Voletta Wallace, the devoted mother of the late great rapper Notorious Big And the guardian of his inheritance passed away Friday morning.
Monroe County Coroner Thomas Yannack confirmed her death with the Associated Press Friday, saying she died at her home in Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania after a hospice care mission. She died of natural causes.
Representatives from the infamous Big Real Estate did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
One of Rap’s greatest performers, the infamous Big, was shot dead in Los Angeles in 1997 at the age of 24. This case remains unsolved. He was survived by his wife, Faith Evans, a musician and actress, and his two children, Christopher Jordan Wallace and Tirena Dream Wallace.
Wallace was a dedicated keeper of his Christopher Wallace-born son’s legacy. When he first appeared as one of rap’s most distinctive talents in a song that skillfully detailed street life in Brooklyn, she labeled his music as “noise.”
Since his death, his gifts have taken on a new meaning to her. She recalled the Associated Press in 2017, 20 years after his death, “My son said, ‘Don’t listen to my music.’ And I had never heard his music. And that’s what I did. ”
Evan Agostini
“I cried so much that day, just listening to music. I remember sitting there, standing. I put my head on the stereo and cried just like a baby. It was therapy for me. God – it was a young man with the talent to put those words together. “He loved his voice,” she continued.
Wallace has launched the Christopher Wallace Memorial Foundation following the death of his son, an organization that provides educational resources to his children. In 2003, she praised the mother of other musicians who died of premature deaths in Aaliyah, Lisa “Left Eye” Lopez, Tupac Shakur, Jammmaster Jay, Big Pan, Big Night Out, Big Night Out. . Basics.
“That’s how we say it, ‘Look your head up,'” Wallace told the Associated Press at the time. “It’s the foundation’s way of making these parents know that we love them.”
She also took legal action on behalf of her son. In 2004, she stopped illegal death lawsuits against a former suspect in the murder of a rap star – Amir Muhammad, aka Harry Billup. The 2002 lawsuit also named Los Angeles police officer David A. Mack, a former university roommate of Los Angeles and Muhammad. Mac hired Muhammad to shoot hip-hop artists and police, accusing her of not properly investigating a fellow police officer after being suspected.
Mark Lenihan / AP
In 2021, Wallace worked as an executive producer for the Netflix documentary Biggie: I Story Wone Tell, and spoke to the Associated Press about her role in Public Eye.
“They never knew me. The public never knew me. I was thrust into this environment. I should say after I die because I am a very private person. Very private ” she said. “I probably knew that he was doing there, but honestly, I didn’t. And to this day, he says, ‘Oh, she knew’. There are people. (Whisper) But I didn’t know. ”
Notorious Big’s 1994 Bad Boy Records “Ready To Die” debut album has sold over 6 million units as of 2018, with hits “Big Poppa” and “Juicy” according to the American Recording Industry Association. I’ve included it.
His sophomore album, Life After Death, was released two weeks after his death, selling over 11 million units. It launched multiple hits, including the timeless No. 1 hit, including “Mo Money Mo Issues” and “Hypnotize.” In 1997, Wallace accepted the MTV Video Music Award for Best Rap Video for “Hypnotism” on behalf of his son.
Associated Press journalist Gary Gerald Hamilton contributed to the report.
