Holding back the tears, you can't help but think back to three 27 years ago when the poetic masterblaster known as the Notorious B.I.G. dropped his groundbreaking debut, Ready To Die, on the unsuspecting ears of the hip-hop nation. Although we had already boogied to the Brooklyn bounce of "Party and Bullshit" and shared his fantasies of seducing Janet Jackson on the mixtape favorite "Dreams," no one could have predicted how this record would forever change the landscape of current day hip-hop culture. Introducing the character of the Versace-don gulping Cristal from crystal flute glasses, Biggie came across as an aged-hustler who was tired of playing the rock-slanging game, but never became bored of retelling those crack in da dayz stories. With his husky from far too many blunts voice, Big documented the illmatic mean streets of his Bedford Stuyvesant stomping grounds. His tales of gunshots after midnight, snatching "the baby rings and the number-one-mom pendants" off of unsuspecting victims, and chilling stories of rivals plotting on his life became a part of his ever-expanding persona. But, within all of this, Biggie didn't seem to be looking to glamorize the pain of urban madness that surrounded him. Under the guidance of Bad Boy's flamboyant CEO Sean "Puffy" Combs, the Notorious one wasn't afraid to reveal his desire for the finer things in life. Unlike most rappers, Big was able to go pop with Billboard smashes like "Big Poppa" and "One More Chance," and still maintain street credibility and respect from fellow MC's because of lyrical masterworks like "Unbelievable" and the nerve-ending narrative "Warning." Cont'd...
...Now in 1997, six months after the murder of Tupac Shakur, I can still feel the chill I got when I sat down to listen to Biggie's second opus, Life After Death...Till Death Do Us Part. Moments after putting the advance tape into my stereo, my girlfriend opened the door and said, "Biggie was killed in Cali." And as my eyes swelled, I silently listened to an album that will undoubtedly become a classic to any true hip-hop fan. Chillingly opening with a dramatic scene of Biggie laying dead in a hospital room as sirens blare in the distance and sad piano chords drift like a ghost over his body, a sorrowful-voiced Puffy says, "We were supposed to rule the world, baby. Shit can't be over...shit can't be over." And as a flat-lining sound is heard, comes the weird soundscape of "Somebody's Gotta Die," a track that resembles a scene from an unmade blaxploitation film about Crooklyn gangsters trading shots in the projects. However, despite these suspenseful moments, this album makes a clear distinction from its predecessor. Unlike the cult of violence that seemed almost naturalistic on Ready to Die, the realm of gangster aesthetics on Life After Death seems more cinematic fantasy than real-life adventures in the 'hood. On the DJ Premier-produced "Kick In The Door," which loops Screaming Jay Hawkins, Biggie is busting down doors and waving his .44 like some kind of urban vigilante. Meanwhile, on "What's Beef?," which uses jungle influences in its grooves, Biggie moans, "Beef is when you need two gats to go to sleep/Beef is when your moms ain't safe up on the streets," like he wanted to rise above his own personal chaos. (Who wouldn't?) Cont'd below...
Exploring his desires to reach superstar status, Big's employment of fellow big-name artists leads to stunning results. R. Kelly adds his dirty vocal touches on "F#ckin' You Tonight," Puff and Big exchange playa-isms with Too Short on "The World Is Filled," and the mayor of St. James holds his own with Cleveland, Ohio's Bone Thugs-N-Harmony on "Notorious Thugs." That ambitious track alone reveals Smalls' diversity as an MC and his desire to be viewed as the greatest in his field. Still, despite inspired raw hip-hop diatribes like the RZA-constructed "Long Kiss Goodnight," and Primo's powerful "Ten Crack Commandments," Life After Death's finest moments are the instantly catchy, future-radio-favorites. While the slick-as-a-can-of-oil first single "Hypnotize" and the Rene and Angela-inspired "I Love The Dough" (featuring Jay-Z) are both banging, it's the remake of Diana Ross' "I'm Coming Out (More Money)," featuring the sleepy-voiced Mase and the boss man Puff Daddy, that swings the hardest with pure Bad Boy flavor. Although Biggie probably never intended the hit-fueled Life After Death to be his swan song as an artist, one can't help but view songs like the care-free "Goin Back To Cali," a parody of the Death Row sound, and the haunting closing track, "You're Nobody ('Til Somebody Kills You)," as yet another definition of tragic irony. Unfortunately, like Tupac before him, Big's potent verses of a violent death became a self-prophecy indeed. - The Source, May 1997 (5 Mics). Revisit this classic 2LP today, and Rest in Peace to The Notorious B.I.G!
