New Netflix Documentary Explores the Life and Career of The Notorious B.I.G.
Over 20 years after his death, the new Netflix documentary Biggie: I Got a Story to Tell will chroncle the life of the late rapper The Notorious B.I.G. until his untimely passing in 1997. In the trailer, close friends of the musician—born Christopher Wallace—recount the influences and bacstory behind his musical style alongside archived footage from some of his performances. In the video, friend and fellow rapper Sean "P. Diddy" Combs appears impressing the gravity of how unfounded Wallace's success was at the time. He says, "Biggie blew up overnight. You have no origins for what rap planet this guy came from." Wallace signed to Combs' Bad Boy Records in 1993 as one of the label's first artists.
Wallace's mother, Violetta, also appears in the clip, discussing her son's upbringing in Brooklyn, New York, as well as his growing involvement with drugs during his teenage years. "He disrespected my house," she laments. "That wasn't my son."
Before his death, Wallace solidified himself as a giant within the New York City rap scene, ultimately becoming known as one of the greatest rappers of all time. His hits "Juicy" and "Big Poppa" remain part of today's cultural landscape as defining songs of mid-'90s rap music. The rapper also notably entered into a coastal rivalry with West Coast rap icon Tupac Shakar. After Shakur's murder in late 1996, many implicated Wallace as having been involved, though those allegations were never substantiated.
In March 1997, Wallace was murdered at 24 years old in a drive-by shooting in Las Vegas. His killer has yet to be identified. He is survived by his son C.J., from his marriage to Faith Evans, and his daughter T'yanna from a previous relationship. C.J. starred as the younger version of his father in the 2009 biopic Notorious.
