ARTIST CHECK: BIG L

Lamont Coleman (May 30, 1974 - February 15, 1999), better known as Big L, was an American rapper. Big L was born, raised, lived, and was fatally shot in the same New York City neighborhood, Harlem, about which he frequently rhymed. He is mostly remembered for his freestyling, storytelling, punchlines, his critically acclaimed debut album Lifestylez ov da Poor & Dangerous, and his murder at the age of twenty-four.

In 1993 he signed with Columbia Records and released one vinyl 12", "Devil's Son". This song was quickly banned from radio because of its horrorcore lyrics which stations dubbed too violent or vulgar, such as "I pistol whip the priest every Sunday". In 1995, still with Columbia, he released his debut album Lifestylez ov da Poor & Dangerous. The album was hardly promoted and commercially not very popular, but was praised by The Source, a respected rap-music publication, which gave it four mics out of five. The album featured rappers such as Jay-Z and Cam'ron, but after its lack of success, he was dropped from the label.

His career took-off with a group called Children of the Corn, which he formed with fellow Harlemites Mase (under the name Murda Mase), Cam'ron (as Killa Cam), Cam'ron's cousin Bloodshed, and McGruff. The group recorded numerous songs, enough to make a full length album, compiled later as The Collector's Edition. The group never signed a deal, as Bloodshed was killed in a car accident in Harlem in 1997 and Mase and Cam'ron temporarily quit rapping to pursue professional basketball careers.

From 1997 to 1999, Big L worked on his second album The Big Picture. It was released worldwide at the summer of 2000 to critical acclaim. Two singles, entitled "Ebonics" and "Flamboyant", both reached number one in the charts. The album featured cameos from Fat Joe, Tupac Shakur, and Big Daddy Kane amongst other rappers. The Big Picture went platinum in 2001.

Jay-Z has said that Big L was set to sign with his Roc-A-Fella label, but died the week before. The two had a mutual respect dating back to a dual freestyle session on the radio and Jay-Z's appearance on Big L's first album.

Now for the goodness.

Big L - Lifestylez Ov Da Poor & Dangerous


01. Put It On
02. MVP
03. No Endz, No Skinz
04. 8 Is Enuff
05. All Black
06. Danger Zone
07. Street Struck
08. Da Graveyard
09. Lifestylez Ov Da Poor & Dangerous
10. I Don't Understand It
11. Fed Up Wit The Bullshit
12. Let 'Em Have It "L"

Download here.

Big L - Live From Amsterdam


01 "Introducing Big L"
02 Lord Finesse
03 Dangerous
04 Size 'Em Up
05 Ebonics
06 Shoutouts To The Crew
07 Devil's Son (Remix)
08 Introducing A.G.
09 Themes, Dreams & Shemes (Remix)
10 Next Level
11 Next Level (Nyte Time Remix)"
12 Spit
13 Speak To The Fans
14 We Do That To
15 Full Scale
16 Spit (Remix)
17 Soul Clap
18 Day One '99
19 Acapella
20 The Enemy

Download here.

- Hektik

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