The Notorious B.I.G. › Similar Artists

2Pac - 100% match to The Notorious B.I.G.

Parish Lesane Crooks, 16 June 1971, Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USA, d. 13 September 1996, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA. The controversy-laced gangsta rapper 2Pac was the son of two Black Panther members, and his mother Alice Faye Williams was actually pregnant with her son while being held in a New York prison. After his mother married Mutulu Shakur, who became the baby
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Nas - 82% match to The Notorious B.I.G.

Nasir Bin Olu Dara Jones, 14 September 1973, Long Island, New York, USA. From the tough Queensbridge housing projects which brought the world Marley Marl, MC Shan and Intelligent Hoodlum, Nas made his name as a highly skilled rapper with the double whammy of 1994’s Illmatic and 1996’s It Was Written, albums whose music was crafted with a degree of subtlety and fore Read more

Dr. Dre - 71% match to The Notorious B.I.G.

Wu-Tang Clan - 69% match to The Notorious B.I.G.

This hip-hop crew, whose ranks originally comprised the Genius aka GZA (Gary Grice, 22 August 1966, Staten Island, New York, USA), RZA aka Prince Rakeem (b. Robert Diggs, 5 July 1969, Brownsville, Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USA), Ol’ Dirty Bastard (b. Russell Tyrone Jones, 15 November 1968, Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USA, d. 13 November 2004, Manhattan, Read more

Big L - 67% match to The Notorious B.I.G.

Lamont Coleman, 30 May 1974, New York City, New York, USA, d. 15 February 1999, Harlem, New York City, New York, USA. This highly respected Harlem-based MC had his life cut tragically short just when it appeared his legendary underground status was about to translate into the mainstream. Coleman first came to the attention of the rap world in the early 90s as part of Harlem& Read more

Jay-Z - 63% match to The Notorious B.I.G.

Shawn Corey Carter, 4 December 1969, Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USA. Raised in Brooklyn, Carter was a school friend of the Notorious B.I.G. He first started releasing records in the late 80s, part-financing his music by hustling. In 1990, he appeared on records by his close friend Jaz (‘The Originators’) and Original Flavor (‘Can I Get Open’), and Read more

Big Punisher - 54% match to The Notorious B.I.G.

Christopher Rios, 9 November 1971, Bronx, New York City, USA, d. 7 February 2000, White Plains, New York City, New York, USA. This rapper of Puerto Rican descent, who looked set to take over the mantle of the Notorious B.I.G. before his untimely death, grew up in the Bronx. After leaving school at the age of 15, Rios balanced raising a young family with his nascent rapping c Read more

Ice Cube - 53% match to The Notorious B.I.G.

Snoop Dogg - 53% match to The Notorious B.I.G.

Junior M.A.F.I.A. - 52% match to The Notorious B.I.G.

This early 90s rap collective, whose title actually stands for Junior Masters At Finding Intelligent Attitudes, featured four acts from the Brooklyn, New York, USA area - MC Klepto, the 666s (Little Caesar, Chico and Nino Brown), the Snakes (cousins Trife and Larceny), and Lil’ Kim. Most attention surrounded the latter artist, widely hailed as a natural successor to MC Lyt Read more

Eazy-E - 51% match to The Notorious B.I.G.

Eric Wright, 7 September 1963 (1964 is also cited), Compton, California, USA, d. 26 March 1995, Los Angeles, California, USA. There are those critics who did not take well to Eazy-E’s ‘whine’, but his debut kept up N.W.A.’s momentum by managing to offend just about every imaginable faction, right and left. Attending a fund-raising dinner for the Republica Read more

Mobb Deep - 51% match to The Notorious B.I.G.

This rap duo, comprising Havoc (Kejuan Muchita, 21 May 1974, Queensbridge, New York, USA) and Prodigy (b. Albert Johnson, 2 November 1974, Queensbridge, New York, USA), made a colossal impact in 1995 with their hardcore hip-hop single ‘Shook Ones Part II’. Compared in the music press to the experience of hearing Schoolly D for the first time, it saw the New York-ba Read more

Gang Starr - 46% match to The Notorious B.I.G.

Arguably hip-hop’s most literate, challenging act on both musical and lyrical fronts, Gang Starr comprises Guru Keith E (Keith Elam, 17 July 1966, Roxbury, Massachusetts, USA; vocals/lyrics) and DJ Premier (b. Christopher Martin, 21 March 1966, Houston, Texas, USA; music). Guru (Gifted Unlimited Rhymes Universal) was born the son of a Boston municipal and superior court Read more

N.w.a - 46% match to The Notorious B.I.G.

The initials stand for Niggers With Attitude, which was the perfect embodiment of this Los Angeles crew’s outlook. They comprised Dr. Dre (André Romell Young, 18 February 1965, South Central, Los Angeles, California, USA), DJ Yella (b. Antoine Carraby, Compton, Los Angeles, California, USA), MC Ren (b. Lorenzo Patterson, Compton, Los Angeles, California, USA) and Read more

The Game - 44% match to The Notorious B.I.G.

Jayceon Terrell Taylor, 29 November 1979, Los Angeles, California, USA. This west coast gangsta rapper shot to fame in 2004 on the strength of his association with Dr. Dre and 50 Cent. Taylor was raised in a foster home in Compton and, like many young men from his neighbourhood, followed a path into crime and dealing. His redemption came when he decided to take up rapping af Read more