Big L

Lamont Coleman (30 May 1974 – 15 February 1999) was an American rapper, songwriter and record producer better known by his stage name, Big L.

Henry Adaso from About.com ranked him #23 of the "Top 50 Greatest MCs of Our Time (1987 - 2007)" and said the "[he was] one of the most auspicious storytellers in hip hop history." Coleman was also called "the most underrated lyricist ever" by HipHopDX.

Murder
On 15 February 1999, Big L was murdered at 45 West 139th Street after being shot nine times in the face and chest in a drive-by shooting at the age of 24. Gerard Woodley, his childhood friend, was arrested for the shooting.

A spokesperson for the New York City Police Department said that "It's a good possibility it was retaliation for something [Big L's] brother did, or [Woodley] believed he had done". Woodley was later released and the murder is still unsolved.

Discography
Studio albums
 Lifestylez ov da Poor & Dangerous (1995)
 The Big Picture (2000)
 139 & Lenox (2010)*
 Return of the Devil's Son (2010)*
 The Danger Zone (2011)*

Compilation albums
 Live from Amsterdam (2000)
 Harlem's Finest – A Freestyle History (2003)
 Big L: The Archives 1996–2000 (2006)

Collaboration albums
 D.I.T.C. (2000)*

*Album was released posthumously.

References

Other websites


Category:1974 births
Category:1999 deaths
Category:20th-century American rappers
Category:20th-century American singers
Category:American singer-songwriters
Category:African-American musicians
Category:Rappers from New York (state)
Category:Musicians from Manhattan
Category:People from Harlem
Category:American hip hop record producers
Category:American hip hop singers
Category:Murdered African-American people
Category:Murdered musicians
Category:Murders by firearm in New York (state)
Category:People murdered in New York (state)
Category:Singers from New York City
Category:Unsolved murders in the United States
Category:1990s music groups
Category:2000s music groups
Category:American people convicted of assault
Category:Assassinated American people
Category:Columbia University alumni
Category:Pseudonyms
Category:Gangsta rappers