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You know about Tupac and Biggie. You know about Big Pun. They were three of the nicest MCs to ever grace a microphone. You know about all the other icons we’ve lost (Jam Master Jay, Eazy-E, DJ Scott La Rock, Pimp C, to name a small few). But a lot of people fail to include Lamont Coleman in this group of heavenly hip-hop heroes.

Known professionally as Big L, the Harlem lyricist was among the most lethal yet technically proficient rappers in the game in the mid-late 1990s. L’s first LP Lifestylez Ov Da Poor & Dangerous was released in 1995. It contained ample individual heat from L, such as “MVP”, and memorable posse cuts like “8 Iz Enuff“, which featured a youthful Harlem up-and-comer named Cam’ron, and “Da Graveyard“, which featured very green Jay Z.

Big L’s relationship with Hov was a real one. Together they authored a radio freestyle that is the stuff of hip-hop lore, and in the late 90s, rumors circulated that an L signing to Roc-A-Fella Records was imminent.

Tragically, we never got to experience that union as Big L was murdered on February 15, 1999 in a drive-by shooting by a guy who sought revenge over something L’s brother had done (there’s a lesson in there somewhere). His second album entitled The Big Picture was posthumously released on August 1, 2000. His impact is still felt to this day on those that knew him, and rap legends that respected his gift from afar.

And even though Corleone was resting in heaven, the music was still hot as hell.

Now just a few days removed from the 17th anniversary of his passing, HHSR fondly remembers one of the great rhymers of all-time. Only the best of the best have a catalog as brief as Big L’s, while still being regarded as one of the best to ever do it. Biggie Smalls is the poster child for this, as he was also only 24-years-old with just one album under his belt when he was gunned down in 1997 (Life After Death having been released two weeks after his death). Fans passionate about lyricism will tell you L is in their top 10, and he may even inch into a few “top five, dead or alive” conversations the closer you move to NYC.

Lamont Coleman had the respect of the streets at a time when respect for the streets mattered. He carried the torch for Harlem back when A$AP Rocky was a kid and Puffy was still making coffee runs for Andre Harrell. The rugged sound of Joey Bada$$ is a direct descendant of Big L’s devastating delivery. We can never afford to forget artists like this, especially when they were taken from us way too soon.

Rest easy, L.