Ready To Die: The title track, and another song proving the hardcore skills that Biggie possesses. This song has been sampled in the song "Get Em High" by Kanye West, and other songs. One of the best Notorious B.I.G songs, and one of the best songs on this album. This song has Biggie emulating a phone call between him and a friend, talking about a friend trying to kill Biggie. Warning: This song best represents the storytelling of Notorious B.I.G. This song samples the song "Chief Rocka" by Lords Of The Underground, and other songs. Classic, one of Biggie's best songs, and one of the best songs on the album. Machine Gun Funk: A song, that best represents the hardcore side of Notorious B.I.G, and shows him at some of his lyrically finest, and shows at some of his darkest. This song samples the songs, "Throw Ya Gunz" by Onyx, "What They Hittin Foe" by Ice Cube, "Just To Get A Rep" by Gang Starr, "Scenario (Remix)" by A Tribe Called Quest, and other songs. Classic, one of the best Notorious B.I.G songs of all time, and one of the best songs on the album. The way he executes this concept is perfection, and is often hilarious. One of them being the normal Biggie that we know of, and the other being a younger one. This song shows the storytelling skills that Notorious B.I.G possesses. Gimme The Loot: This song features Biggie using 2 voices, and they are having a conversation about robbing. This song samples the songs, "Lil Ghetto Boy" by Dr Dre, "The Vapors" by Biz Markie, and other songs. Classic, one of the best Biggie songs ever, and one of the best songs on the album. The overall feel of this song is gangster, and talks about things that have happened during his life. Things Done Changed: The first actual song on this album kicks in the legendary bass, waving the amazing lyrics that are in your face (Kick In The Door reference, hopefully you noticed). An excellent start to the album, but it's not a song so I can't rate it.Ģ. This song also features a bunch of other sounds, such as the birth of Notorious B.I.G, and other sounds.
Intro: An interesting intro, that features songs such as "Superfly" by Curtis Mayfield, "Rappers Delight" by Sugarhill Gang, "Top Billin" by Audio Two, and "Tha Shiznit" by Snoop Dogg. He also comes equipped with incredible storytelling ability, that only KRS-One, Nas, and Jay-Z can defeat. With this album, Notorious B.I.G rhymes about drug dealing, and other occurences that he had to go through throughout his lifetime, such as his mother getting breast cancer, and other things. Those stats prove how critically acclaimed Biggie Smalls is. Notorious B.I.G also made it onto the list of top 50 MC's of all time, at 5th. This album also made it to the list of top 100 hip hop albums, at 5th. This album made it onto the Rolling Stone list of the 500 best albums of all time, being the 4th highest hip hop album on there. The Source: 4.5 Mics (Eventually re-rated 5 Mics)īorn as, Christopher George Latore Wallace, better known as Notorious B.I.G, who died on March 9th, 1997 (6 months after 2Pac died, and weeks before his 2nd album) went on in history as one of the best lyricists of all time. Its hit singles “Hypnotize” and “Mo Money Mo Problems” both reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, and the album has been certified Diamond, with over 11 million copies having been sold to date.Īt the Grammy Awards the following year, Life After Death was nominated for Best Rap Album, Best Rap Solo Performance for lead single “Hypnotize,” and Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group for “Mo Money Mo Problems.Rolling Stone: 4/5 (Eventually re-rated 5/5) At The Source Hip-Hop Music Awards in 1995, Biggie swept every category he was nominated in: New Artist of the Year, Lyricist of the Year, Live Performer of the Year, and Album of the Year.īiggie’s second album Life After Death arrived in 1997, and made an even bigger splash than his debut.
“Big Poppa” was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Rap Solo Performance, while “One More Chance” with his wife, Faith Evans, won the Rap Single of the Year award at the Billboard Music Awards and R&B/Soul or Rap Song of the Year at the Soul Train Music Awards. Ready to Die put Biggie on the map almost immediately. | Chris Walter/WireImage The Notorious B.I.G.