big l ArchivesAmbrosia For Heads

Street Justice For Rap Artists Continues With Young Dolph

Last week (June 14), a man deemed a "person of interest" related to Young Dolph's 2021 murder was found dead in the Orange Mound section of Memphis, Tennessee. The body of Joshua Taylor was discovered Wednesday afternoon in an automobile at Spottswood Avenue near Buntyn Street. Responders say the victim... Read more

June 19, 2023 Fresh, News

The Best & Worst Posthumous Rap Albums Of All Time

Last week (April 26), during a concert at Los Angeles, California's El Rey Theater, Tyler, The Creator told his hometown crowd about a very significant provision in his will. “Some of these [songs] are so good I can’t just let ’em sit on my hard drive,” Tyler told the crowd... Read more

May 2, 2023 Video

See Portraits Of Biggie, J. Dilla, Phife & More If They’d Lived To Grow Old

More than with any other genre, Rap artists seem to perish far too young. While that has disproportionately been driven by altercations that could have been resolved differently, there have also been a number of MCs who have succumbed to other fates. Phife Dawg, from A Tribe Called Quest, succumbed... Read more

November 17, 2022 Video

Joey Bada$$ Calls Out MCs Who Perpetuate Genocide In A Powerful Performance

There have been at least 59 Rap artists who have died from gun violence. That's more than one per year for a Hip-Hop genre which is less than 50 years old. Last night (October 4) at the 2022 BET Hip Hop Awards, during the performance of the night, Joey Bada$$... Read more

October 5, 2022 TV, TV/Film, Video

Big L Gets Harlem Street Named In His Honor

Forty-eight years ago this month (May 30, 1974), Lamont Coleman was born. By the 1990s, known as Big L, Coleman became one of Hip-Hop's more respected lyricists, thanks to appearances on Stretch Armstrong and Bobbito's radio show freestyles, feature work, and his 1995 Columbia/Sony Records debut, Lifestylez ov da Poor... Read more

May 28, 2022 News

DMX’s New Album Features Nas, JAY-Z, Griselda & More. Here’s The Tracklist

UPDATE: Swizz Beatz has released the full tracklist for DMX's Exodus album, which will be released on May 28, and it is even more star-studded than previously reported. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Swizz Beatz (@therealswizzz) Here is the full tracklist: 1. “That’s My Dog” feat.... Read more

May 11, 2021 Video

T Dot Eric Recalls Documenting The 1995 Source Awards Clash From The Front Row

Photographer T Dot Eric has taken some of the pictures that have defined how Hip-Hop thinks of its heroes. His work includes legendary flicks of Nas, A Tribe Called Quest, Wu-Tang Clan, Big L, D'Angelo, Lauryn Hill, Gang Starr, De La Soul, and Black Star—only to name a few. T.... Read more

March 30, 2021 Video

Pete Rock’s Video For His Instrumentals Album Speaks Much Louder Than Words

In his accomplished career, legendary producer Pete Rock has crafted some of the most renowned tracks in the history of Hip-Hop music. Over three decades, his resume is replete with classic works with C.L. Smooth, Heavy D & The Boyz, Redman, Run-D.M.C., Nas, AZ, Common, Rakim, Raekwon, the late Big... Read more

July 3, 2019 TV/Film, Video

DJ Premier Recalls Nas & Big L Signing Their Record Deals Together (Video)

DJ Premier has been a part of many albums that are considered classics by Heads. However, few can equal the importance of Nas’ 1994 debut Illmatic. Mass Appeal recently launched a new video series where producers behind this magnum opus detail its creation and importance, leading up to the LP’s... Read more

April 18, 2019 Throwback, Video

20 Years After Big L’s Passing, This Rarity Showcases The Man Behind The Punchlines

Twenty years ago today (February 15, 1999) Big L was fatally shot just steps from his childhood home at 45 West 139th Street in Harlem. It was the block he prophetically deemed the "The Danger Zone" in his early songs. On that fateful Monday night, Lamont Coleman was struck nine... Read more

February 15, 2019 Throwback

Jonah Hill’s Top 5 MCs Shows He’s A True ’90s Hip-Hop Head (Video)

Jonah Hill is an Oscar-nominated actor whose career in film almost began behind the camera. Instead, appearances in comedies like Superbad, Forgetting Sarah Marshall, and Pineapple Express blazed a path that led him to become one of his generation's most sought-after comedic actors. Turns in dramatic roles for Moneyball and The Wolf Of Wall... Read more

October 18, 2018 TV/Film, Video

Ski Beatz Admits To Throwing Away An Entire Pre-Reasonable Doubt JAY-Z Album & Big L Music

Hip-Hop lore often provides Heads with stories of triumph, classic moments, and past situations that, at the time, those involved didn't know how legendary they'd be. Sometimes though, disheartening news will emerge when the greats do recall their musical past. RZA's studio was flooded multiple times, which caused the creation... Read more

August 14, 2018 News, Throwback, Throwback

Ma$e Explains Why He Dissed Cam’ron & Says He Beat Him By A “Landslide” (Video)

On Black Friday (November 24), Ma$e tried to put the lights out on Cam'ron. The former Bad Boy Records superstar and onetime G-Unit artist laid into his past collaborator and Children Of The Corn band-mate for four minutes straight on "The Oracle." His diss used JAY-Z's "Blueprint 2" instrumental (produced... Read more

November 27, 2017 Video

Cam’ron Replies To Ma$e’s Disses Point For Point. He’s Serving Beef Raw For Dinner (Audio)

It has been less than 48 hours since Ma$e took his beef with Cam'ron to the next level. Friday's (November 24) "The Oracle" found "Murda Ma$e" dissing his former Children Of The Corn band-mate and longtime collaborator "Killa Cam" for four straight minutes, and accusing the fellow Harlem native of... Read more

November 25, 2017 Audio

Ma$e Disses Cam’ron For 4 Straight Minutes & He Gets Absolutely Savage (Audio)

Twenty years ago, Ma$e and Cam'ron were band-mates in Children Of The Corn. Both artists are from neighboring blocks in Harlem, and also played basketball together in their youth. As New York's Rap community found new stars by the late 1990s, each MC signed major solo deals. In fall of... Read more

November 24, 2017 Audio

Diamond D’s “Stunts, Blunts & Hip Hop” Is A Hip-Hop Classic That Still Burns Strong

Today (September 22) marks 25 years since the release of Diamond D's landmark debut album Stunts, Blunts & Hip Hop. In this era when the MC/producers like J. Cole, Kanye West, and Logic are celebrated among music's biggest stars, this silver anniversary is significant to their career as commercially viable artists transcending... Read more

September 22, 2017 Food for Thought, Throwback

Big L’s First Verse On Wax Showed Heads That He Was A Rookie MVP (Audio)

Big L lived to see just one of his albums release. 1995's Lifestylez ov da Poor & Dangerous has become something of a cult classic. The Columbia/Sony Records LP has early JAY-Z and Cam'ron appearances and lethal D.I.T.C. production from Lord Finesse, Showbiz, as well as Buckwild. However, all of... Read more

September 7, 2017 Do Remember

On Big L’s 43rd Birthday, This Freestyle Shows Why His Rhymes Are Immortal (Video)

May 30 marks the birthday of Lamont "Big L" Coleman. The Harlem, New Yorker was born 43 years ago today. While he died more than 18 years ago, at a time when many believe his career was reaching its next level, the member of D.I.T.C. and Children Of The Corn... Read more

May 30, 2017 Throwback

Showbiz Keeps It 100 About The Emotions That Got In The Way Of D.I.T.C. Business (Video)

The Diggin' In The Crates collective released their first album in more than 15 years in 2016. While Big L died in February of 1999, surviving members Lord Finesse, Showbiz, A.G., Diamond D, O.C. Fat Joe, and Buckwild came together for a reunion album in celebration of the group's Bronx,... Read more

May 24, 2017 Video

O.C. Tells The Heartbreaking Story Of How He Learned Of Big L’s Death (Video)

O.C. recently released his album Same Moon Same Sun. Available without cost for download, the D.I.T.C. Entertainment LP is the latest in a career that spans back more than 25 years. The Brooklyn, New York representative has been a key MC within Diggin' In The Crates, and made important records... Read more

February 24, 2017 Video

Finding The GOAT Producer: Pete Rock vs. D.I.T.C. Who Is Better?

“Finding the GOAT Producer," the third installment of Ambrosia For Heads’s annual battle series features Hip-Hop’s greatest producers vying for the #1 spot. Thirty producers were pre-selected by a panel of experts, and two slots will be reserved for wild-card entries, including the possibility for write-in candidates, to ensure no... Read more

February 8, 2017 Finding the GOAT

Finding The GOAT Producer: The Bomb Squad vs. DITC. Who Is Better?

“Finding the GOAT Producer” begins. The third installment of Ambrosia For Heads’s annual battle series features Hip-Hop’s greatest producers vying for the #1 spot. Thirty producers were pre-selected by a panel of experts, and two slots will be reserved for wild-card entries, including the possibility for write-in candidates, to ensure no deserving... Read more

January 24, 2017 Finding the GOAT

Finding The GOAT Producer: DJ Premier vs. Large Professor. Who Is Better? (Audio)

“Finding the GOAT Producer” begins. The third installment of Ambrosia For Heads' annual battle series features Hip-Hop’s greatest producers vying for the #1 spot. Thirty producers were pre-selected by a panel of experts, and 2 slots will be reserved for wild-card entries, including the possibility for write-in candidates, to insure no deserving... Read more

January 9, 2017 Finding the GOAT

This 1998 Track By Big L, Ma$e & McGruff Is “Dangerous” To Overlook (Audio)

The corner of 139th Street and Lenox Avenue in Harlem, New York has been immortalized through song several times by the late, great Big L—and also falls on the same block where the “Street Struck” MC tragically lost his life in '99. Affectionately called the “Danger Zone,” the area was... Read more

December 3, 2016 Throwback

Cam’ron Talks Jim Jones Beef For The Last Time. He Says Dipset Is “Over” (Video)

Hip-Hop is in a climate of reunions. A Tribe Called Quest shocked the music world last month with a secretly recorded album, their first in 18 years. After more than 20 years away from album-making, Pete Rock & C.L. have confirmed an LP for 2017. The L.O.X. have inked a... Read more

December 2, 2016 Video

Wu-Tang Meets D.I.T.C. Two Legendary Crews Ain’t Nuthin’ To Mash Up (Audio)

Ever go Diggin’ In The Crates for some Wu-Tang? On this ambitious mashup of two legendary New York crews who both emerged at the onset of the 1990s, Memory Man shows us what would happen if you took members of the Wu-Tang Clan and D.I.T.C. and threw their styles in... Read more

November 8, 2016 Audio, Throwback

D.I.T.C. Goes Diggin’ In The Crates For Rare Photos & Footage (Video)

The Diggin' In The Crates crew has released its second completely crew-inclusive album in 16 years. That LP, D.I.T.C. Studios celebrates the newly-opened Bronx, New York recording studio where Showbiz, Lord Finesse, and Buckwild regularly craft dusty tracks. Also home to O.C., A.G., Diamond D, and Fat Joe, the legendary... Read more

June 20, 2016 Video

Ever See This Cypher Featuring Big L & AG? (Video)

In the late 90s, one of the first Internet Hip-Hop shows came courtesy of 88hiphop.com. The site was far ahead of its time, as it launched when the overwhelming majority of consumers still had dial up modems. For those with the access and the patience to endure endless buffering, however,... Read more

June 4, 2016 Throwback

Showbiz Recounts The Trauma Of Seeing Big L Moments After He Was Killed

Big L would make one of his first album appearances care of 1992's "Represent" on Showbiz & A.G.'s Runaway Slave album. Appearing alongside Show, A.G., Deshawn, and mentor Lord Finesse, Lamont Coleman proved to be an unsigned, teenage MC with great promise. Three years later, on Big L's 1995 debut... Read more

May 11, 2016 Throwback

Kareem “Biggs” Burke Reveals Roc-A-Fella Secrets Regarding Big L, Scarface & Ma$e

Roc-A-Fella Records' 1990s and early 2000s' reign is credited to three businessmen. While Jay Z has become one of, if not the biggest artists in Hip-Hop history, Dame Dash is one of the highest profile Rap executives. Third owner of the original Roc, Kareem "Biggs" Burke was (and remains) less in... Read more

April 9, 2016 Audio

Miilkbone Kept It Real With Something Big L, Jay Z & Logic Could Feel (Video)

Perth Amboy, New Jersey's claim to Hip-Hop fame lies in Miilkbone. Fans of 1990s Hip-Hop may recall the Naughty By Nature affiliate for his Capitol Records debut, Da' Miilkrate. With production by N.B.N.'s KayGee as well as Nick Wiz (Cella Dwellas, Rakim, Skillz), the major label album struck the Rap... Read more

March 31, 2016 Do Remember

O.C. & AG Embrace Their Years Of Experience & Say They Are Only Getting Better (Audio)

Hip-Hop has not been good to its legends. Instead of being celebrated, artists who helped build the culture are often relegated to the background or cloaked in backhand terms like "Old School." The practice of ageism has been ingrained in the culture from its earliest days, and continues even though... Read more

March 28, 2016 Audio

Relive The Game-Changing Moments & Freestyles Of Stretch & Bobbito’s Show (Audio)

Yesterday (October 25) marked an even 25 years since DJ Stretch Armstrong and Bobbito The Barber first took airwaves together. Beginning on that date in 1990, their Columbia University WKCR radio show would eventually change the sound and faces of Hip-Hop, thanks to major introductions of talent–including Nas, Big L... Read more

October 26, 2015 Mixes

The Numbers Show Police Don’t Care About Dead Rappers

For millennia, mankind has been at war. Whether in the name of religion, territory, love, greed, revenge, or duty, human casualties have remained constant throughout civilization, and as society is said to progress, murder remains a dark spot on our collective report card. For many Americans, particularly those of color,... Read more

October 16, 2015 Lifestyle

Travel Back To Big L, Cam’ron & Ma$e Freestyling on Stretch & Bobbito in 1996 (Audio)

The Children Of The Corn is a group shrouded in mystery. The Harlem, New York collective included four would-be major label lyricists in Big L, Ma$e, McGruff, and Cam'ron. However, many fans of those individuals are unfamiliar with the group that also included producer Digga (Jay Z, 50 Cent, Shyheim)... Read more

July 16, 2015 Throwback

Cannibal Ox Make A Rare Visual…In Front Of Big L’s Harlem Mural (Video)

Part of Cannibal Ox's mystique surrounding The Cold Vein came in the fact that its presentation relied almost entirely on the music. Vast Aire, Vordul Mega, and then-producer El-P were not about the video components (just one, really), photo shoots, and over-the-top interviews. The Def Jux hallmark spoke for itself, and... Read more

July 8, 2015 Video

Stretch & Bobbito’s Highlight Reel Features Slick Rick, Big L & Mobb Deep (Mix)

Throughout the 1990s, Stretch Armstrong & Bobbito The Barber created a radio program that may as well have been the farm club to the Rap hall of fame. These two New York City DJs honored Hip-Hop 12" singles of the day, while welcoming would-be stars like Nas, Mobb Deep, Pharoahe... Read more

June 30, 2015 Throwback

Celebrate the Life and Legacy of Big L with This Lord Sear Tribute Mix (Audio)

Big L Rest in Peace...Sixteen years ago today (February 15, 1999), the world lost a true lyricist in Lamont "Big L" Coleman. The Harlem, New York native, with just a lone album under his belt, was in the process of what many Heads believe, was a push to the top,... Read more

February 15, 2015 Throwback

O.C. May Be One Of The Only Artists Who Can Claim To Have Received A Free Jay Z Feature

D.I.T.C. MC O.C. has several championed releases, stemming from his 1994 Wild Pitch Records debut, Word...Life, his 1997 Payday follow-up, Jewelz, his near-bootleg release Starchild, to his Apollo Brown tandem, Trophies. 2001's Bon Appetit is not one of O's more celebrated works, though the Brooklyn, New Yorker maintains it's the... Read more

January 25, 2015 Throwback

Ever See These Big L, O.C. and Lord Finesse Freestyles? Get Down with D.I.T.C. (Video)

D.I.T.C. The name stood for Diggin' in the Crates, in part because of the membership of acclaimed producers like Diamond D, Showbiz and Buckwild, but make no mistake, the crew was also about those BARS. Here's a look back at some vintage interviews of Big L and Lord Finesse, two... Read more

January 24, 2015 Throwback

Finding The GOAT (Round 2): Nas vs. Big L…Who You Got?

We have reached the second round in the ultimate battle for the title of the GOAT (Greatest of All-Time). We are asking you to help us rank who is the greatest MC to pick up a mic. We will take over 35 years of Hip-Hop into consideration, pairing special match-ups... Read more

January 19, 2015 Throwback

The End Of An Era For Hardcore Hip-Hop…DJ Premier’s Studio Closes Its Doors Today

Nas' Illmatic recorded there. The Notorious B.I.G.'s Ready To Die recorded there. Jay-Z's Reasonable Doubt recorded there. And nearly every song by Gang Starr, in addition to every track produced by DJ Premier since 1992 was recorded there. Today, on January 7, 2015, Premo announced that D&D Studios a/k/a HeadQCourterz... Read more

January 7, 2015 Fresh

Finding The GOAT: Big L vs. Fat Joe…Who You Got?

As we continue the ultimate battle for the title of the GOAT (Greatest of All-Time), we are asking you to help us rank who is the greatest MC to pick up a mic. We will take over 35 years of Hip-Hop into consideration, pairing special match-ups in a sequence not... Read more

November 3, 2014 Fresh, Throwback

Ma$e, Puff Daddy, Jadakiss, Cam’ron & D-Dot Recall Making Feels So Good (Video)

Seventeen years ago this week, Bad Boy Records released "Feels So Good," the Kool & The Gang-sampling lead single from Harlem World which was a critical break for Ma$e. In Complex's "Magnum Opus" series, Ma$e is joined by the song's producers, Sean "Puff Daddy" Combs and Deric "D-Dot" Angelettie, in... Read more

October 16, 2014 Fresh, Throwback

Celebrate A Humble Genius, With A 3-Hour 1989-1999 Large Professor Mix (Audio)

Like many great artists, Large Professor is somewhat of a Hip-Hop recluse. He's never hard to find (especially if you're a Head who regularly attends NYC Rap concerts), but the man also known as "Extra P" is quick to dodge the spotlight, and take long breaks from releasing (or even... Read more

June 22, 2014 Audio, Throwback

Digga, The Producer Responsible For Cam’ron’s Earliest Hits & Children Of The Corn, Plays Rhythm Roulette (Video)

Although Cam'ron's music is commonly associated with the Roc-A-Fella Records-era sounds of Just Blaze, Kanye West, and The Heatmakerz, he came into vogue under the musical guidance of Darrell "Digga" Branch. The fellow Harlem native was the sound-source for Children Of The Corn, an early '90s group which included Big... Read more

June 1, 2014 Fresh, Video

Watch Big L & Big Pun in a Never Before Released Cypher (Video)

Yesterday (5/30) would have been Big L's 40th birthday. To celebrate the fallen MC's life and legacy, Complex premiered never before released footage of Big L in the studio dropping a verse AND a previously unreleased cypher that included L, Charlie Hustle and Big Pun. Check out both videos below.... Read more

May 31, 2014 Throwback

Get The Story Of Lord Finesse Discovering Big L In A Record Store (Audio)

D.I.T.C.'s history is the kind of tales that legends are made of. From Diamond D discovering a young Fat Joe in the Bronx, "in Forest, across from Morris," and putting him on Ultimate Force's demo, to Afrika Bambaataa's right-hand-man DJ Jazzy Jay taking Lord Finesse, Diamond, and Showbiz under his... Read more

May 13, 2014 Audio, Fresh, Throwback

Buckwild Puts An Epic Spin On Big L’s Casualties Of A Dice Game (Audio)

D.I.T.C. were one of the dopest yet most unheralded crews of the 90's. The clique, which consisted of Showbiz & AG, Diamond D, Big L, Lord Finesse, Fat Joe, O.C. and Buckwild, influenced the sound of an entire coast and generation in that era and for decades to come. They... Read more

May 3, 2014 Audio

Bink Remixes Big L & Fat Joe’s Historic D.I.T.C. Moment Together (Audio)

Philadelphia native producer Bink is known for producing joints for nearly 20 years, including Jay Z's "Blueprint (Momma Loves Me)," Mr. Cheeks' "Lights, Camera, Action," and Kanye West's "Devil In A New Dress." The onetime Roc-A-Fella affiliate now takes a hand at D.I.T.C.'s "Da Enemy." The late '90s track was... Read more

April 29, 2014 Audio, Fresh, Throwback