Why is Notorious BIG's murder considered a tragedy? (1 Viewer)

[Otis]

I like the music he made, but wasn't he basically openly a felon who dealt coke, toted guns, stole, and killed people? I know with some guys it's all shtick, but with him wasn't it pretty commonly understood to be true?

All these rappers talk about it like the worst thing that ever happened. It sounds like he sort of had it coming? Same would seem to apply to Tupac. Is it any surprise with their lifestyles that these guys met the fates they did?

Educate me, yo.

 

[Ilov80s]

Because of the various definitions of the word tragedy.

 

[snitwitch]

Biggie was a far better rapper than Tupac, and Tupac's thug past was overstated to a large degree.

I think the "tragedy" stuff around each is overblown -- I think that many people in the media and music industry profited from and fostered the whole east coast v west coast war in the late 90s, and this might have lent itself to being looked back on as a tragedy now??

I also think in places like brooklyn, people took biggie's death hard.

 

[Wooderson]

Westside

 

[Bob Sacamano]

"Well," says little Johnny, "because it wasn't an accident, and it sure as Hell was no great loss!"

 

[Eephus]

The guy was 24 years old.

 

[Cliff Clavin]

No more of a tragedy than any other musician dying.

 

[Thunderlips]

Guy was a good rapper. It's a tragedy in the rap world.

 

[Koya]

Don't know anyone who thought of this as a tragedy outside losing a great musical voice.

 

[Guster]

Because he was notorious

 

[Eephus]

Because he was notorious

it's tragic because he's fat

 

[Bob Sacamano]

Because he was notorious

I just loved his flashy ways

 

[Bruce Dickinson]

Because he was notorious

I just loved his flashy ways

This is why Otis is broke and Biggie's so paid.

 

[Ilov80s]

Don't know anyone who thought of this as a tragedy outside losing a great musical voice.

When people die and lots of people mourn the loss (for whatever reason) it is a tragedy. Nobody is claiming we lost the last hope to cure Parkinson's or anything. Plus there is the whole tragic element of a person with promise and power being brought down by their own flaws.

 

[Zow]

Guy was a good rapper. It's a tragedy in the rap world.

Pretty much. It's a tragedy in the sense that we can't hear his music anymore.

Is it a tragedy in the Hamlet sense of the word? Probably not.

 

[Otis]

No more of a tragedy than any other musician dying.

Probably a lot less than some, no?

 

[Otis]

The guy was 24 years old.

Yeah. He also was a guy who apparently gangbanged and shot at and tried to kill people. If Aaron Hernandez is shot and killed is it a tragedy? Or is it just more like "well, he sort of asked for it."?

The law abiding dutch businessman who was flying with his wife and 3 kids last week to have a family vacation when their plane was shot down by some filthy russian animals, killing them all? That's a tragedy.

 

[johnnycakes]

I don't really miss the guy. Live by the sword, die by the sword, I guess.

 

[Otis]

I don't really miss the guy. Live by the sword, die by the sword, I guess.

That's sort of where I'm parked.

I know the neighborhood in Brooklyn. My wife used to teach high school there. There are some good families with good kids. There are some really rotten families with some rotten crip/blood kids. Join a gang, get a gun, beat up and shoot at people, and then get shot and killed yourself?

Eh.

 

[Eephus]

Guy was a good rapper. It's a tragedy in the rap world.

Pretty much. It's a tragedy in the sense that we can't hear his music anymore.

Is it a tragedy in the Hamlet sense of the word? Probably not.

I think the whole Biggie/Tupac angle does make it a more interesting tragedy in the Shakespearean sense of the word.

 

[Ilov80s]

Guy was a good rapper. It's a tragedy in the rap world.

Pretty much. It's a tragedy in the sense that we can't hear his music anymore. Is it a tragedy in the Hamlet sense of the word? Probably not.

I think the whole Biggie/Tupac angle does make it a more interesting tragedy in the Shakespearean sense of the word.

It is absolutely a tragedy in that sense. Hard to see how it isn't. Let's not pretend like Caesar and Macbeth were good people.

 

[Abraham]

People think he's a better rapper then Tupac?

 

[Eephus]

The guy was 24 years old.

Yeah. He also was a guy who apparently gangbanged and shot at and tried to kill people. If Aaron Hernandez is shot and killed is it a tragedy? Or is it just more like "well, he sort of asked for it."?

The law abiding dutch businessman who was flying with his wife and 3 kids last week to have a family vacation when their plane was shot down by some filthy russian animals, killing them all? That's a tragedy.

They're both tragic but in different ways. Biggie and Hernandez had wealth and fame but were brought down by their worst instincts and ended with nothing. The passengers MH17 were in the wrong place at the wrong time.

The story of the Dutch family is undoubtedly sadder but tragic and sad are different.

 

[17seconds]

People think he's a better rapper then Tupac?

I don't understand why either of them are great to be honest

 

[Abraham]

People think he's a better rapper then Tupac?

I don't understand why either of them are great to be honest

I think that's a pretty reasonable view. I like Tupac, but rap has developed a lot in the last 20 years and some of the word choices and rhythms now are far far superior. But the same can be said of any genre when you compare "now" to "then."

 

[ILUVBEER99]

People think he's a better rapper then Tupac?

I don't understand why either of them are great to be honest

What rap music is better?

 

[Cliff Clavin]

No more of a tragedy than any other musician dying.

Probably a lot less than some, no?

Sure. Lots of people didn't care about him. Others did.

I don't care if he killed/robbed other gang bangers. Drugs should be legal. I enjoyed his music

 

[cstu]

Biggie was a far better rapper than Tupac, and Tupac's thug past was overstated to a large degree.

I think the "tragedy" stuff around each is overblown -- I think that many people in the media and music industry profited from and fostered the whole east coast v west coast war in the late 90s, and this might have lent itself to being looked back on as a tragedy now??

I also think in places like brooklyn, people took biggie's death hard.

If only Tupac had stuffed cotton balls in his mouth before he rapped.

 

[17seconds]

People think he's a better rapper then Tupac?

I don't understand why either of them are great to be honest

What rap music is better?

I'm not that into rap but when I hear guys like Eminem, KRS-One, Busta Rhymes, Jay-Z, Public Enemy I can hear the talent. Biggie always seemed like a random fat guy when I heard him. I think Tupac was good but I never understood why he's #1 as most people seem to think.

Again, casual listener of rap here.

 

[shadyridr]

People think he's a better rapper then Tupac?

I don't understand why either of them are great to be honest

What rap music is better?

I'm not that into rap but when I hear guys like Eminem, KRS-One, Busta Rhymes, Jay-Z, Public Enemy I can hear the talent. Biggie always seemed like a random fat guy when I heard him. I think Tupac was good but I never understood why he's #1 as most people seem to think.

Again, casual listener of rap here.

lmfao at random fat guy. Biggie told a story in most of his raps. Nobody was as good as him in spinning a tale

 

[cstu]

People think he's a better rapper then Tupac?

I don't understand why either of them are great to be honest

What rap music is better?

I'm not that into rap but when I hear guys like Eminem, KRS-One, Busta Rhymes, Jay-Z, Public Enemy I can hear the talent. Biggie always seemed like a random fat guy when I heard him. I think Tupac was good but I never understood why he's #1 as most people seem to think.

Again, casual listener of rap here.

Two things in my mind - smooth flow and range.

 

[ILUVBEER99]

People think he's a better rapper then Tupac?

I don't understand why either of them are great to be honest

What rap music is better?

I'm not that into rap but when I hear guys like Eminem, KRS-One, Busta Rhymes, Jay-Z, Public Enemy I can hear the talent. Biggie always seemed like a random fat guy when I heard him. I think Tupac was good but I never understood why he's #1 as most people seem to think.

Again, casual listener of rap here.

i'm not huge rap guy either, but in the rare instance i have a rap station on Pandora when Tupac songs come on they stand out as some of the best songs i hear that session.

 

[shadyridr]

Biggie > tupac

Brooklyn baby!

 

[Otis]

Biggie > tupac

Brooklyn baby!

Biggie was so much better.

 

[Maurile Tremblay]

It's a tragedy like Len Bias's death was a tragedy. He was a talented entertainer and his early death deprived us of getting to enjoy the full extent of his talent.

I don't know anything about Biggie's personal life. If he was a good guy, it's a shame he died. If he was a bad guy, it's a shame he died before gaining the wisdom and experience to become a good guy.

 

[Spartans Rule]

Plus there is the whole tragic element of a person with promise and power being brought down by their own flaws.

This. It's tragic that a guy who had a lot to contribute died so young, even if he brought it on himself.

 

[shadyridr]

To answer your question, I dont think people coNsider a tragedy from a life perspective but from a music perspective. Hip hop lost a great young artist too soon. And comparing him to hernandez isn't fair. Pretty sure he never killed anyone. Yeah he sold some drugs when he was younger but he stopped once he started rapping.

 

[Otis]

It's a tragedy like Len Bias's death was a tragedy. He was a talented entertainer and his early death deprived us of getting to enjoy the full extent of his talent.

I don't know anything about Biggie's persona life. If he was a good guy, it's a shame he died. If he was a bad guy, it's a shame he died before gaining the wisdom and experience to become a good guy.

What about bad guys who never gain the wisdom of experience to become good guys. They're just bad boys 4 life. Is it a shame if they die?

 

[shadyridr]

His two verses on victory were my favorite

 

[Otis]

To answer your question, I dont think people coNsider a tragedy from a life perspective but from a music perspective. Hip hop lost a great young artist too soon. And comparing him to hernandez isn't fair. Pretty sure he never killed anyone. Yeah he sold some drugs when he was younger but he stopped once he started rapping.

Do we know that? He raps an awful lot about killing folks. I always wonder about that, and about NWA and the like. These guys never killed anyone? Or the killed people and nobody cares? I wonder about Dr. Dre.

If they were just selling pot on a streetcorner then who cares. But if they were shooting people?

 

[johnnycakes]

It's a tragedy like Len Bias's death was a tragedy. He was a talented entertainer and his early death deprived us of getting to enjoy the full extent of his talent.

I don't know anything about Biggie's persona life. If he was a good guy, it's a shame he died. If he was a bad guy, it's a shame he died before gaining the wisdom and experience to become a good guy.

What about bad guys who never gain the wisdom of experience to become good guys. They're just bad boys 4 life. Is it a shame if they die?

Aaron Hernandez?

 

[avoiding injuries]

Classic expamples of when keeping it real goes wrong. At least nobody could label him or tupac as sell outs.

 

[shadyridr]

To answer your question, I dont think people coNsider a tragedy from a life perspective but from a music perspective. Hip hop lost a great young artist too soon. And comparing him to hernandez isn't fair. Pretty sure he never killed anyone. Yeah he sold some drugs when he was younger but he stopped once he started rapping.

Do we know that? He raps an awful lot about killing folks. I always wonder about that, and about NWA and the like. These guys never killed anyone? Or the killed people and nobody cares? I wonder about Dr. Dre.If they were just selling pot on a streetcorner then who cares. But if they were shooting people?

i think its much more likely he didnt kill someone than he did. Seems somewhat dumb to think he did just cuz he rapped about it. Do actors kill people in real life if they act as a serial killer?

 

[Guest]

Met the guy who was driving the SUV once. Biggie died on top of him.

 

[Otis]

To answer your question, I dont think people coNsider a tragedy from a life perspective but from a music perspective. Hip hop lost a great young artist too soon. And comparing him to hernandez isn't fair. Pretty sure he never killed anyone. Yeah he sold some drugs when he was younger but he stopped once he started rapping.

Do we know that? He raps an awful lot about killing folks. I always wonder about that, and about NWA and the like. These guys never killed anyone? Or the killed people and nobody cares? I wonder about Dr. Dre.If they were just selling pot on a streetcorner then who cares. But if they were shooting people?

i think its much more likely he didnt kill someone than he did. Seems somewhat dumb to think he did just cuz he rapped about it. Do actors kill people in real life if they act as a serial killer?

Was he acting? It was it more biographical?

 

[Otis]

Met the guy who was driving the SUV once. Biggie died on top of him.

Damn.

 

[Your Mother's Twin Sister]

Met the guy who was driving the SUV once. Biggie died on top of him.

Damn.

Does that answer your original question?

 

[mr. furley]

I like the music he made, but wasn't he basically openly a felon who dealt coke, toted guns, stole, and killed people? I know with some guys it's all shtick, but with him wasn't it pretty commonly understood to be true?

All these rappers talk about it like the worst thing that ever happened. It sounds like he sort of had it coming? Same would seem to apply to Tupac. Is it any surprise with their lifestyles that these guys met the fates they did?

Educate me, yo.

i believe all he ever did was peddled small amounts of drugs. raise your hand if you haven't done that

also, he was a fantastically popular musical artist cut down in his prime. tragedy? guess it's a matter of how much you idolized the guy.. i wouldn't call it a tragedy, gassing the Jews, that's tragic. him getting shot to death is more of a .... disappointment?

 

[cstu]

To answer your question, I dont think people coNsider a tragedy from a life perspective but from a music perspective. Hip hop lost a great young artist too soon. And comparing him to hernandez isn't fair. Pretty sure he never killed anyone. Yeah he sold some drugs when he was younger but he stopped once he started rapping.

Do we know that? He raps an awful lot about killing folks. I always wonder about that, and about NWA and the like. These guys never killed anyone? Or the killed people and nobody cares? I wonder about Dr. Dre.

If they were just selling pot on a streetcorner then who cares. But if they were shooting people?

I love Dre but he's the least gangsta gangsta rapper on the planet. Except for maybe Ice Cube. At least Eazy E actually dealt drugs.

 

[trogg78]

Are you suggesting it was a comedy? Shame on you sir!