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We had bunk beds and Lamont's bed had the pull-out joint. The whole block shut down!ĭon: We grew up in a two-bedroom apartment. You go back to the block parties with Pinky . Then we started goin' to Florida, Walt Disney. She started going to Great Adventure with the kids from the block. She’d get the food, cook, everybody’d come out. But in the early years and then the later years she was a church-going woman.ĭon: She was the best! She was the president of the tenants' association and the block parties was on after that. Lord Finesse: His mom was a number-runner. We all shared the same room and we would all watch over him, cause he was the little one.īig L's aunt Gilda "Pinky" Terry, who raised him as her own son. I was the oldest, then Leroy, and L was the baby. And every little thing he do or every little thing he don’t do, he used to get on my nerves. That’s how he got the name 'Mont Mont,’ cause he was a chubby little thing.
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GROWING UP ON THE BLOCKĭon: Lamont was a fat little boy. Three-year-old Lamont (center) at home with his brothers Donald and Leroy. Kurt Woodley - Former A&R, Columbia Records Ron Browz - Producer, Flamboyant Entertainmentīobbito “Kool Bob Love” Garcia - Co-Host, The Stretch Armstrong & Bobbito Showĭamon Dash - Co-founder, Roc-A-Fella Recordsįaith Newman - Former A&R, Columbia Records
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Rich King - Flamboyant Entertainment Co-Founder Lord Finesse - Mentor and D.I.T.C Affiliate
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“Jewlz” Farrar - Close Family Friend and Big L Documentarian L’s oldest brother, Donald Phinazee, granted us a glimpse inside the rhyme book of the self-proclaimed “most valuable poet on the M.I.C.” And partners in rhyme like Lord Finesse and Fat Joe of the Diggin In The Crates crew opened up to share stories that they've never told before. In the famous words of DJ Premier, “Big L, Rest in Peace!” “Jewlz” Farer, director of the forthcoming documentary, Street Struck: The Big L Story, shared some exclusive photos and videos. To commemorate L’s short but impactful life, Complex spoke with the select few who knew him best to get to know the man behind the myth. While many hip-hop fans are well versed in the late MC's small discography, they are largely unfamiliar with Lamont Coleman himself. That’s about to change. and Lenox Ave, a block he famously dubbed, “The Danger Zone.” Unlike many who came up on that block, Lamont Coleman used his talents to travel the world and achieve a kind of immortality through his art. He didn't live to celebrate this milestone because he was murdered in an unsolved shooting on the very same block that raised him, 139th St. This past Friday marked what would have been the 40th birthday of Lamont “Big L” Coleman. But of course the music only tells part of the story. Yet on the strength of these recordings he is consistently mentioned among the greatest of the greats. During his 24-plus years on earth, the Harlem rap prodigy left behind a painfully small body of work: just one album, a handful of singles and freestyles. If L comes up as an afterthought, it's not for lack of skills. You've got your living legends-Jay Z, Nas, Eminem, Cube-and your fallen heroes-Biggie, 2Pac, Big Pun, and almost always at the end, Big L. Who was the greatest rapper of all time? When the never-ending debate resumes-from barber shops and street corners to online chat rooms-the same litany of names comes up again and again. “Take some Big and some ’Pac/And you mix ’em up in a pot/Sprinkle a lil’ Big L on top/What the fuck do you got?” -Eminem, “Patiently Waiting” I think he had the ability to write big records and big choruses.” - Jay Z I was like there’s no way I can compete if this is what I gotta compete with.” - Nas When I heard that on tape, I was scared to death. “5 slash 3-0 slash 7-4 a lil bro was born with the mind of a psycho” -Big L, “Devil’s Son” In honor of what should have been Lamont Coleman's 40th Birthday, Complex explores one of hip-hop's greatest unfinished legends, Lamont "Big L" Coleman.