Block of Biggie (Pt. 3): Retracing Biggie’s Last Moments (Video)

As I mentioned in part 1 of our Block of Biggie, it just so happens that I live only a few blocks away from Farifax and Wilshire, the intersection where Biggie was shot and killed on March 9, 1997. With that in mind, I thought we'd take a closer look at the intersection that changed hip-hop forever, a landmark location that has absolutely no memorial of any kind. I guess Biggie would have enjoyed the Johnny Rocket's restaurant that's now being built, but it hardly feels like a proper tribute to the greatest rapper of all time. Anyway, he's three different looks at the location of Biggie's murder that should help make his slaying a little more real.

First, the facts.

"In the early morning hours of March 9, 1997, the Notorious B.I.G. was leaving a party at the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles, thrown by Vibe magazine in celebration of the Soul Train Music Awards. He sat in the passenger side of his SUV, with his bodyguard in the driver's seat and Junior M.A.F.I.A. member Lil' Cease in the back. According to most witnesses, another vehicle pulled up on the right side of the SUV while it was stopped at a red light, and six to ten shots were fired. Biggie's bodyguard rushed him to the nearby Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, but it was already too late." (All Music)

First, here's the shooting scene from "Notorious", the recent Biggie bio-pic. The video was shot on location and, other than the melodramatic picture of Biggie's hat in the intersection, holds pretty true to what really happened, so it should do a pretty good job of setting the stage.


Second, here's some live footage of the shooting taken by some other party goers. Unfortunately the moments directly leading up to the shooting weren't captured, but this is the best available footage of Biggie's exit of the Peterson Automotive Museum and the shooting itself.


And last and certainly least, I took a walk down to the intersection to give you an idea of what that intersection looks like in the daylight. And yes, I'm aware I'm not exactly the James Earl Jones of narrators (there's a reason I'm a writer), but I still think it helps to see the scene like this.


In the end we should be focusing on Biggie's life and life's work, not his death, but the man's become so iconic that I think we sometimes forget he was an actual person, a person who was the victim of a very real and very violent murder. Passing this intersection reminds me to appreciate everything he gave hip-hop. Hopefully this will do the same for you.