It was all a Dream

5 Life- Lessons from the late great Notorious B.I.G.

Looking back on the short life of the Notorious B.I.G. I am often reminded of the influence he held in my life. He was an incredible gift from God and Angel for his generation. His words carried me through some of my darkest days as a teenager. I was raised in Kentucky and yet his Brooklyn moniker spoke to my situation thousands of miles away.

I did not idolize Biggie or anything like that I just resonated with his message. It’s a real fight to overcome our struggles to make it in America as Black Men. It’s a true uphill battle. I think sometimes people forget just how hungry black men are when it comes to taking care of our communities.

In every generation the black community is given a unique voice that speaks to pain, struggle, future, and promise of a people. Biggie spoke to the cultural expression of black men the world over. Biggie spoke of this social metamorphosis that must take place in the creative mind of an artist. As a creative artist you must frame your world according to the vision that God has placed down in you.

You want to make money? Then, reframe the narrative of what it means to generate, circulate, and give money. Biggie wanted a way of poverty, so he reframed his cultural experiences into this masterful artistic expression.

For years Brooklyn has been systemically deprived of support and opportunities; and for Biggie to come along and inspire hope was a true resurrection moment. His death was not in vain, and we are still gleaning from his life’s work.

And yet it all started with a dream. That genius that was placed down in you when you were a kid at some point will come alive. Why? Because God has given all black men wisdom and understanding that is beyond the comprehension of those who seek to oppress us. At the heart of the matter black men are thinkers, writers, creators, builders, and artists at heart.

Are you ready to leave behind all of the struggles, pain and hardships? The time has come to reflect, relearn, rethink, retool, and reformulate your strategy around communal success. Biggie laid the foundation for what a communal ecosystem looks like. When he brought together the group Junior Mafia (Lil’ Kim

Lil’ Cease, Trife, Larceny, Nino Brown, Chico Del Vec, MC Klepto, Capone, Bugsy) the game would never be the same. That model is what you need o emulate if you want to grow your business and elevate your game. Study the history around Junior Mafia and why it was necessary for Biggie to put his hood on after he got his foot into the door.

I want to leave you with 5 entrepreneurial lessons that you can put into play immediately. Reframe the context of these truths. Chop them up. Mix and match and dig deeper beyond the surface. Become critical in your assessment of what life brings in your direction. I have followed these steps which is a result why I am successful to this very day.

Follow Your Dreams: If you are only dreaming to get out of the hood for yourself that is not a big enough dream to push the needle. Dreams come to you for the liberation of yourself, your community, and the world at large. Biggie’s aim in making it big was for the sole purpose of liberating his mom, daughter, Junior Mafia, Brooklyn, and the entire East Coast. God will give you a dream, but it is for the whole and not the sum of its parts.

Put Your Peoples on: As an Entrepreneur your main focus should be the building of ecosystems; where a multitude of players can not only survive but thrive. I don’t care what industry you find yourself in or what it is that you do. Put the concept of “Family Business” at the core of your operations. Remember, I am looking at the year 2025 and beyond. It may not make sense at this moment, but it will.

Sacrifice for the Culture: If you need to leave the hood and go get 3 college degrees so be it. You will miss family members, birthdays, funerals, gatherings, barbeques etc. All is not lost. Somebody has to sacrifice for the culture in order to come back and maintain the culture. If you have to move to a different state in order to build new relationships do that. You got to give something up if you are going to build wealth in this new marketplace that is vastly approaching. Biggie sacrificed What he could see for what he could not see. What will you walk away from to help grow your culture?

Contextualize Your wordplay: At some point in the game, you must learn how to communicate. Writing, poetry, singing, rapping, or any form of verbal expression is necessary for your forward progression. It’s your communication that will ultimately create the breakthrough that you seek. Your wealth will be tied up in your community, language and wordplay. You must become a Black Beethoven and arrange a new symphony. “Biggie said “Heart throb never, black and ugly as ever, However, I stay Coogi down to the socks Rings and watch filled with rocks. Are You confident enough to call yourself black and ugly as ever? Contextualize your wordplay.

Love Yourself: At the end of the day, you got to believe in yourself. It may sound cliché but having confidence very noble. How many people in the world do you know that cannot sing and yet they are signed to major labels? When you love yourself, your business is able to take on your persona. Self-love is important in the world of business. As Big as Biggie was, we never heard of him abusing drugs or alcohol. Stop abusing your body. Do everything with moderation. Premature death amongst black men is high so choose life.