What if The Notorious B.I.G. had Never Died?

By The Voice
Hip Hop Vibe Staff Writer

During the late 1990s, the biggest feud in hip hop history emerged when Bad Boy Records and Death Row Records began taking shots at each other. The center of the feud was the outspoken Tupac Shakur, of the West, and The Notorious B.I.G., of the East. Initially, the two rappers were friends, but a shooting changed all of this.

The past few months have shed light into what caused some of the most-pivotal moments in hip hop. Tupac Shakur's beef with The Notorious B.I.G. stemmed from a shooting in 1994 at Quad Studios, which led to him being shot. Recently, it was said, by Dexter Isaac, that Jimmy Henchman was behind this shooting.

In March of 1997, The Notorious B.I.G. was preparing to release his Life After Death album. On the album, Biggie rapped the same street tales, laced with rhymes of wealth and prestige. Weeks before the official release of the album, The Notorious B.I.G. was taken, only months after Tupac Shakur. A few years ago, Diddy revealed Biggie was supposed to leave Los Angeles on the night of March 8 to head out of the country. However, Biggie ended up talking Diddy into allowing him to stay longer.

Had The Notorious B.I.G. taken the trip out of the country, he likely would have performed some of his older tracks and would have premiered a number of his new tracks. If The Notorious B.I.G. was still alive, today, he would be a seventeen year veteran. While Biggie promised he would retire, in 2000, to focus on the development of Junior M.A.F.I.A., he would have likely released a comeback album. By now, Biggie would likely become a commentator to the hip hop game. Nas created the "hip hop is dead" discussion and the discussion would not have taken place if Biggie were still here.

Jay-Z is the most-quoted rapper in today's generation. While Jay-Z has memorable quotes, many of his rhymes sample lines from The Notorious B.I.G. Had Biggie still been alive, Jay-Z's music would have been missing a number of quotes. In current hip hop, The Notorious B.I.G. would instead be the rapper being quoted all the time. Since his death "106 & Park" has become a surrogate home to hip hop and Biggie would have been a fixture on the show, especially during the era of AJ and Free. If Biggie were still here, hip hop would have more of a focus on lyrics than business.

While the focus would be lyrics, the business would still be booming. Being the businessman he is, Diddy would have made Biggie the focus of his Sean John clothing line, using him for the commercials. If Biggie were still here, a lot of rappers in the game would still be fighting for entry.