The story of the Notorious B.I.G. has been passed down through the years, becoming legend along the way. Now with the fresh biopic Notorious on the way, the world will see why.

By: MC

Biggie Smalls is the illest. Over 11 years have passed since the gunshots echoed through the LA night taking the life of Christopher Wallace, aka, The Notorious B.I.G. That was the spring of 1997. But the impact the Brooklyn native managed to have on Hip-Hop in his all to brief career seems to have no end.

With every sample of his nasal flow, remake or replay of a classic hit, homage paid by another MC or the usual barbershop debate about who’s the best MC, the legend of Bed-Stuy’s finest has continued to grow, solidifying with the release of Notorious, the biopic based on his life.

With Biggie’s storybook life, it’s no wonder someone would deem him worthy of silver screen remembrance. As the only son of a struggling single mother who becomes infatuated with street life, drops out of high school and fathers a child that he hustles to support even after multiple run-ins with the law, Big’s story is typical of many young black males. But unlike most, Biggie Smalls seemed to constantly beat the odds just by being who he was. Despite his upbringing, he was respected by the hardest of street cats because he spoke with authenticity. Although his lyrics could be viewed negatively, he won the respect of the lyric lovers because of his wit and flow. He didn’t have his own beats, but raw skill pushed his demo into the winner’s circle of the Unsigned Hype section of The Source. A large guy, the ladies loved Big Poppa for his charm and natural charisma. Without a hit record he managed to impress a young would-be mogul, Sean Combs, with his passion. And though he was an intimidating, standing 6’3” and weighing over 250 lbs, his sense of humor, friendly demeanor and loyalty and camaraderie, drew friends, family and supporters to him like moths to a flame. And even though his fame and fortune made him larger than life, the people loved him because in him they could still see one of their own and gather inspiration from his success. These are the things that legends are made of and the reason why some of those that knew him best have gathered to speak on the film that attempts to capture all the sides of a man and artist, so loved by the people around him.

Although documentaries like Tupac’s Thug Angel and fictional accounts like Get Rich Or Die Tryin’ and 8 Mile are pretty common and the film Krush Groove was based on the life of mogul Russell Simmons, Notorious, with Wayne Barrow and Voletta Wallace as executive producers, is the first feature length biopic dedicated to a rapper. This film places B.I.G. in the ranks of musical icons like Ritchie Valens (La Bamba), Jimi Hendrix (Hendrix), Johnny Cash (Ring Of Fire) and Ray Charles (Ray).

George Tillman Jr., director of 1997’s Soul Food and 2000’s Men Of Honor, gathered personal accounts from the people who walked with Biggie through all phases of his all to short life. From his wife Faith Evans, his co-signer Sean Combs and his manager Mark Pitts to his protégés Lil’ Kim and Lil Cease, the list goes on. All choosing to put aside whatever personal differences in order to see that the final tribute to their friend, partner, lover, brother, idol and son was made to match the man himself, one of the greatest.

20/20 VISION

WITH BIG MOVIES UNDER HIS BELT AND A REPUTATION FOR CAPTURING THE ESSENCE OF HIS SUBJECTS, IS DIRECTOR GEORGE TILLMAN JR. READY TO TAKE ON THE LIFE OF A LEGEND?

You’ve done some great movies with Soul Food and Men Of Honor. What was it like to direct a movie based on an icon like Christopher Wallace?

It was great. There are just so many things about Christopher Wallace that a lot of people really didn’t know that we brought into the movie. He’s a human being, he’s a real person. To develop why specific things happened with the family and people close to his life was a great pleasure.

What were some of the things you didn’t know about Biggie that you found out during the research and making of this film?

I think that he was very humanistic; he took care of a lot of people. I’m going to be 40. I didn’t do half the stuff that he did at 24. He was a father, a husband, a son. Things add up and are very connected to young African-American men going through the same obstacles. Those are things we brought to the film that really made it strong.

Were you a fan of Biggies music before it came time for the film?

Oh, man, I was a huge fan! I did Soul Food and I was trying to track him down to play a small role. “Juicy” on my radio in 1995, hearing that inspired me to be a filmmaker. I felt connected, I had to get involved in this film.

What steps did you take to get ready?

The main thing is trying to connect to those around him. Lil Cease, Puff, D-Dot. Going to places in Brooklyn, trying to capture the ‘90s. What was it like in LA before it happened? What was it like when Puff told him to do “Juicy?” What was Big thinking? What was his process? You soak all that in and try to present it in the film.

Did you make any major additions or subtractions from the script as you went along?
Yes, [because] it’s such a big life. You can touch on things but you can’t tell it all. Do you just tell the story from Bad Boy and leave out on his younger years? That’s the essence of when it started. So we went all out to try to go from 13-years-old and keep those years.

Was there any pressure on you to make this movie great?

It has to do well because it can open up other doors. There’s many other icons that deserve to have films out. This is the first one that’s a respectable dramatic film. It has a beginning, middle and end and it’s not trying to be all music, the characters have depth. It’s a film that embraces Hip-Hop culture but has some integrity to it.—MC