The Notorious B.I.G. Has Got a Hip-Hop Story to Tell

Today, we’re talking about Christopher Wallace, aka Biggie Smalls or The Notorious B.I.G., the acclaimed rapper who was tragically murdered at the age of just 24 in a drive-by shooting.

Talking to us about Biggie Smalls' life and his legacy on hip-hop is Grammy-award-winning director Emmett Malloy, who directed and produced the original Netflix documentary Biggie: I Got a Story to Tell. 

We talk about who Christopher Wallace really was, as well as how Emmett got access to never-before-seen footage used in the film. With this documentary, Emmett succeeds in shining a different light on Biggie’s life, onto his artistic side and childhood influences that other filmmakers may have overlooked.

My goal was to present him as the artist he was, so people understand that greatness doesn’t come from nowhere, people work at it and this kid was a curious kid with a tremendous artistic gift. - Emmett Malloy

Time Stamps:

00:23 - The trailer for Biggie: I Got a Story to Tell.
04:33 - How well the film has been received on Netflix.
05:38 - What the film is about and who Christopher Wallace really was.
07:54 - What happened when Emmett first met Biggie's mother.
11:58 - What Biggie’s childhood was like, and the relationship with his mother.
13:29 - The way Emmett used maps to show the close-knit world of Biggie's Brooklyn.
15:20 - How Emmett won everyone’s trust and got his interviewees to fully open up.
17:18 - How he got access to D-Roc and going to Jamaica with Miss Wallace.
20:46 - The personal nature of the interviews and interviewing Puff Daddy.
25:33 - How they decided on the name for the movie.
30:30 - Where Biggie got his mic presence from, and what influenced his musical prowess.
32:25 - The way Biggie shone through in his live rap battles and became a sex symbol.
38:09 - Why Emmett didn’t explore in depth issues covered by previous docs.
41:34 - The legacy of The Notorious B.I.G. and the impact he’s had on hip-hop.
45:30 - What dangerous Brooklyn was in the 1980s.
49:59 - What’s Emmett’s next plans are.  

Resources:

Biggie: I Got a Story to Tell (2021)  
This is Distorted Studios
Alamo Pictures

Connect with Emmett Malloy:
IMDb

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