How Did the Notorious B.I.G. Die? What to Know About the Rapper's Shocking Murder, 29 Years Later Skyler Trepel, Emily KrauserMon, March 9, 2026 at 4:02 PM UTC 0 Notorious B.I.G. (a.k.a. Christopher Wallace) attends the MTV Video Music Awards at Radio City Music Hall in New York City on Sept. 7, 1995Credit: Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic Notorious B.I.G.
How Did the Notorious B.I.G. Die? What to Know About the Rapper's Shocking Murder, 29 Years Later
Skyler Trepel, Emily KrauserMon, March 9, 2026 at 4:02 PM UTC
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Notorious B.I.G. (a.k.a. Christopher Wallace) attends the MTV Video Music Awards at Radio City Music Hall in New York City on Sept. 7, 1995Credit: Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic -
Notorious B.I.G. was only 24 when he was shot and killed in March 1997
The rapper's death was widely speculated as being in retaliation for the murder of Tupac Shakur the year prior
Biggie's second album, Life After Death, was released less than three weeks after he died
It's been nearly three decades since the Notorious B.I.G. (né Christopher George Latore Wallace) was murdered, but his legacy hasn't faded.
His death remains one of the most infamous unsolved murders in music history. On March 9, 1997, the rapper, also known as Biggie Smalls, was leaving a Soul Train Awards afterparty when he was shot and killed by an assailant in a black Chevy Impala.
His murder has been closely linked to the killing of fellow '90s hip-hop superstar Tupac Shakur, as the two were involved in a feud that saw Biggie represent the East Coast and Shakur the West. After Shakur was murdered in Las Vegas in September 1996, it was widely speculated that Biggie's shooting was a form of retaliation, but no conclusive evidence has been brought forward. To this day, no arrests have been made in Biggie's murder. However, authorities are still searching for his killers.
Born on May 21, 1972, in Brooklyn, N.Y., the "Mo Money Mo Problems" rapper released his debut album Ready to Die in 1994. His sophomore effort, Life After Death, was released posthumously in the spring of 1997 and is one of the only hip-hop albums to reach diamond status, selling 10 million copies. Before he died, Biggie was already considered one of the greatest rappers of all time.
Here's everything to know about the shocking murder of the Notorious B.I.G., as well as the legacy he left behind.
How did the Notorious B.I.G. die?
Christopher Wallace (a.k.a. Notorious B.I.G.) and Sean 'Diddy' Combs attend the 11th annual Soul Train Music Awards at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles on March 7, 1997Credit: Ron Galella, Ltd./Ron Galella Collection via Getty
After attending a star-studded Soul Train Awards party in L.A. on March 9, 1997, Biggie and Sean "Diddy" Combs left in separate cars at approximately 12:30 a.m, according to the 2003 book Unbelievable: The Life, Death, and Afterlife of the Notorious B.I.G.
While Diddy's car was up ahead, Biggie's vehicle was stopped at a red light when a black Chevrolet Impala drove up. An assailant then fired four shots at the rapper from the driver's side window.
All four shots hit Biggie, but it was revealed in a 2012 autopsy that only one of the bullets, which went through his thigh and chest and pierced vital organs, was fatal.
Biggie was immediately rushed to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, where an emergency thoracotomy — a surgical procedure to gain access to vital organs in the chest region — was performed before he was pronounced dead at roughly 1:15 a.m., per Rolling Stone.
Where did the Notorious B.I.G. die?
Notorious B.I.G. (a.k.a. Christopher Wallace) performs during the UrbanAid Lifebeat concert at Madison Square Garden in New York City on Oct. 5, 1995Credit: Larry Busacca/Getty
Biggie was shot at the intersection of Fairfax and Wilshire in the Miracle Mile district of L.A. while at a red light.
Roughly 30 minutes later, he was pronounced dead at the Cedars-Sinai Medical Center.
What happened in the feud prior to the Notorious B.I.G.'s death?
From left: Tupac Shakur, Notorious B.I.G. (a.k.a. Christopher Wallace) and Sean 'Diddy' Combs perform onstage at the Palladium in N.Y.C. on July 23, 1993Credit: Al Pereira/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty
Biggie and Shakur were initially friends. They appreciated each other's journeys from poverty to becoming successful rappers who were the faces of East Coast and West Coast hip-hop. While Shakur originally respected Biggie, it was recently revealed in a 2024 Rolling Stone investigation related to the litany of sexual abuse allegations against Diddy that Shakur didn't respect the Bad Boy founder.
Biggie and Shakur allegedly fell out in 1994 when the latter was shot and robbed at Quad Studios in Times Square in N.Y.C., per The New York Times. As Biggie and the group he created, the Junior M.A.F.I.A., went down to see Shakur getting stretchered out after the shooting, the injured rapper reportedly gave his former friend the finger, according to Slate.
When Biggie released "Who Shot Ya?," Shakur allegedly interpreted the song as a diss track and retaliated with "Hit 'Em Up," calling Biggie out by name in what is generally referred to as one of the greatest diss tracks in hip-hop history, per The Ringer. After the diss tracks, Shakur signed with Death Row Records and developed a relationship with the label's CEO, Marion "Suge" Knight.
Shakur died in Las Vegas on Sept. 13, 1996, six days after being shot multiple times in a drive-by shooting. He was 25. Six months later, Biggie was shot and killed. Knight has denied killing Shakur and even claimed (presumably jokingly) to TMZ in 2014 that the "California Love" rapper is, in fact, still alive.
Has anyone been charged in Biggie's murder?
Notorious B.I.G. (a.k.a. Christopher Wallace) is photographed outside his mother's house in Brooklyn, N.Y., on Jan. 18, 1995Credit: Clarence Davis/NY Daily News Archive via Getty
According to Rolling Stone, the person who shot Biggie was a Black male in a blue tuxedo with a bowtie, but no one has ever been arrested or charged for the rapper's killing.
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However, Biggie's family has filed two wrongful death lawsuits. The first in 2002 alleged that the LAPD did not do enough to protect their loved one, per CNN, while a second one in 2007 claimed that corrupt LAPD officers were involved in his murder, according to the Los Angeles Times.
The first ended in a mistrial, and the second was dismissed, The New York Times reported.
What was the public's reaction to the Notorious B.I.G.'s death?
Police, neighbors and fans watch the funeral caravan for Notorious B.I.G. as it passes through the Brooklyn, N.Y., neighborhood of Clinton Hill on March 18, 1997Credit: Andrew Lichtenstein/Corbis via Getty
The public reacted to Biggie's death with an outpouring of grief, shock and confusion, while also celebrating his talent.
At Biggie's funeral in Manhattan, his estranged wife, Faith Evans, sang "Walk With Me, Lord," and Combs gave a eulogy. The service was attended by some of rap's biggest names, including Run-DMC, Queen Latifah, Mary J. Blige, and Lil' Kim, according to the New York Daily News.
After the service, a limo procession drove Biggie's casket through the streets of Brooklyn with family and friends, and thousands of New Yorkers and fans flooded the streets.
"When I hit Saint James Place, and I saw the crowd [dancing, I thought] Oh my God, this kid was well-loved. That's when I saw the love," Biggie's mother, Voletta Wallace, said in the 2021 Netflix documentary Biggie: I Got a Story to Tell.
When Biggie was killed just six months after Shakur, it not only represented the death of two industry titans, but many felt it signified a bigger cultural moment.
In 2014, Illmatic rapper Nas told Zane Lowe, "When those two guys passed away, I thought it was the end of rap."
What is the Notorious B.I.G.'s legacy?
Notorious B.I.G. (a.k.a. Christopher Wallace) performs at 92.3 The Beat Summer Jam at the Irvine Meadows Amphitheatre in Irvine, Calif., on Aug. 13, 1995Credit: Chris Walter/WireImage
The Notorious B.I.G.'s legacy has only grown since his death, including a 2020 induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Biggie and Evans' son C.J. Wallace told PEOPLE in 2020 that if his dad "were here, he would be delighted."
"It's about time. He deserves it," C.J. said. "He's an icon in his own, and he deserves to be mentioned among other icons."
The "Big Poppa" rapper has influenced many artists with his melodic flow, lyrical dexterity, intelligent wordplay and vivid storytelling, including Eminem, 50 Cent, Jay-Z, Lil' Wayne and Alicia Keys. There have been several posthumous releases of Biggie's music, including a 2005 album called Duets, which featured Biggie's verses combined with new ones from contemporary artists.
His songs are still a part of the cultural lexicon, too. "Hypnotize" was featured on Amazon Prime Video's The Boys and HBO's Euphoria, while "Going Back to Cali" was played on the 2024 Netflix series Receiver. Biggie's music has even served as inspiration for some of today's biggest hits — Chris Appelhans, a co-director of Netflix's KPop Demon Hunters, told The New York Times in January 2026 that Biggie's song "Juicy" was a reference for "Golden."
His life was depicted in the 2009 biopic Notorious. Jamal Woolard portrays the rapper, Angela Bassett plays his mother and Anthony Mackie stars as Shakur, while his son appears in the opening scene of the movie as a young Biggie. (The Brooklyn native also had a daughter, T'yanna, with his high school sweetheart Jan Jackson.)
In March 2022, around the time of the 25th anniversary of Biggie's death, C.J. spoke with PEOPLE about his father's lasting impact.
"He had a global legacy. My dad reached across every corner of this world," he said. "I see the reaction that I get when people recognize me, and the DMs I get on Instagram and on Twitter show me that even people younger than me have been inspired by my dad. It's crazy."
on People
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Source: "AOL Entertainment"
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Source: Entertainment
Published: March 9, 2026 at 12:09PM on Source: PRIME TIME
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How Did the Notorious B.I.G. Die? What to Know About the Rapper's Shocking Murder, 29 Years Later Skyler Trepel, E...
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