Song:Mo Money Mo Problems
Album:Life After Death
Rapper Christopher "The Notorious B.I.G." Wallace is probably better known for how he died than anything he did during his life. He only recorded two albums during his life and Life After Death was released two weeks after his death. Mo Money Mo Problems was his first number one hit. It's unlikely he would have had that success if he was alive. That sounds cruel but it's normal for record sales to spike after an artist dies and Wallace's death was certainly more unusual than most. He was born May 21, 1972 in Brooklyn, NY. His parents were Jamaican immigrants. After his dad left, Wallace's mom worked two jobs to raise him. Unfortunately, he got into drug dealing at an early age. Wallace was headed for a life of crime. He spent time in jail for weapons and drug dealing. He started rapping as a teen. When he got out of jail, Wallace recorded a demo as Biggie Smalls after a character in the 1975 film Let's Do It Again. The demo got him a deal with Uptown Records producer Sean "Puff Daddy" Combs. Wallace appeared on a Heavy D & The Boys song and he remixed the Mary J. Blige hit Real Love. But then Combs was fired from Uptown. He started Bad Boy Records and Wallace went with him. Wallace changed his name to The Notorious B.I.G. when he found out that Biggie Smalls was already being used. He worked on a few things, married singer Faith Evans and his debut album Ready To Die was released Sept. 1994. The album was certified 4XPlatinum. His singles topped the Rap and R&B charts. Big Poppa reached #6 on the Billboard Hot 100. A remix of One More Chance featuring Faith Evans which was not on Ready To Die reached #2 on the Billboard Hot 100. Wallace became friends with rapper Tupac Shakur. And he also recorded with NBA star and rapper Shaquille O'Neal. Then he had a falling out with Shakur and that led to the murders of both of them supposedly caused by the east coast/west coast rap feud. There are certainly plenty of theories about these murders. But the bottom line is no one has ever been charged with the murders. So while Wallace and Shakur were feuding, Wallace recorded Life After Death. The album was ready to go. Wallace was in Los Angeles to film a music video. Then he was murdered on Mar. 9, 1997. Life After Death was released two weeks later. The album was a huge seller. It was certified Diamond. Mo Money Mo Problems was Wallace's first number one hit single. The video is a little strange because Combs had to produce it without Wallace. The golf tournament stuff is a little weird. The song liberally sampled the Diana Ross hit I'm Coming Out. And that's it for Wallace. There have been some posthumous releases but Life After Death is available on CD so I would recommend that. Today Wallace is hailed as one of the greatest rappers of all time. Of course everything is overshadowed by his and Shakur's murders. Here's the video for Mo Money Mo Problems by The Notorious B.I.G. featuring Ma$e and Puff Daddy.
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