In a special year-end issue of RollingStone, the iconic magazine ranks the 50 greatest hip hop songs of all time, while commemorating the list with four appropriately powerful covers featuring Eminem, Biggie, Jay-Z, & 2Pac.
As for the list, well, I first off don't get too caught up in rankings or lists. They're fun, especially when you're searching for that suggestion or opinion, but just don't take it too seriously. RollingStone's top 10 is a clear ode to the first big hip hop songs, which I was happy to see. Each of the 50 songs can be viewed online here and it's a fun read for more than just to see what song is where. There is a cool anecdote per song, like that of "Lose Yourself" below.
Eminem's biggest-ever hit plays like Rocky condensed into a five-minute song. It helped that in telling the story of Rabbit – the trailer-dwelling aspiring rapper he played in 8 Mile – Eminem was more or less telling his own, sidestepping demented clowning and pure rage in favor of tough, realist rhymes about overcoming very long odds. Em cut the song during a brief break from filming. "He came in and laid down all three verses in one take," recalled engineer Steven King. "Jaws dropped – we were like, 'Oh, my God!' This story had been building up in him."
Wow. One take?! That made me like my #1 song even more (which I previously thought impossible).
In some interesting news this morning, TMZ obtained a copy of the previously never public autopsy report for the late Notorious B.I.G. His murder 15 years ago in Los Angeles remains unsolved.
The report, listed and seen below, details the four bullet wounds, and the one that ultimately caused his passing.
Kind of glum to read today, but it is interesting to get a clear picture of the driveby shooting.
The report states that 24 year old Wallace was shot 4 times while riding in the passenger seat of a Chevy Suburban on on Wilshire Blvd. According to the report, 3 of the 4 shots were not fatal.
Gunshot #1 – struck Wallace in the left forearm and traveled down to his wrist.
Gunshot #2 – struck Wallace in the back, missed all vital organs, and exited through his left shoulder.
Gunshot #3 – struck Wallace on his outer left thigh and exited through his inner left thigh. The the projectile then struck the left side of the scrotum, causing a very shallow, 3/8 inch linear laceration.
Gunshot #4 – entered Wallace’s body through his right hip and ripped its way through several vital organs before coming to rest in his left shoulder area.
Gunshot #4 was the fatal bullet. According to the report, the bullet perforated Wallace’s colon, liver, heart and the upper lobe of his left lung. Wallace was then rushed to Cedars-Sinai Hospital and pronounced dead at 1:15 AM.
