Biggie Biggie Smalls is the Illest

Ok, so Dan already beat me to a Notorious B.I.G. tribute, but I have to throw something up for an artist who has had a profound impact on my life....

I have so many memories of Notorious that I don't even know where to start so I'm just gonna jot down some bullets-

-I think the first time I heard Big was when I was 9 years old. I knew that he had died, but I really had no idea who he was. My mom took my brother and I to Sam Goody on the release date of Life After Death because my brother was adamant about getting it, I didn't see what the big deal was. He got that, I'm pretty sure I got a Sugar Ray single or something. When we got home I snuck a listen on my brother's Disc man, and after hearing Hypnotize, I was hooked-I must have listened to it about 30 times in a row.

-When I was in the 8th grade, I first heard "Gimme the Loot" and even though I could only understand about half of the lyrics I loved it. I memorized every single word in about 2 days. However, I still didn't really know the magnitude of his abilities.

-At about 15-16, I stole "Ready to Die" from my friends girlfriend, my life literally changed. I was obsessed with this album, it was pretty much all I could talk about at school.

-Throughout High School I did everything I could to get my hands on as much Biggie as I possibly could. I must have destroyed my families computer downloading every single Biggie track known to man on Napster and Kazaa, but I had to have it.

- As I've gotten older, I've come to appreciate what Biggie did with his short time on this Earth. It's crazy to me that a man could have such a profound impact on so many lives, mine included. His lyrics are so versatile, he could go from rapping about killing people, to inspiring people, to loving his girl in a matter of 3 tracks.

-His growth from "Ready to Die" to "Life After Death" was unparalleled. He understood that now that he had made it, he couldn't rap about being on the corner and hustling drugs anymore. I think this is one of the biggest reasons he remains so relevant and his music lives on.

- All in all, the Rap game would be very different if he would have released a few more albums. In short, there is no way Lil' Wayne would be considered the best rapper ever.

Rest in Peace Big, your impact on hip-hop is still felt today. You were the best to ever do it, and your music will continue to remain timeless.