Biggie: I Got a Story to Tell

I'm not an expert on the genre, but imo, Biggie Smalls is the most talented rapper every.

The documentary was good. Nostalgic for me.

A lot of video that I've never seen.

But I just want to mention something else and you can read it if you want or skip it.

When I was young the two best rappers were Biggie and 2 Pac.

2 Pac was also massively talented, too. However, Biggie was also a good person and 2 Pac wasn't.

Biggie actually lived the life of a street hustler, but when he made it big he wanted to leave that nonsense behind, and not only that, he also took all his friends with him. Got all them off of the street too. Just a great human being. The world is a worse place without him.

Now, 2 Pac didn't really live that life before he started making money. When he made it big the only thing he wanted to do was try to become a gangster. And he more or less accomplished it by hooking up with some of the biggest scumbags he could find and becoming the worst possible person he could be.

When he was in NYC he tried connecting with criminals and rolled around the city like he was a gangster but he wasn't. So, some real gangsters decided to rob him and his I guess his pride got hurt. So, he ran to the West like a little girl and started all that dumb East vs West nonsense that he made up.

You could say it sold more records but I don't think so. The records would have sold anyway because the music was good.

In summary, Biggie was an actual hustler that made it big and got out of the life because he was a good person and actually knew what it was like to have nothing and to have to hustle to eat. He knew how horrible that life can be.

2 Pac was a wannabe gangster and a scumbag.

I have heard podcasts cover the intricacies of his life, ones that spent four or five hours doing so, and they never came across as dragging the story out. Knowing what I learned there, this documentary felt rushed. Yes, the interviews with people he knew was refreshing. But as young as Biggie was, there was a lot to him and what he was involved in. His relationship with Tupac was far more significant than the 10-15 minutes they gave. There was a much wider conspiracy to his death than just revenge (though revenge honestly had much less to do with him, and more to do with settling scores with a much larger faction). It's not a waste of time per se, but it's not the boon of information documentary fiends will find wholly satisfying either.

The interviews are great and you realize he is still the goat after all these years. That era was gritty and angry and honest and it was refreshing. Rap now is very commercialized in general...kinda made me realize how much rap helped form who I am today...the confidence rubbed off and of that I'm grateful. Honestly this is more than worth a watch....the interviews and backstory is pretty illuminating

It was kind of cool to see some more of the backstory and get to know the young Christopher Wallace before the fame. There is some interesting footage from when he was on his way up, but nothing really groundbreaking or surprising.

If you are a fan of B.I.G. you'll probably know most of the story already, but it was put together pretty well and from a bit earlier perspective than a lot of the other stories about him.

Overall I got a story to tell is a fairly solid doc that shows the real man, family, and friends behind Biggie. At times the shots can jump over the place and sometimes the story doesn't flow the best, but the story has a lot of heart to it, and it a good watch for any fan of 90s rap.