Recording

Juicy
The Notorious B.I.G.

Independently chosen for2 of our lists. Here is what each of them said.

Released

1994

Label

Bad Boy

On

Golden Age Hip-Hop and 1994

Updated

2026-08-29

1. 08

   Ranked No. 8 in Golden Age Hip-Hop

   The rags-to-riches story told so well it became the template for every one that followed. Biggie's timing over the Mtume loop is effortless in a way nobody has replicated.

2. ·

   Picked by 1994

   Released within months of the entry above, arguing the opposite case: that a hard record could be a pop record without giving anything up. Both were right, and hip-hop spent the rest of the decade splitting the difference.