Christopher George Latore Wallace, better known by his stage names The Notorious B.I.G., Biggie Smalls, or simply Biggie, was an American rapper. Rooted in East Coast hip hop and particularly gangsta rap, he is widely considered one of the greatest rappers of all time. Wallace became known for his distinctive laid-back lyrical delivery, offsetting the lyrics' often grim content.
Black on Both Sides is the debut solo studio album by American rapper Yasiin Bey, then known as Mos Def, released on October 12, 1999, by Rawkus and Priority Records.
Life After Death is the second and final studio album by American rapper the Notorious B.I.G., released on March 25, 1997, on Bad Boy Records and Arista Records. A double album, it was released sixteen days after his murder. It features collaborations with guest artists such as 112, Jay-Z, Lil' Kim, Mase, Bone Thugs-n-Harmony, Too $hort, Angela Winbush, D.M.C. of Run-D.M.C., R. Kelly, the Lox, and Puff Daddy. Life After Death exhibits the Notorious B.I.G. further delving into the mafioso rap subgenre. The album is a sequel to his first album, Ready to Die, and picks up where the last song, "Suicidal Thoughts", ends.
Reasonable Doubt is the debut studio album by American rapper Jay-Z. It was released on June 25, 1996, by his own record label Roc-A-Fella Records and distributed by Priority Records. The album features production provided by DJ Premier, Ski, Knobody and Clark Kent, and also includes guest appearances from Memphis Bleek, Mary J. Blige, Jaz-O, and the Notorious B.I.G., among others. The album features mafioso rap themes and gritty lyrics about the "hustler" lifestyle and material obsessions.
The Black Album is the eighth studio album by American rapper Jay-Z. It was released on November 14, 2003, through Roc-A-Fella Records and Def Jam Recordings. It was advertised as his final album before retiring, which is also a recurring theme throughout the songs, although Jay-Z resumed his recording career in 2005. For the album, Jay-Z wanted to enlist a different producer for each song, working with Just Blaze, Kanye West, the Neptunes, Eminem, DJ Quik, Timbaland, 9th Wonder and Rick Rubin, among others. The album also features a guest appearance by Pharrell Williams.
Capital Punishment is the debut studio album by American rapper Big Pun, released by Loud Records and Fat Joe's Terror Squad Productions. Released on April 28, 1998, it is the only album released during his lifetime and is regarded as a Hip-Hop classic, described by Black Thought of The Roots as "super groundbreaking" upon release. The album peaked at number five on the Billboard 200 charts and number one on the Top R&B Albums chart for two weeks. It was nominated for Best Rap Album at the 1999 Grammy Awards, but lost to Jay-Z's Vol. 2... Hard Knock Life. It was also the first solo Latin hip hop record to go Platinum.
Hard Core is the debut studio album by American rapper Lil' Kim, released on November 12, 1996, by Undeas Recordings, Big Beat Records, and Atlantic Records. After achieving success with the hip hop group Junior M.A.F.I.A. and their album Conspiracy (1995), Kim began working on her solo album with the Notorious B.I.G. serving as the executive producer. She collaborated with a number of producers, such as Sean "Puff Daddy" Combs, Stevie J., David "Ski" Willis and Jermaine Dupri, among others. Other rappers, including Jay-Z, Lil' Cease and Puff Daddy were featured on the album.
Tical 0: The Prequel is the third studio album by American rapper Method Man, released on May 18, 2004, by Def Jam Recordings.
Amplified is the debut studio album of American rapper Q-Tip, released November 30, 1999, on Arista Records. It became his first solo release after the disbandment of his former group A Tribe Called Quest in 1998. The production was primarily handled by Q-Tip and Jay Dee of the Ummah. The album spawned the Billboard Hot 100 hits "Vivrant Thing" and "Breathe and Stop".
The Notorious K.I.M. is the second studio album by American rapper Lil' Kim. It was released on June 27, 2000, by Atlantic Records and was her first album on her new label Queen Bee Entertainment. It debuted at number four on the US Billboard 200 chart, selling 235,000 copies in its first week, achieving Lil' Kim's highest peak and biggest first-week sales, and reached the top of the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. A commercial success, The Notorious K.I.M. was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) on August 2, 2000. It was the best-selling female rap album in 2000 with sales of over 1.5 million copies in the United States. To date, The Notorious K.I.M. has sold 3 million copies worldwide.
When Disaster Strikes... is the second studio album by American rapper and record producer Busta Rhymes, released by Elektra on September 16, 1997. The album follows the same theme as The Coming, the apocalypse. The album, upon its release, received mostly positive reviews, debuted at number three on the official US Billboard 200 album chart, and peaked at the top spot on the Top R&B Albums chart.
Faithfully is the third studio album by American singer Faith Evans. It was released by Bad Boy Records on November 6, 2001, in the United States. A reflection of her musical studies, Evans was inspired by a variety of classic R&B, pop, rock, and jazz artists such as Chicago, S.O.S. Band, Ella Fitzgerald, and Sarah Vaughn during the production of Faithfully. The result, a sample-heavy album, which the label described as "old school flavored", features production by Mario Winans, Buckwild, Vada Nobles, Michael Angelo Saulsberry, the Neptunes, Battlecat, and others, with material ranging from ballads to dance tracks that built upon the contemporary R&B, funk music and hip hop genres.
Anuthatantrum is the second studio album by Da Brat. It was released in 1996 and went Gold in 1997. A single culled from the album was "Ghetto Love", which featured TLC member Tionne Watkins. The album peaked at number 20 on the Billboard 200.
"Hypnotize" is a single by American rapper The Notorious B.I.G. featuring vocals by Pamela Long, released as the first single from his album Life After Death on March 4, 1997. The last song released before his death in a drive-by shooting a week later, it was the fifth song by a credited artist to hit number one posthumously, and the first since "(Just Like) Starting Over" by John Lennon in 1980. Rolling Stone ranked the song as number 30 on their list of the "100 Greatest Hip-Hop Songs of All Time".
KRS One is the second solo studio album by American rapper KRS-One. It was released on October 10, 1995, via Jive Records. Production was handled by DJ Premier, Diamond D, Big French Productions, Norty Cotto, Showbiz and KRS-One himself. It features guest appearances from Busta Rhymes, Channel Live, Das EFX, Dexter Thibou, Fat Joe and Mad Lion.
"Dead Wrong" is a song by American rapper The Notorious B.I.G. featuring fellow American rapper Eminem, taken from the former's third overall album, Born Again. The song features background vocals from Diddy and it was released as a single posthumously in 1999.
Limelite, Luv & Niteclubz is the fourth studio album by American rapper Da Brat. It was released by So So Def and Arista Records on July 15, 2003 in the United States. The album included the single "In Love wit Chu" featuring Cherish.
"Let It Go" is a song by American R&B singer Keyshia Cole featuring American rappers Missy Elliott and Lil' Kim. It was written by Cole, Jack Knight, Cainon Lamb, Lil' Kim, and Missy Elliott for her second album Just Like You (2007) and samples "Juicy Fruit" by Mtume, and "Don't Stop the Music" by Yarbrough and Peoples, while also interpolating "Juicy" by The Notorious B.I.G., who also sampled "Juicy Fruit." An uptempo song written by all three artists with Jack Knight, Cainon Lamb and James Mtume and produced by Lamb and Elliott, it marked the first collaboration between any of the three artists with one another.
Ready to Die is the debut studio album by American rapper The Notorious B.I.G., released on September 13, 1994, by Bad Boy Records and Arista Records. The album features productions by Bad Boy founder Sean "Puffy" Combs, Easy Mo Bee, Chucky Thompson, DJ Premier, and Lord Finesse, among others. It was recorded from 1993 to 1994 at The Hit Factory and D&D Studios in New York City. The partly autobiographical album tells the story of the rapper's experiences as a young criminal, and was the only studio album released during his lifetime, as he was murdered sixteen days before the release of his second album Life After Death in 1997. The album features a sole guest appearance from Wu-Tang Clan member Method Man.
Duets: The Final Chapter is the second posthumous album by American rapper The Notorious B.I.G., and is a collection of songs featuring appearances of other prominent rappers. The album was released by Bad Boy Records and Atlantic Records in the UK on December 19, 2005, and in the US on December 20 and charted at #3 selling 438,000 copies, beaten by the extremely high sales of Jamie Foxx's Unpredictable and Mary J. Blige's The Breakthrough. In the UK it climbed as high as #13 after the release of the album's first single "Nasty Girl". It is his second posthumous album that was certified platinum.
