Notorious B.I.G - Ready To Die Vinyl Record Biggie Gatefold

The Notorious B.I.G. helped reinvent and reinvigorate East Coast hip-hop 25 years ago with his 1994 debut album Ready to Die. Today, the album has gone six times platinum and is considered not only one of the best hip-hop albums of all time, but also one of the best albums of all time.

After becoming known for his guest appearances on songs by other artists, Biggie (born Christopher Wallace) began recording his own album in New York City in 1993. "Ready to Die" was finally completed in 1994 and released on Bad Boy Records, which was founded by Sean "Puffy" Combs, the album's executive producer.

Ready To Die is primarily an autobiographical album, showcasing Biggie's impeccable storytelling in 17 tracks that explore his life and experiences as a drug dealer. It takes the listener on a journey from the protagonist's birth, to his time on the streets, to his suicide.

The album's first single, "Juicy", went gold and reached #3 on the Hot Rap Singles chart and entered the Billboard Hot 100 chart where it reached #27. The second single, "Big Poppa," was an even bigger hit, topping the rap and R&B charts and reaching #6 on the Hot 100. 'Big Poppa' went platinum and was nominated for a Grammy® Award in the Best Rap Solo Performance category. A remix of "One More Chance" again topped the rap and R&B charts, reaching #2 on the Hot 100.

Sadly, this was to be the only studio album released during Biggie's lifetime. He was murdered on March 9, 1997, just 16 days before the release of his second album - Life After Death

This version of the album was never released by Rhino with the iconic Baby on the cover. The last time a 2LP version with the Baby cover was available to all retailers was in 2004 from Universal and hasn't been on the market since. After years of trying to resolve the issues with the cover, we are now able to bring it back so everyone can have a piece of the most iconic cover in hip-hop history.

Track Listing:

A1 Intro

A2 Things Done Changed

A3 Gimme The Loot

A4 Machine Gun Funk

A5 Warning

B1 Ready To Die

B2 One More Chance

B3 #!*@ Me (Interlude)

B4 The What

B5 Juicy

C1 Everyday Struggle

C2 Me & My B*tch

C3 Big Poppa

C4 Respect

D1 Friend Of Mine

D2 Unbelievable

D3 Suicidal Thoughts

D4 Who Shot Ya

D5 Just Playing (Dreams)