Inside Biggie Smalls' Final Days Before 28th Death Anniversary: Rapper Spent Time With Agent and Discussed Plans for Upcoming Tour Before He Was Killed In Drive-By Shooting
An inside look into Christopher Wallace, AKA Biggie Small's final moments before his 1997 death.
March 7 2025, Published 6:00 p.m. ET
Biggie Smalls was set for big things before he was murdered at just 24 years old.
As the 28th anniversary of Notorious B.I.G.'s death approaches on March 9, RadarOnline.com can reveal how his final days were filled with tour excitement and growing tension from the East Coast-West Coast rap feud.
Biggie discussed plans for an upcoming tour with his agent just one day before he was murdered.
In the beginning of 1997 – the year he was killed – Biggie, born Christopher Wallace, found himself in the middle of a famous hip-hop rivalry that many believed contributed to the murder of his rival Tupac Shakur.
A father and recovering from a car accident, the Brooklyn native was focused on completing his sophomore album Life After Death for Bad Boy Entertainment, founded by Sean 'Diddy' Combs.
The hitmaker was in the middle of an East Coast-West Coast rap feud during his final moments.
In February of that year, Biggie traveled to Los Angeles to shoot the video for Hypnotize and attended the Soul Train Music Awards, where he spoke about his sadness over Tupac's death.
Despite Biggie's attempts to reconcile, the L.A. music scene greeted the Bad Boy team with a cold reception at the March 7 awards show.
When he took the stage to announce Toni Braxton as the winner of Best R&B/Soul Single, the rapper was met with boos.
After his planned European trip was canceled, Biggie spent March 8 – the day before he was murdered – at the Westwood Marquis hotel, discussing future plans with his agent, Phil Casey.
As reported by Vibe, the two reportedly talked about an upcoming tour – which sadly never happened.
Seeking a change of scenery, he convinced his crew to attend an industry party at the Petersen Automotive Museum, co-sponsored by Quincy Jones' magazine.
Although a few gang members infiltrated the guest list, the atmosphere was generally upbeat. Biggie enjoyed champagne with his crew, mingled with fellow artists, and soaked in the praise – with Hypnotize blasting regularly.
As the venue grew increasingly crowded, however, the fire department stepped in around 12:30 a.m. and shut down the event.
After the party, Biggie and Combs left the venue, taking photos and playing tracks from Life After Death in their car. Combs left first with bodyguards, while Biggie got into a second car with his driver, Gregory 'G-Money' Young, and two friends.
As they waited at a traffic light, a white Toyota Land Cruiser tried to cut in behind them.
Biggie was killed in a drive-by shooting and was pronounced dead shortly after he was brought to the hospital.
Never Miss an
Daily updates from the heart of Hollywood, right to your inbox
By entering your email and clicking Sign Up, you’re agreeing to let us send you customized marketing messages about us and our advertising partners. You are also agreeing to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.
At that moment, a man in a blue suit and bowtie in a Chevy Impala pulled up beside Biggie and shot him multiple times. The shooter quickly fled the scene.
Combs rushed to Biggie's car and found his friend bleeding, slumped over in the passenger seat.
Despite being rushed to the hospital, the four bullets had already inflicted fatal damage, and Biggie was pronounced dead at 1:15 a.m.
While investigations and a wrongful death lawsuit was filed by his mother, the entertainer's murder still remains unsolved.
On February 21 of this year, Biggie's mom, Voletta Wallace, died of natural causes at 72 years old.
