The Notorious B.I.G. has a new track, courtesy Pepsi, which has turned an old freestyle extolling his love for the soda into a commercial.
Perhaps the most authentic and greatest rapper of all time, The Notorious B.I.G. was the living personification of the rough and tough Brooklyn Streets of the 90s. He died at the young age of 24 in the famous drive-by shooting that resulted from the East coast and West coast feud that fueled the careers of both Biggie and Tupac and ultimately got them both ed. In the short time span that was his life, Biggie Smalls left a massive impact on the world, and his influence continues to be felt in hip-hop music today.
Since The Notorous B.I.G. came up during a time before technology really took over the world, there isn’t much photo or video documentation of his teenage years. There is, however, one very famous clip from 1989 where Biggie freestyles on a street corner and completely blows away everybody watching, even us watching nearly 25 years after the fact. He just has such an effortless flow, never once losing his stream of consciousness even while the crowd around him grows increasingly excited.
Watch the grainy 1989 Biggie Smalls freestyle below, and watch the dramatized version from the 2009 film
The Notorious B.I.G. had it all: style, charisma, humor, the ability to tell vivid stories—everything that made a hip-hop star. One of Christopher Wallace's greatest ss, though, was his ability to rap off the dome. No Blackberry, just blunts and his imagination. We took the liberty of sifting through the internet to find popular freestyles and rare freestyles alike so we could rank them and make you mad. You know how we do. These are Biggie's 10 best freestyles, ranked.
A previously unreleased freestyle by
In the freestyle, which has been animated by Antnamation [Ant Blue], Notorious B.I.G.’s rap rolls over illustrations of his Bed-Stuy neighbourhood in Brooklyn, the setting of some of the most iconic and memorable storylines from his life.
In line with the freestyle, Pepsi is partnering with DJ Enuff and
“Entries can be submitted on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, TikTok or YouTube by tagging @Hot97 and #bigpepsifreestyle. Winners will be chosen by Hot 97’s DJ Enuff, DJ Kast One of the Ebro In The Morning team, and Loaded Lux will announce on the morning show one winner to receive 4 free nights of studio + recording time and 1 week of digital marketing support.”
We're celebrating Notorious B.I.G.'s induction with an unreleased, remastered freestyle 23 years in the making. Proud to collab with The Christopher Wallace Foundation,
The brand collaborated with the Christopher Wallace Foundation, Cey Adams and DJ Enuff, who previously worked with Notorious B.I.G., for the remastered freestyle which was first written in 1997. The animation was done by Antnamation.
