The Notorious B.I.G.'s Mom Voletta Wallace Dead at 78 — Nearly 30 Years After Iconic Rapper Son Was Murdered in Still Unsolved Case
The mother of the Notorious B.I.G. is dead.
Feb. 21 2025, Published 1:44 p.m. ET
Voletta Wallace, the mom of legendary New York rapper The Notorious B.I.G., has died at the age of 78.
According to Monroe County Coroner Thomas Yanac, Voletta died on Friday morning in Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
Voletta Wallace, mother of Notorious B.I.G., has died.
She is said to have been in hospice care, with the cause of death being natural causes.
Following Biggie's death – who was born Christopher Wallace – Voletta spent her remaining years focused on highlighting her famous son's life and career, and also overseeing his estate.
Voletta once told Entertainment Weekly: "After (Christopher's) passing, I heard a lot of positive and negative things that were being said about him. As a mother, I only wanted to hear positive things because I'm biased..."
She continued: "I decided then I wanted to know more about his music. I read something in a magazine about him where the writer said something like, 'What do people expect when you give a bum from the ghetto a million dollars?' I was very hurt by that."
"I never raised my son to be a bum or a drug dealer. So I listened to his music and I asked a lot of questions. I cried like a baby while listening because what I heard was an intelligent human being," Voletta said at the time.
The Juicy hitmaker was gunned down in Los Angeles on March 9, 1997, at 24 years old, just a few months after fellow rapper – and rival – Tupac Shakur wad murdered in a drive-by shooting.
Voletta spent her life highlighting her legendary son's career.
Voletta was able to launched the Christopher Wallace Memorial Foundation in her son’s memory, and had her hands in many projects related to the East Coast entertainer.
She served as a producer on the Notorious biopic in 2009, where she was portrayed by Oscar-nominated actress Angela Bassett.
Biggie's short but iconic career was highlighted once again when he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2020.
Voletta praised her son following the honor: “Today, I’m feeling great. As a mother, I’m extremely proud of his accomplishments. You know, I still see such a young man at a young age, and sadly, he’s not here to witness all this.
"But it’s an astute honor, and as a mother, I’m just elated for that.”
' I’m extremely proud of his accomplishments,' Voletta once gushed.
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While many suspects and names – including disgraced music mogul Sean 'Diddy' Combs – have been mentioned in possible connection to Biggie's death, no one has yet to be officially charged.
Meanwhile, Duane 'Keffe D' Davis, is currently the only person to have ever been charged in connection with the killing of Shakur. Davis was set to go to trial in mid-March, however, a judge has now pushed the trial date nearly a year to February 9, 2026, after his defense filed a motion to continue the trial.
Judge Carli Kierny said earlier this week: "It looks like there are quite a few things that are left to be done to get this case prepared so that Mr. Davis can have effective assistance of counsel.
"Given that, it appears as though I really don't have much of a choice but to grant it."
