Christopher Wallace aka Notorious B.I.G was raised in Brooklyn New York and grew up in the peak of the crack epidemic years of 1980 and started dealing drugs at an early age. As he released his debut album Ready to Die, he increased New York's visibility since he was a central figure in the East Coast hip-hop scene at a time when hip hop was mostly dominated by the West Coast.

He lead his protege group Junior M.A.F.I.A to chart success the following year. While recording his second album, he was heavily involved in the East Coast-West Coast hip hop feud.

Notorious B.I.G was killed on March 9, 1997, in a drive-by shooting in L.A. The killer still remains as unknown.

Since his death, a further three albums have been released. MTV ranked him at #3 on their list of The Greatest MCs of All Time.

Birth name: Christopher George Latore Wallace

Born :May 21, 1972 in Brooklyn, New York City, N.Y, United States

Died March 9, 1997 (aged 24) in L.A., California,United States

Label(s) Bad Boy

Associated acts Sean Combs, Lil' Kim, Junior M.A.F.I.A., Jay-Z, The Commission, Busta Rhymes

Christopher Wallace grew up in a apartment that is located in neighboring Clinton Hill, although claiming to be raised in the Bedford-Stuyvesant section of Brooklyn. He was the only child to Voletta Wallace and George Latore. Both of his parents were from Jamaica. His father left the family when Wallace was two years old. His mother had to work 2 Jobs while raising him. At the Queen of All Saints Middle School, Wallace excelled in class, winning several awards as an English student. He was nicknamed "Big" before he turned 10-years-old. He began selling drugsat the age of 12.

He switched from a private Roman Catholic school to attend the state-funded George Westinghouse Information Technology High School. Jay-Z and Busta Rhymes were also students at that school. His mother said that he was still a good student, but developed a "smart-ass" attitude at the new school.

He dropped out of high school at the age of 17 and became further involved in crime.

- arrested on a violation of his probation.

He spent nine months behind bars until he made bail.

Christopher Wallace and Faith Evans got married on August 4, 1994 nine days after they met at a Bad Boy photo shoot.

August 8th 1994 he had his first pop chart success as a solo artist with double A-side, On September 13, 1994 " Ready to Die was released and reached #13 on the Billboard 200 chart,eventually being certified four times Platinum.