If you've got a few free minutes today (or a hundred), use them wisely by watching Biggie and Tupac, a gripping free documentary presented by SnagFilms about the relationship and rivalry between two of rap's most legendary icons, on the 13th anniversary of Biggie's death.
Christopher Wallace, aka The Notorious B.I.G., had a very short career arc, releasing only two albums before his murder on March 9, 1997 - but what quantity lacked was made up for exponentially in quality. To this day, Biggie Smalls is still considered among the greatest rappers who ever lived.
Biggie and Tupac tells the tragic story of how the two men came together, their friendship and the deadly fallout of their peer-inflicted division and subsequent coastal rivalry that took both of their lives.
The result is an even-keeled story of Tupac and Wallace, portraying them as ambitious young talents caught in the crossfire of larger egos, bankrolls and violence. Featuring incredible rare footage that includes Tupac in a Rick James wig singing "Superfreak" backstage, Biggie and Tupac is a unique walk through a tale too few know intimately, full of completely surreal moments. At one point, one of Pac's old friends tried selling the documentary crew some allegedly unheard early tapes. We're also taken through Notorious BIG's rise to fame, to his childhood home, and sit down with his mother as she explains her son's gift and personality.
The film outlines the origins of the East coast - West coast rap wars, when Suge Knight took to the stage at the 1995 Source Awards and publicly called out Sean "Puff Daddy" Combs for promoting himself along with his artists, and pleaded with Biggie to join him at Death Row. With Tupac's recruitment into Knight's ranks, the seeds were planted for a Shakespearean downward spiral of tragedy and ego that culminated in the death of two of rap's most powerful forces ever.
