One Of The Biggest Hip Hop “What Ifs” Ever Just Popped Up, As We Finally Have Confirmation That Big L Was Indeed 3 Days Away From Signing To Roc-A-Fella Records Before Being Murdered.

Raymond Boyd. Getty Images.

I saw this on our guy Andrew Barber's timeline last night (a must-follow for any hip-hop head) and went and found the voicemail on a Big L Instagram fan page.

To say the least, my mind was blown.

Holy shit man. 

Say what you want about Damon Dash, but that guy amassed THE fucking dream team of rap talent back in the 2000's.

Obviously Jay-Z first and foremost but don't sleep on the rest.

Memphis Bleek
Beanie Siegel
Cam'ron and The Diplomats
Freeway
Young Gunz
Jadakiss
DJ Clue?

And of course, Kanye West.

Imagine adding Big L to that roster.

Big L, at the height of his powers, was arguably the best rapper in NYC. And we're talking about a time where Biggie Smalls. Nas, KRS-One, and Jay-Z were around.

DJ Premier called him the best rapper he'd ever seen or heard. Which is basically like having Red Auerbach say you're the best basketball player he'd ever seen.

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He came on the scene at the young age of 17. The protege of another Harlem rapper, Lord Finesse, who realized he had discovered "the next big thing", and took the young Lamont Coleman under his wing. 

His friends and contemporaries were all in awe of his talent. His unique wordplay. The way he put words together. The way he could take any topic, and put together coherent verses, framing an entire scene or narrative, for bars and bars, stringing them together while setting up and weaving in punchlines you swore he had written down months ago.

(Listen to him trounce Jay-Z on this famous 7 minute freestyle)

Funkmaster Flex famously said:

"People can get mad at me for saying this, but he was the best lyricist at the time. He was a better lyricist than Biggie and Jay-Z. He just didn’t have the marketing and promotion. Let me go on the record and say that. It’s the truth."

And he was right.

He was only 24 years old when he was shot and killed in front of his home in Harlem. Now we find out, 3 days before he was set to sign, and announce, he was part of Roc-A-Fella.

With the power of Roc-A-Fella behind him, there's no telling how big Big L could have and would have become.

Can you imagine him on one of Kanye's beats?

Imagine him and Jay-Z on each other's features? 

One of the biggest "what ifs" for me personally in regards to hip hop is how different history would be had Biggie not been murdered in LA. Not just for in terms of what it would have meant for his career to have had more longevity, and his legacy. Hell, he could still be around today running shit for all we know. But in terms of the door it opened, and void it left, enabling Jay-Z to step up and essentially "take the crown". Imagine if Jay-Z never had that opportunity? How different shit would be.

Now you can throw the Big L mystery into the mix and wonder how that would have affected and changed everything. 

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Big L Rest In peace