Unfortunately, Hip-Hop has lost a pivotal figure this week. On June 12, Lil’ Cease revealed that 50 Grand, Notorious B.I.G’s first DJ, passed away at the age of 55 years old.
“This one hurt man,” he wrote.
“We [were] literally just celebrating [with] you for B.I.G. There wouldn’t be [a] B.I.G if it [weren’t] for you. We love you 50 Grand and you’re gonna be missed.”
As Lil’ Cease pointed out. 50 Grand played a pivotal role in introducing Notorious B.I.G to the world. In addition to being Notorious B.I.G’s first DJ, he also helped create the Brooklyn native’s first demo tape. He also handed the demo tape Big Daddy Kane’s DJ, Mister Cee, who distributed it to Matteo “Matty C” Capuloungo of The Source Magazine.
“I was 21; he was 15. I met him through a friend of mine. They hustled together on [the intersection of] Bedford and Quincy. People in the neighborhood knew him as the hottest rapper around. Everybody that stepped in his path, he ate ’em up,” 50 Grand told The Fader about Notorious B.I.G
“He earned that stripe from that one battle he had on Bedford and Quincy. I was the one that was playing the music.” In a recent conversation, he expounded, “I took [Biggie] straight to the basement. We smoked. We drank,” Griffin told Tinsley. “And ’bout an hour later we came out with that demo.”
