded products on the market include action figures, blankets, and cell phone content.
The Christopher Wallace Memorial Foundation holds an annual black-tie dinner ("B.I.G. Night Out") to raise funds for children's school equipment and to honor Wallace's memory. For this particular event, because it is a children's schools' charity, "B.I.G." is also said to stand for "Books Instead of Guns".
There is a large portrait mural of Wallace as Mao Zedong on Fulton Street in Brooklyn a half-mile west from Wallace's old block. A fan petitioned to have the corner of Fulton Street and St. James Place, near Wallace's childhood home renamed in his honor, garnering support from local businesses and attracting more than 560 signatures.
A large portrait of Wallace features prominently in the Netflix series Luke Cage, due to the fact that he served as muse for the creation of the Marvel Cinematic Universe's version of Marvel Comics character Cornell "Cottonmouth" Stokes.
Born Again
The Notorious B.I.G. Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Ten years from now, where do I want to be? I want to be, just livin' man
Just living comfortably with my niggas man, in a pool and shit, smoking plenty indo
You know I'm saying? I got my wife, just lounging with my wife you know I'm saying?
With my daughter, her daughter, you know just laid back, just chillin'
You know I'm saying? Living all my niggas is living, where I think I be? Ten years
I don't think I will see it for real dogg for real man, that shit ain't promised man
(You're dead wrong)
The weak or the strong
You got it going on
You're dead wrong
The weak or the strong
The weak or the strong
You got it going on
You're dead wrong
The lyrics to The Notorious B.I.G.'s song Born Again, particularly in the first paragraph, reveals his aspirations for the next 10 years. He hopes to have a comfortable life with his friends and family, smoking weed by the poolside and just chilling. He speaks of relaxation and just living life as he desires. However, he seems to have doubts if he will live to see this dream come true. He acknowledges that such dreams may not be guaranteed and that he may not be lucky enough to achieve them. The lyrics convey a sense of acceptance of his fate while showing a desire for a better life.
The chorus, "You're dead wrong," is a stark contrast to the first paragraph as it signifies an aggressive and confident tone. The phrase appears to be mocking someone, and it may be directed towards his haters or anyone who doubts his capabilities. The repetition of "the weak or the strong" emphasizes his belief in himself as a dominant figure despite any obstacles that may confront him. Thus, the lyrics to "Born Again" showcase a mix of hopefulness and confidence, despite the possibility of a bleak future.
Line by Line Meaning
What about ten years from now?
I wonder where I will be in ten years from now.
Ten years from now, where do I want to be? I want to be, just livin' man
In ten years from now, my desire is to simply live life and be happy.
Just living comfortably with my niggas man, in a pool and shit, smoking plenty indo
I want to live comfortably with my friends, enjoying life by relaxing in a pool while smoking weed.
I got my wife, just lounging with my wife you know I'm saying?
I want to spend time with my wife and just relax together.
With my daughter, her daughter, you know just laid back, just chillin'
I also want to spend quality time with my daughter and granddaughter, just relaxing and enjoying life together.
Living all my niggas is living, where I think I be? Ten years
If all my friends are happy and living a good life in ten years, then I will be happy too.
I don't think I will see it for real dogg for real man, that shit ain't promised man
However, I don't know if I will be alive to see that happen because life is unpredictable and anything can happen.
I don't think my luck is that good, I hope it is but if it ain't, so be it, I'm ready
Although I hope that I am lucky enough to live a long and happy life, I am prepared for whatever may come my way.
(You're dead wrong) The weak or the strong
It doesn't matter if you are weak or strong because you can still be wrong.
You got it going on
You may think you are all that, but you are still capable of being mistaken.
You're dead wrong
You are completely mistaken.
Lyrics © Royalty Network, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Y, CHRISTOPHER WALLACE, HARVE PIERRE, JEFFERY WALKER, OSTEN HARVEY, JEFFREY WALKER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Brian Stop triggering me why god why
Keeping it live in 95
Hot like lava
When you got quadruple quadrapule comin at you you do what you gotta do
Don't do nothing you don't want in the news aighty
Very cautious w/ emotions nice job m. H. Who got it
Diane Enríquez
I decided to give this album a try and it is an actual banger, but the thing that really hits me is the final track. Ms. Wallace givin' us some final words is something I'll never forget, letting us know a little bit more of how Biggie was before all of this rapping stuff is just too special and really something remarkable about this album.
Peace <3
Blaz Konec
biggie
Adilson Ramos
MELHOR RAP RAPPER DE TODOS OS TEMPOS ....NOTORIOUS B.I.G
Douglas Sousa
👍
Some Random Guy
One of the best albums out there. New school rap will never compare to shit like this.
Denise Booth
DECADES LATER STILL CAN GO TOE TO TOE WITH THE GREATS OF TODAY 2022 #RIP KING 👑
Swole Jeezy
They did a good job putting this album together I think
Cliff 'Em all
🧢
Wagner
Rap na veia e raíz, pena que perdemos esse talento muito cedo, ele e Tupac representava de mais. Dois talentos que deixou sua marca e os casos ainda trilha uma incógnia no sistema.
ILL Mannered FILMS 🎥
Wagner TYPE:DON LEGEND ESAU...