by Alexis (Oct 28, 2004)

     Freestyle  

Lamont Coleman, also know as Big L, was born in 1974 in one of the five boroughs of New York City : Harlem.

He started his career of MC when he was in high school, in the raping game, as you can see in the blockbusters 8 mile. And he got his nickname "flamme boy" due to his ability in freestyle.

He was revealed by his first single : "Yes you may" and he signed with Columbia Record some days later. His first maxi called "Devil's son" was recorded in 1993 but he was quickly banned due to hardcore lyrics.

In 1995, "Lifestylez ov da poor and dangerous " was released. Although this album wasn't an economical success, it was recognized by his fans as one of the best underground albums ever released, because of the quality of lyrics and beats (realised by DJ premier and Lord Finese). And his albums made known some big names in rap, like Jay-z or Cam'ron.

Then he released some vynils like "Ebonics" or "NY nights ". And in 1998 he joined the group DITC ( digging in the crates ) composed by Lord Finese, and Fat Joe.

In 1999, the day before Valentine's day, he was killed by seven bullets in a drive-by.

In 2000 his family released a posthumous album : the big picture with a lot of unpublished or freestyles and two compilations : Harlem finest history, volume one and volume two.

Big L is still one of the most influent artists in hip hop, with his hardcore lyrics, and his freestyle ability and he opened the way to artists like Jay-z, Cam'ron, Fat Joe.

Ripping Big L.

photos taken from:  http://bigl.irth.net/

If you wish to react to this article, write to the editor.