There are few artists who can compare to the mammoth impact of The Notorious B.I.G., aka Biggie Smalls. As the de facto leader of the East Coast rap scene during the 1990s boom of hip hop, Biggie delivered attitude in spades and the kind of songs that will leave most rappers quivering in their boots. While he was always blessed with fire production from Diddy, the rapper’s rhymes were what really set him apart.
Below, we’re dipping into the world of Biggie Smalls and looking back at one of his most potent and brilliant songs, ‘Suicidal Thoughts’, through the isolated vocals. Through this studio acapella, we can hear the poetry within Big’s powerful rhymes.
In 2020, Smalls was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, a moment that further established his legacy amid an imposing discography and a powerful iconography. At the time, Diddy, who famously signed Biggy to his label Bad Boy Records in 1993, perfectly summarised his talents: “Big just wanted to be biggest, he wanted to be the best, he wanted to have influence and impact people in a positive way, and that clearly has been done all over the world.”
Adding: “Nobody has come close to the way Biggie sounds, to the way he raps, to the frequency that he hits. Tonight we are inducting the greatest rapper of all time into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the Notorious B.I.G. representing Brooklyn, New York, we up in here.”
Looking back to Biggie’s song ‘Suicidal Thoughts’, we get a brand new side of The Notorious B.I.G. The rapper has delivered a ream of impressive songs during his time, but this song set the rapper out as something different. Amid a flurry of machismo music and boastful beats, Big provided a beautiful reflection of a struggle that most of us go through.
The song captured Biggie during his down time, and as he recorded his debut album Ready to Die, he admitted to the struggles he faced. Lines like “My momma got cancer in her breast, Don’t ask me why I’m motherfucking stressed,” as well as “My baby mama kiss me, but she glad I’m gone (Yo, put your girl on the phone, nigga!), She know me and her sister had somethin’ goin’ on”.
Though Big would later claim the song to be more inspired by marijuana than actual suicidal thoughts, the track is still a powerful reminder of his talent.
