Life After Death, the final studio album by iconic American rapper The Notorious B.I.G., was released on March 25, 1997, under Bad Boy Records and Arista Records. This double album followed just sixteen days after his tragic murder. Notable collaborations on the album include 112, Jay-Z, Lil’ Kim, Mase, Bone Thugs-n-Harmony, Too $hort, Angela Winbush, D.M.C. of Run-D.M.C., R. Kelly, The Lox, and Puff Daddy. Demonstrating The Notorious B.I.G.’s exploration of the mafioso rap subgenre, Life After Death serves as a compelling sequel to his acclaimed debut album, Ready to Die, picking up where the last song, “Suicidal Thoughts,” left off.
In its initial week, Life After Death impressively sold 690,000 copies, ascending to the top spot on the Billboard 200 chart. Critically acclaimed upon release, the album received Grammy Award nominations, including Best Rap Album, Best Rap Solo Performance for the first single “Hypnotize,” and Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group for the second single “Mo Money Mo Problems” at the 40th Annual Grammy Awards. Renowned for its greatness, the album is widely regarded as one of the finest hip hop albums of all time, securing the 179th position on Rolling Stone magazine’s list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time in 2020.
Two and a half years before the album’s release, The Notorious B.I.G., having married Faith Evans, became an iconic figure in the East Coast–West Coast rivalry and made notable guest appearances on albums by Michael Jackson, R. Kelly, and others. While the album faced multiple planned release dates, including one on Halloween in 1996, a car accident involving Biggie in September 1996 delayed the album’s finalization, ultimately pushing its release to 1997.
Biggie’s vision for Life After Death, as he shared on BET’s Rap City, was to appeal to a wider audience by collaborating with a diverse array of artists compared to his debut. In addition to Bad Boy Records labelmates Mase, The LOX, 112, and label owner Puff Daddy, the album featured guest appearances from Jay-Z, Angela Winbush, Too Short, Lil Kim, and Bone Thugs N Harmony. Although a planned collaboration with Bay Area rapper E-40 did not make the final tracklist, the album still showcased production from talented individuals like DJ Premier, Easy Mo Bee, Havoc, RZA, Stevie J, and others from Bad Boy’s in-house production team, The Hitmen. Notably, a beat from Q-Tip, which Biggie enjoyed, arrived too late as the album had already been completed and submitted to Bad Boy. The beat was later used for A Tribe Called Quest’s song “The Love” on their 1998 album The Love Movement.
In preparation for the album’s launch, Biggie traveled to the West Coast in February 1997 to promote it and film the music video for the lead single, “Hypnotize.” Tragically, just two weeks before its release, on March 9, The Notorious B.I.G. was fatally shot four times in a drive-by shooting and subsequently passed away at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles.
