Ready To Die

He has a smooth style, but too repetitive and lyrically limited for my enjoyment.

OK, got the message: you're a tough guy and gots bitches. Anything else? Not really. I can empathize with the tragic life story, and there's some talent but this just feels like the same message over and over. This is rage and fear and misogyny and uncomfortable. Big Poppa wasn't bad and made me hopeful that the album was taking a turn for the better, and it was followed by Respect which was different and interesting... until the gratuitous ending when the album descended back into the original message.

I'm ready to die too, Biggie.

Overall Rating - 2.30/5 (4.61/10). One of the things I rate on, in genera that I don't usually listen to, is "How relatable or accessible is the album?" Much of this album is not relatable, but the tracks that are are superb. Biggie has taken the time and effort to master his craft, and I respect that.

There’s one or two good songs here. I feel like it’s massively overhyped. Also, we get it, he gets laid, no need to make a porno in between several songs.

Andre 3000 says the art of storytelling is to tell it like it is, then tell it how it could be. Biggie and his beats producer do a bang-up job at telling it how it is, but they don't never tell it how it could be which means this album is dinged down. Also, the interludes are terrible and the album is too long. Now we are down to a 2.5 and might as well round down at this point.

This was pretty timely. I just finished a book that mentioned him. Not my thing though. Seems to have a pretty limited vocabulary

Not my cup of tea at all, but I can see how it's lauded by fans of the genre...

Seems the hip hop albums always hit me back to back. I had a stretch of like 2 weeks in the summer where every other album was a hip hop album and now this is the third hip hop album I've had in the past week. For the first half of Ready to Die, I was actually enjoying it a lot more than expected. Still full of tired gangsta rap tropes I can't stand and can't relate to (questionable views on women, violence, overuse of the n-word, absolutely terrible interludes, etc.), but it sure is smooth and the Notorious BIG was a great rapper. Unfortunately, it really wore out its welcome for me. By the time "Me and My Bitch" came on I was so tired of this album and I just wanted it to end.

Gangster rap is not for me.

Hackneyed

A lot of swearing doesn't make a good album unless you are 12. While done of the beats are good the rapping is just ok. Maybe gangsta rap isn't my thing but no idea why this is considered a classic.

I know this is listed as one of the top 100 albums of all time, but just not for me. The rhyming is good, as are the beats but I just can't get past the misogyny, violence and general vulgarity.

2.5 stars. I would easily give it three if it wasn’t for those horrible skits in between, the pornography really affected the flow of the music and his flow is great as were his samples and beats.

Not a big rap fan anyway, I see why this is popular and I like the beats but all the talk of drugs bitches and guns it’s just not for me. I don’t want to hear a coerced sloppy beej on an album. Big Poppa do be a jam though.

The beats and flow are really good and album's production is also great. The lyrics, however is very dated and revolves around violence, misogyny, drugs, it's horrible to listen to it especially as a woman. I give this two stars for the music itself, but if I consider the lyrics this really should get only one star.

I want it to be that I don't like hip-hop, but as great as the catchy pop tunes are, the misogyny, the lack of humanity and baloney sandwich rags-to-riches stuff is a bore. "aspirational" hip hop I've been told is the term, but yawn.

Meh. I don't know. Something about this. I really didn't care for it.

Day 5: Best tracks: Everyday Struggle, Big Poppa, Juicy, Suicidal Thoughts A few permanent skips for me (One More Chance, Fuck Me (Interlude), Respect). The skits are beyond intrusive. Biggie had flow, but Diddy's vocals in the background appear on too many tracks for me to give anything greater than a 5/10.

Really hated the skits in this. I usually tolerate them in rap albums but I skipped or fast forwarded through most of the ones on this album.

Una vez más, como casi siempre me pasa con los álbums de rap de la vieja escuela: Los beats me aburren. No considero que suene mal, o que los beats sean malos. Simplemente me resulta demasiado monotono. El foco termina estando en el rap en lugar de la producción musical de manera íntegra. Considerando además que las letras en este caso resultan misóginas y recaen los muchos clichés de competencias machistas. Además los temas y el álbum en su totalidad son largos. Si acaso el tiempo de escucha fuese más corto tal vez se apreciaría mejor. "Juicy" y "Big Poppa" son dos canciones a resaltar positivamente, con mucho groove y samples memorables.

A lot of the songs were generic and similar.

The beats are thumping and the bars have flow. But the misogyny is overboard and the subject matter is dark, depressing and borderline frightening. He had talent but this was unpleasant. Doesn't help that Diddy played a huge role in this album and well, he's a rather unsavoury character.

Biggie has amazing rap skills, just not a fan of the genre (and the content) Tracks to Track: Big Poppa

Ikke min favoritt av 90-talls-klassikerne.

While acknowledging its status as a highly regarded historical and cultural touchstone for hip-hop, I found "Ready to Die" difficult to engage with. Its' seventeen tracks, and nearly 70-minute runtime, felt excessive, and the overall musical experience, while competent, became monotonous. Ultimately, the album's vocal delivery, grim subject matter and lyrical content were simply not to my taste. Two stars. 1 "Intro" (2/5) 2 "Things Done Changed" (2/5) 3 "Gimme the Loot" (2/5) 4 "Machine Gun Funk" (3/5) 5 "Warning" (3/5) 6 "Ready to Die" (2/5) 7 "One More Chance" (2/5) 8 "#!*@ Me (Interlude)" (1/5) 9 "The What" (featuring Method Man) (2/5) 10 "Juicy" (2/5) 11 "Everyday Struggle" (2/5) 12 "Me & My Bitch" (1/5) 13 "Big Poppa" (3/5) 14 "Respect" (1/5) 15 "Friend of Mine" (2/5) 16 "Unbelievable" (2/5) 17 "Suicidal Thoughts" (2/5) Total - 34 Average - 2.00 127/1001 68/127 albums reviewed were new to me.

The best thing this challenge has done for me is get me into liking rap and hip hop, and I understand that this is one of those rap albums you have to like but I found it largely boring. It was ok I guess but not what I like to hear in rap. It does things right it just isn’t for me

Biggie is so damn convincing and charismatic, if I have one qualm it’s having met impressionable young men who took this as license to be thugs. They were gonna find that green light somewhere, that ain’t Biggie’s fault, but much like Scorsese’s gangsterland films, there’s the trade-off of depicting the highs as SO HIGH and the lows kinda tucked away - the parts you come back for over and over are not the lows. Somehow Biggie’s fate makes this even more appealing for a certain sort. Anyhow I’d kinda been done with the gangsta rap several years before Ready to Die hit the zeitgeist, so I’ve always appreciated Biggie from a remove. Undeniable storytelling chops, delivery, flow, timing, etc. But wow, what a long album! I get the financial incentive here probably demanded packing this to the 70+ minute max CDs could afford but daaaamn. So many skips! And that jackass Combs popping up here and there to do what, guest vocal? Miss me with that shit. Cut this down to a 35 minute collection and it’s a classic 5 stars, but with the bloat and Combs, I just can’t get there.

OK. 2/5

Meh. While I’m sure this was significant for some it did nothing for me. It was too long, and nothing stood out that I would want to replay again.

Rap/Hip-Hop is not usually my area but... I enjoyed the beats and sample choices, there was a smooth groove to each track and the vocal delivery was deliberate, confident and purposeful. Not really directed solely at this album but I do find continuous swearing becomes a little tiresome. The lyrical themes are also limited; at one point there is a line about being stereotyped, which is buried in an album that constantly talks about drugs, guns and treating women poorly. This lost the album a couple of stars. And who wants to listen to slurping sex noises? Yes, I know, I don't understand the genre, but this stuff drags down the album.

Really misogynistic and creepy. Talented rapper but I felt very uncomfortable with a lot of the songs.

Bleh. It's gray and rainy today and I was hoping for music to match the weather. Oh well.....off to work I go. It's fine for mid-90s rap; I've just heard too much of it lately. 2.5/5

Ahhh more songs about committing crimes and dicking chicks down. Biggie's probably my favorite of the rappers of the era, but Jesus Christ some of these tracks are so stupid. The album is ok, not my type of thing. I dont hate it but I don't love it. Although I like Biggies style, I really didnt click with any of this album. Maybe one or two of the songs really drew me in, but I lot of it didn't hit. Standouts are "Big Poppa" and "Respect." Gotta give this one a 2, it was below average for me. I don't really want to revisit any of it.

1. Intro - 1.5 2. Things -1.5 3. Loot - 2 4.funk-1 5. Warning - 1.5 6. Ready - 1.5 7. Chance - 1 8. Fuck - 0 9. What - 1 10. Juicy -2 11. Struggle -1 12. Bitch -0 13. Poppa - 2.5 14. Respect -1 15. Friend -1.5 16. Unbelievable -1 17. Suicidal - 0 18. Shot - 1 19. Playing - 1.5

3.5/10

Porn CD with a few musical interludes. At least it was entertaining

I'm just accepting of the fact that rap/hip-hop by and large isn't my thing. But. This has some truly great production. There's so many sounds and samples and bits and bobs to discover while I'm trying to ignore the spoken word part.

Could never get into biggie. Not my thing. Hilarious BJ cutscene, though.

This one didn’t really change my mind. I appreciate the sampling and his style, but East Coast and gangsta rap just aren’t my thing.

Nope, sorry. Not my genre.

Ok for what I listened too, but couldn’t get through it all. Wouldn’t listen again.

Eh

Good beat but this man had way too much drama in his short life.

a little too raunchy for my taste

# 563 : Ready To Die Ready to Die – Influential, Iconic, and Kind of a Chore Ranked #22 on Rolling Stone’s Greatest Albums of All Time? Sure. But for me, it was more like #22 on the “Glad That’s Over” list. I can appreciate the influence, the beats were solid, and Biggie’s flow is undeniable—but I still don’t get rap. The content didn’t connect, and after an hour of the same three words, it started to feel like a lyrical treadmill. Too much violence, too much swearing, and not enough musical variety. It’s edgy, but not in a way that feels artistically useful to me. The title track was the best of the bunch, but even that couldn’t save the rest from being a bit of a slog. Verdict: Two stars… maybe. Glad I listened. Won’t be listening again. If you have to listen to this, look out for: Ready To Die Listened: 08/09/2025

One of the all time greats of the hip hop world with a decidedly ok album. High points are one more chance, juicy and big poppa. However in-between there is a lot of weak production and stop start melodies. Biggie is always great but 2 thirds of the tunes here are dreck.

I get its significance but it does not hold up well. It has a lot of the bad 90s rap staples (unpleasant skits that make this awkward to listen to around others, too long, repetitive) and just doesn’t do it for me. I’ve never been a big biggie fan. Some of it is good, but isn’t a great overall listen and I’m not going back to it

There's no doubt that Biggie was incredibly talented, but the relentless misogyny wasn't cute in the '90s and grates even more now.

Some big hits on there but I can only handle the N word so many times. You know its a gangster rap album when 80% of the lyrics are the N word.

As not a fan of rap I could at least understand what he was saying. It is not that I dislike the concept of rap and this one was rather enjoyable, but I can't listen to things with that many bad words. So, for that reason... 2 stars.

No private session used for Spotify. As typical with this genre, I feel like a eavesdropper as the frequent use of the N word makes me feel uncomfortable that and the misogyny. Not my thang.

I've heard it before and this is a fairly solid album, but not so much to my taste that I'd really feel inclined to listen to it again. HOWEVER there's a couple moments on this album that makes it completely unlistenable... I remember one of them going into it and skipped before it ruined too much for me, but I forgot the second part and :--) jfc. Would've gotten another star but I don't wanna listen to a blow job Best song the one that goes Live for the funk Die for the funk

Misogynistic, violent, homophobic… look, the beats are good as hell and I love a 90s flow. Biggie can rhyme with the best of them, arguably is the best of them and will always be incredibly influential. But lyrically I simply cannot get behind him. I generally am not a fan of Interludes, and this album is no exception. They not only add nothing to the experience, they actively detract from it. If I’m being generous, the album is an interesting study in self-loathing.

not for me

The Notorious B.I.G.: Ready to Die: This shit is boring. Very samey, and frankly there are a lot of just sex sounds that are both uncomfortable and really out of place that take you out of the album. Like not mid song, the song will just be an interlude of sex sounds. The synths are pretty cool but they are very repetitive, and along with some solid samples they are the only thing saving this album from a 1. This just ain't it. Notorious M.I.D. 3/10

Not my thing. Yes, Biggie's rhymes are impressive, but as a woman, I struggle with too many of the lyrics.

Nope

Jeez i thought misogyny, violence but a nice beat. What is this all about and then there was a track anout suicide and it occured to me that this guy hated himself and it all made sense, hope he found some peace.

I Googled "Notorious B.I.G. Freud" and was surprised no-one has written a massive treatise about Biggie's phallic obsession. It sounded good, but the constant disrespect for women did my head in.

Well this is why the parents were up in arms!

I have to admit, this album was actually pretty cool to listen to. Back in the 90s, I never gave it a chance because it was so trendy and commercial, especially with suburban kids who thought they were gangsters. That audience always turned me off, and I was more into other styles of music back then. Revisiting it now, I realized it has really good production and is better than I expected, especially for its time. The album uses a lot of great old samples of funk, jazz, and R&B, which adds a lot of depth. Another pleasant surprise was seeing DJ Premier involved in the production, as I’ve always enjoyed him. Overall, it was a much better experience than I anticipated.

Sigh!

Nie wiem. Niektóre kawałki były całkiem niezłe, ale całość napawała mnie takim niesmakiem. Te sample seksualne, nie tego się spodziewam. Bez nich byłoby 6/10, a tak to obniżam to 4/10, bo nic tej płyty nie ratuje a sporo ją pogrąża.

I quite like his vocal delivery and general (musical) vibes, but the actual content is awful, and the skits are fucking tedious.

This album just made me sad for so many reason. For the difficulty present and beautifully expressed, and also for the horrible treatment of women and over sexualization/devaluation of women. Certainly some incredible talent, but hard to get through the sounds of degradation.

He's no Tupac, is he?

Can see why it's a highly rated album but can't get past the content.

Only really knew lore about Biggie and listened to the singles that made it to a broader audience, so I thought I owed it to the man to listen to this one. Like the intro - hints at the tone and time period and background of the music. The whole album is definitely a vibe - recognized a lot of lyrics from being called out by other rappers. Testament to Biggie, fo sho. Didn't know much about this album before and glad I listened. Still don't feel knowledgable to rate this against the world of rap catalog, but two thumbs up, would recommend.

One of the most overrated rap albums ever. Too long, raps about the same thing over and over, and just felt unnecessary to me. There's bops but they only go so far. Many better rap albums in the 90s.

Entendo que é um álbum bastante sincero no estilo de vida do Big Small, fiquei chocado com algumas músicas (sexo explícito, misoginia, crimes), mesmo assim embora com seu valor, tenho a sensação que envelheceu muito mal. Suicidal Thoughts é sufocante.

I know it's iconic and Biggie was an incredible rapper, but I'm just not a big fan of 90s gangsta rap and couldn't listen to it all.

For me the topics in the lyrics a just gets kinda lame. It’s not done with a bit of humour and just comes off weird. Beats are worse than Dre

Not for me.

Not really my kind of thing...

Not bad, but not great.

Too long- lessens the impact

WAARSCHUWING Luister dit album NIET in de auto. Ik luisterde Warning toen ik aan het invoegen was op de snelweg en dacht dat mn auto een meltdown had. Zieke paniek voor een paar seconden :0 De rest van het album was wel tof om in de auto te luisteren. Voelde me helemaal gangster

Beyond standouts “Juicy” and “Big Poppa”, this was little to write home about.

I think I heard more n-words during this album listen than I've heard in the last year. And I was not expecting the extended Biggie having a shag skit. The rampant misogyny was less surprising. It's not like I automatically rule out sexist lyricism (Sublime were hardly angels and I love them) but the music has to be good and it was all a bit meh for me. This style of hip hop not my thing.

Hiphop is definitely not my genre. it’s a good album, but form me is not an easy listening. however, my 15 yo son loves me even more when he realized that I was listening this album.

I know big papa cuz who doesn’t buy the rest if the songs were mid I wouldn’t listen to this again

Kinda boring never been the biggest fan of 80s-90s rap but Big Poppa still goes hard

I find it all a little dour, repetitive and silly. How many times can you talk about killing people. Did you actually kill anybody? I guess I don’t really care.

Listening to some backlog on the flight home for my 24 hour trip to Columbus Ohio. This has to be one of the horniest albums o this list. Every song is like some new description of mostly the same thing, over mostly the same beat. Friend of Mine was the first song that stood out for doing something a little different sample and beat wise.

Dude .....this was not good. Man's was huffing and puffing over the beats and I damn near thanked God when the hits came on. Saying you'll have sex with Raven Symone when she was like 10 at the time is actually insane by the way. Like I dont care what anyone says that line was nuts fjdhfhjfjf

Вроде и качает, но это фак фак фак надоедает.

Habe um ehrlich zu sein mehr erwartet. Fand es eher eintönig und lang, hat mich nicht überzeugen können.

I see why it was popular at the time of release. Hasn’t aged well and a lot of the skits and lengthy song intros aren’t necessary

Kind of tired of albums with interludes of women having sex.

Heavy (but interesting) lyrics, however the skits take away from it and only a couple standout tracks.

I am really not a fan of this genre. I don't care for the vocal style or lyrical content, but this album does have some interesting instrumentation. I recognized the track Big Poppa so that got some cross-genre exposure. I wouldn't listen again.

A bunch of this sounds great, the beats are good, his voice is quite nice, I appreciate that he may have come up with a new approach to lyrics etc etc... but as soon as I concentrate enough to listen to what he's saying he just sounds like a bit of a knob. I'm sure it's a bit witty and introspective, but it's still fairly misogynistic and glamour uses a lifestyle which is pretty lame. At least 2 tracks have essentially sex recordings (I never really know why people like listening to that halfway through an album). I'm not really into skits, they come across as pretty naff and I spend most of them time imagining these gangster rappers in the studio doing stupid little skits and I can't take any of it seriously. Again, it all sounds great, if i just let it wash over me I quite like it. But when I actually listen I enjoy it a bit less.

Just too much for me and I couldn't get through it. Especially given Sean Comb's involvement and what happened to B.I.G. not long after this album. I'm not one who can objectively approach this album and speak of its merits. Grueling, torturous listen for me

Quite good!

Might have been shocking and innovative in its time but comes across a bit try hard now

2.5

This wasn’t as hard going as I expected and some of the tracks with more developed background beats were okay to listen to. However, I am just not a fan of the genre and all that comes with it. Some of the intro/outtro’s with the sex stuff were just a bit gross to listen to rather than funny.

This rap is undeniably excellent—it's incredibly well-crafted and executed. However, I find myself struggling to connect with it. My appreciation for the intricacies of rap just isn't there. I’d be intrigued to discover if there’s even better rapping out there. Perhaps if someone took this brilliance and created a pop version that simplified and diluted it, I might find enjoyment in it. Unfortunately, my listening of rap are closer to 'Girls Aloud' level as a comparison. BIG I am sorry I am too musically weak to appreciate this. The only respect I can give is listening to your album in full!

Es hesch halt huere de Rage-Rap. Wenni halt Hip-Hop lose de lieber öppis fredlechs. Gwössi lieder hend zwar scho öppis, aber anderi frogt mer sech was sech dä Typ bi dene dänkt hed dass är sie is Albom do hed.

I'm biased when it comes to evaluating albums like this, I find it a bit tiring when it comes to beats and rap.

All the rappers I like love BIG but I just didn’t enjoy it

2.5

It seems to me the biggest grip about this album is the skits, which for the most part fit the theme of the album. Usually when I don't like skits are when there needless (often humorous) bumpers between song. The only two sketches I really could gripa about was the sex moan one and the slurpy smooch one. Most of the rest fit the theme of hyper violence and street life. Which brings me to what I didn't like about this album, and that is the message and overall tone of the album. I get that this album is not for me it's not for my demographics or my personal outlook on life. Taking that in consideration this is actually a better album than probably the rating I'm going to give it just because I do not enjoy the feeling it gives me. And my and mine comfortableness listening to this is probably kind of the point because it's not written for people like me. I am actually glad I gave it a good listen over and ingested what it had to say, but I can't find myself revisiting this as something I would want to rehash over and over. Must hear before I die? Sure... I'll give it that. Is it something I like or enjoy that I do not. 4.7 ★★

Rhythmically interesting and good for running! I only really enjoyed a couple of songs though - Juicy and Respect. Won’t be coming back to this one.

way, way, way, way too long, but also has some really good bits, and there's a lot of things on here I realize have been referenced a whole lot. I feel like it deserves a relisten from me but I simply do not have the patience.

Bloated song lengths, oversexualised, obsessed with violence and pointless intro and interlude skits; as per usual I find east coast hip hop and gangsta rap to suffer the same ills. When I find a track I like, I can enjoy it very well, but most stuff on here that just washed over me. Flow is great as is the rhyming around vowel sounds, just the lyrical content turns me off so badly.

While contemporaries were rapping about social issues and racism, Biggie goes a very different direction.

Don't really care for stuff that is all about sex, drugs, & murder.

2.7

Never heard any of the songs before, but at the same time I've heard a great portion of it sampled/quoted Not for me. The best parts were Fuck Me (Interlude) (Hilarious) and the chorus in Respect

Guess west coast is just better

Did not age well at all.

fav song one more chance juicy

I am not in a mood to rationalize misogyny today, so I just listened to a couple of tracks so I can confidently agree that his rapping is indeed deft and I don't need to hear the rest.

The worst album I heard so far here. So, it wasn't terrible, it wasn't good either. Some instrumentals were enjoyable but I am not really into rap and hip hop so vocally it wasn't really my thing. And of course the super cheesy lyrics that can be really offputting at times. I still enjoyed some moments but overall, this album is too long for its level.

I can see why they call him the biggest rapper of all time. His rhythm and style are much more to my liking than many other "big" rappers. But then there are the lyrics and the nonsensical interludes.

Considering the cult status I was kinda disappointed, I didn't expect there to be that much sex

Ok. Never liked this when it came out. “Things done changed” is super monotonous. Meaning it’s just the same loop and no variation of pitch. I’m going to try, but not sure if I will make it through. Gimme the loot is better. More variance on pitch for me. I didn’t realize how simplified the looping was for this album at the time. Listening now I can articulate what I don’t like. “Machine gun funk” is my favorite so far. This album definitely gets better as it goes, but it’s still not for me.

While I have a deep appreciation for east coast rap from this era, Biggie Smalls has just never quite resonated with me. A lot of his tracks seem to lack the memorable hooks that made other artists’ albums from that time stand out. Plus, the lyrical content leans a bit too heavily into that “bitches come and bitches go” kind of vibe—which, honestly, just doesn’t do it for me. Of course there are few songs with deeper lyrics as well, but not enough.

Pre-listening thoughts: I like a few of Biggie’s really popular songs so I’m hoping I’ll enjoy this 🙏 Post/during listening thoughts: hmm… so Biggie is really talented but I agree with some of the reviews where they say the skits and interludes really tank this. They are so gross most of the time 😭 And there’s quite a bit of misogyny here. Also this is so long. Idk man. Wanted to like this more than I did. 4/10 DID I NEED TO HEAR THIS BEFORE I DIE: no Fav tracks: Ready To Die, Everyday Struggle, Big Poppa Least fav tracks: One More Chance, Me and my Bitch, Respect

Would I listen again? No Some good tunes, but not for me overall

Dick and gun lyrics. Cool for 13-year-old boys. Lame and stupid for everyone else.

There are some undoubtedly infectious grooves and boogie-able production on this album, but I struggle to listen to this album beyond the skin-deep perspective of the sonics alone. The violent themes is one thing, but what really leaves a sour taste for me is the fingerprints of Diddy/P Diddy/Puff Daddy (you get the point) being all over the album. Just hasn’t aged well at all in that regard, let alone with regards to some wider themes.

It get's redundant really fast and then seems to never end. The interludes become maddening as the album progresses as well. There are a few good tracks but buried under the sheer weight.

Track after track of the same thing. I’ll give it credit for being something interesting and new and maybe pushing boundaries at the time maybe but it doesn’t hold my attention now.

Für mich ein typisches RAP-Album, nichts was mich begeistert. 2/5

The skits and sex noises are too much for my sensitive soul. I can’t get past the misogynistic lyrics either.

Love When You Call Me Big Poppa is the only song I like and it's been a favorite for years.

This album seemed to never end. Not my thing.

Just wasn’t feeling this.

Musically it's aged well but the misogyny and glsmourisation of crime I had a problem with.

280/1001

Inte riktigt min grej. Två

Seems pretty generic to e

Sigo sin ser muy fan del rap americano

Man idk…

God damn dude. Your DEBUT album is an hour and ten? Too violent, it's bringing me down. Sorry about whatever happened that made you feel like you had to be this way. Gangster violence is always going to be entertaining to some people. Like horror films, I'm not into it. This album is unrelenting in it's violence: I'm not going to try to stop anyone else from listening to it, it's well made (I'm sure, not an expert, critics like it apparently), and there's a lot of cleverness and rhythm in the "poetry." But the subject matter is not subtle, not all that artistic. Pretty sure gangster rap did NOT solve the problems the rappers were complaining about.

Repetitive, sort of drones on. Skits are cringe.

Ja. Hörbar.

It has like two good songs over 75 minutes. And even those songs are just okay.

Nice beats, weird skits

2 out of 5. Having listened to this for the first time I can see why Biggie's music is so highly regarded. It was mostly the skits that killed it for me.

Good beats and a good flow. I can understand how this was incredibly influential. But I completely fail to connect with it due to the infantile skits and lyrics.

Beyond the hits, I found it repetitive. He does have immaculate flow though.

Early 90’s hip hop - at the time I thought it was cool as fuck but old me cringes at an awful lot of it.

Juicy always hits

Hip-hop soez. Un 2.

Second half 👌🏻

Big Poppa is a classic, but the entire album feels quite aggressive and I'm not very into rap in general.

Aged like milk.

This was never for me. There's some fun melodies, and good production, but I struggle to find much else here. It's not saying anything interesting, and it's not saying it in an entertaining way either. It's self indulgent, like a lot of this style rap is. I'll take this opportunity to repeat a firmly held belief that talky skits in albums add nothing and are just annoyances to get past. Also, I have a bigger TV than Biggie was bragging about in '94, which did make me chuckle that it took me so long to catch up.

Awful. Just awful.

I probably could benefit from a second listen to really judge this, but I also don’t particularly feel like it. When listening as background noise the thing that caught my attention most was the random sex interlude, which doesn’t bode well for the rest of the album

Obviously there are classic hip hop hits on the album. However, the album as a whole fails with the interwoven storytelling that heavily distracts from the actually good tracks. 2/5 for the album, 5/5 for the hits

first six tracks, insomniac, vibing a lot and making my night more vearable, really good storytelling, has a conventional storytelling style but it's not stale so far. Could use less slurs. Also the end of respect grossed me out and made me drop the rating and then the last one fucking killed it for me, disgusting.

kicsit sokallom a hiphopot már, bevallom :D de ez különösen nem tudott lekötni most

This is less misogynistic than Americakka's Most Wanted, which I recently listened to. So it had that going for it. But it also had less memorable lines. Solid album, but I didn't find myself laughing at any puns or just being floored by a rhyme. Probably wouldn't listen again.

Some good tracks. The filler tracks were a bit much. I wish the “uh huh’s”, “uhs”, and “yeahs’s” were uttered less frequently. The worst trend ever. While I do like some of his songs, as a whole, I did not really care for this album. Just mid to me.

Was not as good as I had hoped

Petty and trashy. Not quite as bad as 50 cent.

This was so nasty. Lol. But that one song is good. 🙉

This is a hard one to rate. I'm a relatively new rap fan, and don't have as much knowledge as most of the other genres. Of the artists I do like, it's a lot of Midwest and West Coast, and I can't think of a New York rapper I'm actually a fan of. After listening to this, I'm not really inclined to go further in that direction. The beats just felt kind samey. The lyricism is good, no doubt, but it's just not my style.

Biggie's flow is great, but listening to this oversexed and overstuffed skit-heavy album in its entirety becomes incredibly tiresome and tedious.

Some catchy rhymes, but the misogyny is dating it - can't hear "bitches n hoes" without cringing

The beats were good and some of the songs were good. But the lyrics were quite grim at times. Question: Biggie or Tupac? Answer: Wu tang clan

Lacked variation

Day262 - i wasn’t a fan when this came out and in light of all the puff daddy news coming out in 2024 i don’t think this ages well

Not my bag but see how its good

Rap, blah

Not for me.

He really was ready, wasn't he?

Awful!

I think at one point in my life I would've found Biggie mimicking having loud sex right on the album really funny and awesome. Not anymore. This CD is stupid and crude. It's modestly less unpleasant than the truly awful West Coast stuff I'd gotten earlier.

Depressing album. Even though I did not like it, made me appreciate my life a bit more. Very emotional for the artist who had a difficult upbringing.

This is album that requires listening to on headphones - the extraordinary number of MFPH and the toe curlingly explicit references to sex, violence and drugs make this extremely NSFW. Headphones also show off the dense soundscapes of dialogue, jokes, samples, music and rap. You could almost see this as an elaborate satire of a gangsta whose idea of luxury is being able to afford both Sega and Nintendo at the same time, but Biggie was dead by 24. Sheesh.

I lost count on the m*therfuckers and the gunshots. It might be the best of gangsta rap, but also somehow its worst.

Do you want to hear a guy rave about his prowess with a gun, how big his penis is, and how much money he has? Do you hate women? Would you like to hear the audio of him receiving oral sex? Then this is the album for you. For everyone else? Maybe 3 stars for music and production and one star for lyrical content. We’ll call it a 2.

Some good tracks, did not need the sex skits. When these old hip hop albums come up I don't pay too much attention to the lyrics and judge on vibes only, otherwise a lot of shit would get 1/5. 2* (would be 3 but the sex). Enjoyed: big poppa Worst tracks: fuck me, respect

Didn't get the fuss about it.

Frankly anyone who needs to sing about his dick so much needs to re-evaluate something.

I am pretty tired of hearing about Bies sexual prowess. Big papa is catchy and the reggae influenced song was OK but I did not need to hear this.

Well this started and immediately made me totally uptight and uncomfortable. (so much sweeter hearing Missy Elliott sing about her chocha than this aggressive crap) The canvas clips on Spotify started to give me a headache too. By the time I got to Me and My Bitch I was done. It's still sad that he died promoting this so I'll bump a star.

Of it’s time I guess but didn’t talk to me the way I thought it used to.

Album could’ve used more skits of him fucking. 2.3 stars.

Just not a big fan of rap though big poppa slaps, the porn interlude not so much

It was ok. Not the greatest hip hop album I've ever heard. Probably won't listen again.

Maybe this is sacrilegious, but I found the beats pretty similar for an album this long. Biggie's voice is hard to understand. I wasn't really a fan.

As far as Gangsta Rap, this one is a pretty good one. Not something I listen to often, but I can appreciate it now. Not so much when it came out, but we all grow. I would still rather listen to Tribe, J5 or Diggable Planets.

Gangster Rap, was will man mehr? Eigentlich nur sprachliche Zurückhaltung, sonst nichts.

Ready to Die I do like Biggie’s flow, but I only really know Juicy, Hypnotise, Mo Money. Interested to hear this, especially in comparison to the Tupac album we had back in May. I really like a lot of the sound and production on this, and the samples are pretty great throughout, a lot of string laden 70s soul, giving the whole thing a warm, lush sound. Good considering it seems to have had about 300 different producers. Intro really resonated with me, it really reminded me of my own journey from birth to adulthood. His rhymes and wordplay are good, and I like the timbre and style of his voice, but the actual words and lyrics on most of it I don’t like. I thought Tupac talked about these same topics and themes more as reportage, laying out the world and situations he found himself in, with a strong element of despair. While they did border on nihilism, I much preferred them to the lyrics on this. It’s not that he is necessarily glorifying violence or gangs, but there is a fair amount of self aggrandizing, eg on Warning. The bragging about his sexual prowess is also quite painful, the words on One More Chance for example are embarrassingly cringe and hard to listen to. The blow job noises at the end of Respect are also awful. That air of misogyny, while pretty pervasive elsewhere in the genre and other music at the time, is also pretty hard to listen to. Juicy is still a great track though. Musically and sonically I really like a lot of the album, but lyrically I really don’t like it. I know the world he grew up in and raps about is so far removed from my own experience that I don’t fee I’ml in a position to really judge it, but it feels like there are lot of other people out there who do talk about this stuff in a more interesting and, from my perspective, a much better way. ⭐⭐ Playlist submission: Juicy

Wow. Is every meme, stereotype and racist slur directed at rap music based on this album? Could be. There's a great amount of talent on here producing a great amount of....well.....junk for me. Is it a rap requirement to include a super-emotional radio-play? Just askin'.... I guess this is good rap, but it definitely ain't my genre. Gangsta Rap? Is that the sub-genre?

Just not my style of music. Can’t get into it.

I'm sure it was unique to its era, but it's hard to get over the fact that almost all the tracks are about the same subjects. Sex, Gang Violence, Drugs, Boasting. I understand they come from a very real place but musically there's little to differentiate most of them. I thought "Suicidal Thoughts" was great. He drops the machismo for a minute and it feels very honest. And "Just Playing" was hilarious. I'm off to Google what the "R&B B*****S" of the era thought of that song...

I’m discovering that ‘classic’ rap is not the genre for me. I get and like some of this. But I can really live without all the ‘bits’, sex noises, posturing and misogyny

Good flow, but misogynistic and the explicit interludes were too much for me...

Good samples, but not a lot of singing. I thought the rapping was about average. Rappers and their fucking skits...

amazing story telling before during and after songs. Not my kind of tea the subject or the Rap. some beat groovy

I can respect the message and imagery that the album conveys about what life was like for Notorious B.I.G. and the kind of experiences he went through. It describes a lot of unsettling themes of what life was like for his community. However, I am not the biggest fan of gangster rap, or rap in general, so the lyrics are not something I was able to connect to. The beats he used were really good though and he a had a pretty good flow with them. Obviously Big Poppa was the stand out song to me, as it seems it is the same for many others.

63 motherfuckers in the first 3 songs.

This album was disappointing. Outside of the "hit" tracks (Give Me the Loot, Juicy, Big Poppa) which are o.k., the tracks were uninteresting or awkward. The interludes were egregious, and the sequencing of the album was missing. The moments that painted this as a concept album were overblown (Intro and Suicidal Thoughts). Not a great listen. 2/5.

Great flow, great beats, some nice ideas. Too much boasting with little substance. I wanted to like this more, but eh..

I just found this a bit boring to be honest 2/5

Long, plate et répétitif. L'album semble être blasé de lui-même à mi-chemin. Je suis 100% pas un fan de rap, mais je reste déçu du Gros Notorieux.

This shit comes off as corny AF thirty years later.

already

Was kinda ok. I don’t love his style. Mainly very much didn’t enjoy the song that was mostly moaning

If you don’t know, now you know

Not a great Biggie album

The guy was clearly talented but not sure what he'd do without curse words, it would only leave 20% of the album

Never listened to Biggie but given his reputation I honestly expected more.

Misathanthropy in one sustained (and jarring) key

I enjoyed a lot about this album. Also, I did not enjoy a lot about this album. Gats and mysogyny pew pew pew

Biggie had some good tunes, I admit Juicy and Big Poppa are iconic tracks. Hypnotize too, but it’s not on this album. Still, I just can’t listen to a whole album of this, I can’t. It’s not for me.

honestly pretty juicy album best songs are gimme the loot, machine gun funk, big poppa (duh), aaaaaand the list ends there said it was juicy when I was 3 songs in little did I know the album would just get bad and stay bad this is not music I like all that much but that doesn’t mean it’s not well made method man should’ve never had a career don’t know if he did because I’m not gonna look him up and risk learning anything meaningful about him but whoever put him on the album try again pal song I hate the most- respect please don’t let this get played within a 1000000 mile radius of my funeral also the end is a blowjob and that’s the best part of the song parting comment I just wanna say that as a song one more chance is very relatable for me

Too trashy for me. I didn't really see the appeal.

To be honest, this album let me down. Based on the description 1001 provided, I was hoping for something that was above the norm for rap. But what I got instead was the same misogyny and narcissism that I've heard from mid-90s rap albums before.

Not my cup of tea

Feels so dated now. Misogyny was more on trend back then…

Too long, embarrassing skits, hasn't aged well. The flow shines through. But holy hell this didn't she well.

Misogynistic, aggressive, nasty, racist shit. Awful music.

Fuck this East Coast bullshit. I’m WEST SIEEEEED 4 Eva. Doggystyle, chronic, Chronic 2001, lethal injection, that’s my shit. 2pac and Biggie was a manufactured rivalry. They were both in drama club! This is all shug knight fake gangsta nonsense. 2 stars for the beats. But fuck biggie and Tupac

pari tosi kovaa biisii, esim. Juicy Kokonaisuutena ei ehkä ihan mun juttu

I don't love 90s rap 😐

#177. I think this guy being considered one of the best must just be the death hype. Ain't no way. This is middling at best. And one of the lines is "you look so good, I'd suck your daddy's dick." Bruh.... what the fuck is that shit? 2/5: the fuck outta here with that shit.

I'm too old for this shit.

Not for me - I didn't listen to a one song all the way through and was never a fan of the whole skit thing.

Not my thing, felt really long and repetitive

Too much slurping put me off

I often feel during my reviews that I end up thinking that the sum is more than the parts for an album, i.e. one gains something form listening to it as a whole. For this album it's the complete opposite. I was looking forward to this album and B.I.G is a seriously skilled rapper. While some song are clearly 5 star material (Juicy, Big Poppa), the skits are horrendous, the album too long and the hype man annoying. The subject matter also gets worn thin during the albums long running time. This is getting a 2 because I would not put this album on. I will however pick the good songs out of the album and listen to it separatly.

Biggie likes sex

I didn't realize how hardcore Biggie was. I thought it was all going to be like pop stuff I associate with Puff Daddy.

"Really though, I got the cleanest, meanest penis" Lyrical genius right there.

I’ll admit that hip hop is not my forte. There’s some that I like and while I can appreciate this it never really grabbed me and it was way too long.

odustajem, ovo sam ocito nije moj zanr

Didn't finish. Like the old school beats. Vocabulary seems to be limited. Narcissistic. Our current culture makes sense in light of this album.

Alright alright, a standout album of its genre, so they say and they're probably not lying, but it's not for me. And that's even before fully paying attention to the lyrics. And, as it turns out, some of the ~sounds. While I like me some beats, my life has no connection to this music's content and I'm extremely cool with that.

I was looking forward to listening to this album but unfortunately I didn’t enjoy it. A lot of good songs were ended by over production of sex and unnecessary shit. My favorite song on the album was Respect however again at the end if you decide to not skip after the song ends you have to hear a girl get talked into giving a sloppy BJ.

Something I can never appreciate

The hits on this are iconic. Too bad the skits and everything else is pretty cringe. 2/5

muss ich nicht haben

Not my style but I did like Ready To Die.

Okay, I get it Biggie, you have a gun and you’re not afraid to use it. 2 stars.

Not into gansta rap, all the BITCH, FUCK, NIGGAS, MF, ASS, BLACK STEEL, BIG BOOTY lyrics are not part of my world, I have never been an aggressive man and always hated the alpha males who brag and hit instead of trying to reflect upon themselves. Add that is not the political rap that I do get, go and fight the system like e.g. Public Enemy instead of focusing on your own genitals and how tough you are. So I can try to review the music which is i general nice, good samples, nice rhythms. But it does not work, all this gangsta shit annoys me too much. 2 stars.

notorious b.i.g. should absolutely be part of this list! his ready to die album contains one of his biggest songs, "big poppa," and is a double album that could've been shortened. truth be told, i don't think i've ever heard of a debut double album before! the song "everyday struggle," written by him, is possibly showing him at his most vulnerable but also revealing his frustrated commentary toward society. the songs that included misogyny and/or objectification and/or overt sex noises, well, i could do without those. but continually, the samples chosen for this entire album were by black artists. there were a few exceptions, but there are so many black artists used that notorious b.i.g. must have done this purposefully.

This is undoubtedly an incredibly influential hip-hop album. As someone who isn't even much of a fan of hip-hop and rap music, I recognized a few of these songs or lyrics from these songs that have long-time significance in pop culture. That said, the album just didn't do much for me. Biggie can definitely rap, no doubt about it, but I just didn't find myself really personally appreciating the content.

Laidback flow der minder om G-funk. Mangler hooks der hænger fast og adskiller hvert track fra hinanden. Jeg mangler at blive “trukket” ind af musikken. Voldsomme lyrics der handler om kriminalitet og mord. Den tilbagelænede lyd og ekstreme tekst giver en foruroligende kontrast.

Not for me. Music was good. Can’t relate to lyrics

Man, does this guy talk about his dick a lot.

Good structure, and nice touch in the Intro with the progression of music genre till the HipHop, but I'm not a fan of listening this kind of Rap and less one Full CD.

Ei tosiaan huonointa ysäriräppiä vaan aika hyvää, jonkinlainen raskaus tässä kiehtoo. Toisaalta tosi vähän jäi mieleen paitsi kaikki dick-jutut. Vois muuten olla kolmonen eli hyvä, mutta mieleenpainuvuuden puuttumisen takia pakko antaa vähemmän.

Overhyped? Definitely, but at least I can understand what is being said. Though I almost didn’t get that far because Intro is just god awful. Thankfully, the rest of the album isn’t as stupid as that track but it is rapping about the typical material found on a rap album. Only gets a 2 because I can understand the lyrics.

No es mi estilo

This album made me feel uncomfortable due to content and language. I like some rap but can’t relate to this. I listen to music for enjoyment and didn’t not experience that with this album

I liked it more than I expected to. But that isn’t saying much. I quite like most of the production, solid old school hip hop vibes. It’s very bleak. Any album that has a track where the artist records themselves enacting their own suicide is in a very dark place.

Juicy is a classic but otherwise this album is a bit dated and not totally my taste for rap from this era.

Into - already got me semi stressed I don't do well with hearing arguing lmao Gimmie The Loot goes so hard and kinda makes me laugh a bit but idk why he felt the need to keep the coughing in at the end. did not love that :)

Some classic tunes but a little dated. Just wanted to listen to Nas through most of it.

Not really my interest - but the stories in the lyrics are very compelling.

nah not listening to all of them songs

Ikkje så egna til å hørra på på jobb

Man wippt automatisch mit, nix dolles.

I am probably missing something and hopefully someone will fill me in. Seemed like gun culture, fear and misogyny were the main themes

The skits were horrific. I didn't really enjoy it at all, but a few tracks were kinda cool

He was really good at this on a mechanical level, I just don’t like or relate to the lyrics.

Ну... и? С Big Poppa я ВОООООБЩЕ не протащился. Я не понимаю, как это работает, объясните... у меня не тот цвет кожи? Вот трек Respect - вот это тема; остальное куда-то мимо...

I know Biggie is supposed to be one of the greatest, but he’s too misogynistic and derivative to me. Didn’t compare well with Public Enemy either who preceded this choice.

Unfortunately probably too soon after a Snoop album to hear this one for me - more of the same glorification of gang violence, drugs and misogyny which I totally get is an album its time, but a hard listen with 2023 ears when I have no nostalgia for any of these tracks. I can appreciate his skill, his rap had an incredible flow, but I'd rather not hear him getting blown thanks. Biggest track: Just playing (Dreams)

I can respect the rhyming, and the flow, and the beats, BUT... it's basically the same song over and over with a slightly different sound each time. Every song is "I'm awesome and I'm going to kill everyone". I couldn't get through the whole album because I felt like I was listening to a skipping record.

Whole album not on Spotify. I love hip-hop....but not this style usually so here goes Everyday Struggle is by far the best track. More complex/detailed lyrics Getting bored of gangsta subjects and wording. Not my style of hip-hop/rap. Don't understand how this type of hip-hop/rap had got more popular than the likes of Jurassic 5 or Dilated Peoples, native tongues etc I give up, just don't like subject matter or rather the wording chosen to rap about it. Beats good on the album but lyrics not for me. 2 stars for beats

It's not really for me

Not the worst thing I’ve ever had to listen to, but it was much too long and definitely not my cup of tea. I can kind of understand the appeal, but it just doesn’t do it for me. 2/5

1994, рэп. На 200% слышал gimmie the loot в каких-то сэмплах раньше, но не сам трек. И как будто бы минус из Big Poppa мне знаком. В остальном альбом слушал впервые. Забавно, но флоу и лирика очень напоминают мне кровосток. И это справедливо! Та же гангстерская тема и бредовые фантазии успешных бандитов. Только если кровосток читает в рамках "шальных девяностых" то BIG в реалиях комптона и чёрных районов. Эдакий GTA:SA. Кстати, этих треков там точно не было? Наверное, не было, гта чуть раньше происходит И я уверен, что альбом хорош, но из-за того что это рэп -- плотный поток слов, рифм, сленга -- это мало того что продукт своего времени, так ещё и имеет довольно сильный языковой барьер. Конечно, чекнул genius lyrics, да, текст прикольный. Но тут я поставлю 2/5 -- прослушал и никаких эмоций нет. Едем дальше.

Nearly everything I hate about Rap.

Fuck me (interlude) luisteren op kantoor is niet iets wat ik zou aanraden.

Bit of a slog to get through. Blatant explicit material just really doesn't do it for me

Who Shot Ya? definitely plays different now. The various sex skits plays like a middle schooler with unrestrained access to youtube.

Can appreciate the album for is informed on modern music but hated the way he described women.

Some nice production but everything else is just cliche. The usual ‘ive had it tough but now im loaded’, ‘I’ll kick ya da in’, ‘i think im the shit’ vibes. Along with the repeated use of a word Ill not say. It almost becomes filler on this record. Same pace throughout and doesnt seem to go anywhere at all. Really bland. Pointless.

Never really listened to Biggie before. He's a great rapper, much better than the others in his era, and I think if he mixed up the content a bit id be a fan. Unfortunately this album is gats/drugs/bitches from start to finish and the songs veer from tedious to uncomfortable listening. Think the blowjob skit might have the been worst section of audio on the list so far. Won't come back, it's definitely better than the chronic and when it the flow is on point you can tune out the content for a bit but ultimately I'm not a fan.

The Intro starts the album off with a bang. It was a really cool idea to have sampled songs that influenced Biggie starting the album. There are some great tracks here but the overall package is lesser because it has far too many skits. It's a shame Puffy Daddy/Puffy/P Diddy/Diddy couldn't shut the fuck up and just let the rapping shine. Like previous rap albums of this era it suffers from the same gansta rap problems I had with "The Chronic" and "Doggystyle". The long duration of this album also doesn't help.

Not my thing

It was okay I can see why some people would like it but it’s not my favourite

Not my taste.

Not my jam, but I'm obviously not the targeted audience here. There are unequivocally some good beats on this album, though.

Hard offensive rap

wow who could’ve guessed: a bland 90s rap album! it was fine like most of the others but it was so long that i’m knocking it down a star

Not my genre of music

The album has a handful of above average hip hop tracks, but with 2/3 I wondered why anyone would even consider recording it. The man is full of contempt and obsessed with sex and violence. I'm pretty sure the world became a little better the day he died. Favorite song: things done changed.

i dont really like his swagger and toxic machismo. not unlistenable but pretty close. 2 stars.

Hmm

Beats are boring. I gave up

il m’a saoulee

yeah nah.

Pretty hard to get through. Definitely not my thing.

I can sometimes enjoy a little hip hop in moderation, but I just get tired after a whole album of it. I know this one's a certified classic but it's not for me. The best part of hip hop is the lyrics, and the music often takes a backseat to the words

Good but not my vibe

Great reminder that men who make misogynistic music should be shot <3

Undeniable talent, great tracks and great delivery but I’m not connecting to the lyrical content at all. Skits did nothing but make me feel gross and uncomfortable. Deserves to be listened to, deserves to be on this list, but since I’m rating these based on how likely I am to want to listen to this in the future… 1.5

Some cool bits. Some eh bits. Probably not my jam ultimately.