By John Sutherlin
Ready To Die is Biggie’s first studio album and the only album to be released during his lifetime. Lets first get into the history of the album. The album was released on September 13, 1994 after it was discovered by a DJ named Master Cee. The tape was brought to Sean Combs aka Puff Daddy. Puffy listened to the tape and instantly knew Biggie was something special so he signed him to his up and coming record label “Bad Boy Records.” After being signed Biggie finished the album and changed the original name wich was “Telfon Don” to “Ready To Die.” in its first week of being released it sold 57,000 copies and eventually reached 4 million copies sold. It reached number 15 on the billboard hot 100 and went platinum which instantly shot his fame into the stratosphere. Today its remembered as one of the best debut albums of all time and is considered one of the best albums of all time frequently appearing in top 100 albums of all time lists.
Now that we’re done with the history, it’s time to get to the rating. We will rate every song out of 10 and will rate the album out of 10. The album has a total of 17 tracks, 19 if you include all the interludes or intros (which we will not.)
Let’s start with track 1: “Things Done Changed” 3:59. Things done changed was a nice start to the album. Its gritty beat and lyrics are a perfect opening to the album. In this song Biggie raps about how things used to be in the 1980s. 8/10.
Track 2: “Gimme The Loot” 4:46. Gimme the loot was an incredible 2nd track and improves upon the already amazing word play that Biggie is known for. The song tells the tale of 2 men who rob a shop and end up getting in a shootout with the cops. 10/10.
Track 3: “Machine Gun Funk” 4:16. This song was a decent follow up to gimme the loot but was ultimately not as good. The song seems to be set after the robbery in gimme the loot and talks about what he does with his money. 7/10.
Track 4: “Warning” 3:40. This song continues the storyline that was set up from gimme the loot and is about the man who robbed a store learning that he has a hit out on him for his money. 9/10.
Track 5: “Ready To Die” 4:25. This song was another good follow up and tells the aftermath of Warning. It showcases that the character has changed as a person who no longer fears death. 10/10.
Track 6: “One More Chance” 4:43. One more chance was an interesting track. It seems to be about Biggie’s charisma and how he talks to women but it doesn’t seem to connect to the tracks which had a storyline. The song does suggest that he may have gone into hiding after the events of Warning. 7/10.
Track 7: “The What” 3:58. This song seems to be completely unconnected to the previous storyline. It looks like this track was meant to showcase how well Biggie can work with other rappers as the track features Method Man and Johnny Blaze all things considered the album gets 6/10.
Track 8: “Juicy” 5:03. Juicy is possibly the best track on this whole album. The song continues the trend of no storyline and instead is about Biggie himself and the fame he got from signing to Bad Boy Records.10/10.
Track 9: “Everyday Struggle” 5:19. This song seems to be about Biggie’s mental health problems as he talks about life and the possibility of death giving the song. 9/10.
Track 10: “Me And My Girl” 4:01. This song is about Biggie finding a girl who he falls for. 8/10.
Track 11: “Big Poppa” 4:13. Big Poppa is probably the most iconic song on this album. It has been used in movies, tv shows and even video games. This song talks about Biggie’s charisma again and his relationship with women. 10/10.
Track 12: “Respect” 5:21. This track seems to be about the respect Biggie has earned through his various ventures and the other people who deserve. 8/10.
Track 13: “Friend Of Mine” 3:29. Friend of mine is a decent track. It seems to be about Biggie’s relationship with different women which is a common theme in some of his songs. 7/10.
Track 14: “Unbelievable” 3:43. This song is about how unbelievable Biggie’s talent is at rapping. It showcases yet another good song by Big. 7/10.
Track 15: “Suicidal Thoughts” 2:50. This song was another one about Biggie’s mental health. In this song he explains how he thinks he’s a horrible person and should die. 10/10.
Track 16: “Who Shot Ya?” 5:20. This song has a crazy history. On November 30th, 1994, fellow rapper 2pac was walking into Biggies recording studio to hop on a song with him. But instead he was jumped in the lobby by robbers and was shot 5 times. Tupac survived the shooting and went on to blame Biggie and suspect that Biggie wanted him dead. Biggie feeling betrayed decided to write this iconic diss track that led to the biggest rap beef of all time. 10/10.
Track 17: “Just Playing (Dreams)” 2:44. This song talks about a girl who Biggie falls in love with and has dreams of. 7/10.
Overall this album was a joy to listen to. I have been a Biggie fan for years at this point but I usually just looked at his music and dismissed it as party music. But after listening to the full album Ready To Die, my thoughts have changed and I have realized that Biggie is a true poet. The early storyline that stretched across 5 songs was amazing. And yes there were some low points but for the most part this album was amazing and should be considered not only one of the best rap albums of all time but maybe even one of the best albums period. I’m going to give it a 9/10. Rip Biggie 1972-1997.
