Listen free for 30 days
-
It Was All a Dream
- Biggie and the World That Made Him
- Narrated by: Dion Graham
- Length: 12 hrs and 32 mins
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wish list failed.
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Buy Now for $25.24
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
Publisher's Summary
From a talented young journalist on the rise, a deeply reported, timely new biography of the Notorious B.I.G., publishing for what would have been his 50th birthday.
The Notorious B.I.G. was one of the most charismatic and talented artists of the 1990s. Born Christopher Wallace and raised in Clinton Hill/Bed Stuy, Brooklyn, Biggie lived an almost archetypal rap life: young trouble, drug dealing, guns, prison, a giant hit record, the wealth and international superstardom that came with it, then an early violent death. Biggie released his first record, Ready to Die, in 1994, when he was only 22. Less than three years later, he was killed just days before the planned release of his second record Life After Death.
Journalist Justin Tinsley’s It Was All a Dream is a fresh, insightful telling of the life beyond the legend. It is based on extensive interviews with those who knew and loved Biggie, including neighbors, friends, DJs, party promoters, and journalists. And it places Biggie’s life in context, both within the history of rap but also the wider cultural and political forces that shaped him, including Caribbean immigration, the Reagan era disinvestment in public education, street life, the war on drugs, mass incarceration, and the booming, creative, and influential 1990s music industry. This is the story of where Biggie came from, the forces that shaped him, and the legacy he has left behind.
You may also enjoy...
-
Tupac Shakur
- The Authorized Biography
- Written by: Staci Robinson
- Narrated by: Jamal Joseph, Staci Robinson
- Length: 14 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Tupac Shakur is one of the greatest and most controversial artists of all time. More than a quarter of a century after his tragic death in 1996 at the age of just twenty-five, he continues to be one of the most misunderstood, complicated, and prolific figures in modern history. Drawing on exclusive access to Tupac’s private notebooks, letters, and uncensored conversations with those who loved and knew him best, this estate-authorized biography paints the fullest and most intimate picture to date of the young man who became a legend for generations to come.
-
-
Fascinating and Inspiring
- By Alla on 2024-04-08
Written by: Staci Robinson
-
Undisputed Truth
- Written by: Mike Tyson, Larry Sloman
- Narrated by: Joshua Henry
- Length: 20 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Philosopher, Broadway headliner, fighter, felon - Mike Tyson has defied stereotypes, expectations, and a lot of conventional wisdom during his three decades in the public eye. Bullied as a boy in the toughest, poorest neighborhood in Brooklyn, Tyson grew up to become one of the most thrilling and ferocious boxers of all time - and the youngest heavyweight champion ever. But his brilliance in the ring was often compromised by reckless behavior.
-
-
Amazing, heart breaking.
- By Mitchell on 2020-04-21
Written by: Mike Tyson, and others
-
The Book of Jose
- A Memoir
- Written by: Fat Joe, Shaheem Reid
- Narrated by: Fat Joe
- Length: 9 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Fat Joe is a hip-hop legend, but this is not a tale of celebrity; it is the story of Joseph Cartagena, a kid who came of age in the South Bronx during its darkest years of drugs, violence, and abandonment, and how he navigated that traumatizing landscape until he found—through art, friendship, luck, and will—a rocky path to a different life. This memoir, written in Joe’s own intensely compelling voice, moves with the momentum of pulp fiction, but underneath the tragicomedy and riveting tales of the streets and the industry is a thought-provoking story about a generation of survivors.
-
-
Best Storyteller
- By Tamika Wilson on 2023-07-20
Written by: Fat Joe, and others
-
Act Like You Got Some Sense
- And Other Things My Daughters Taught Me
- Written by: Jamie Foxx
- Narrated by: Jamie Foxx, Corinne Foxx
- Length: 5 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Jamie Foxx has won an Academy Award and a Grammy Award, laughed with sitting presidents, and partied with the biggest names in hip-hop. In Act Like You Got Some Sense, Jamie shares up close and personal stories about the tough love and old-school values he learned growing up in the small town of Terrell, Texas; his early days trying to make it in Hollywood; the joys and challenges of achieving stardom; and how each phase of his life shaped his parenting journey. Hilarious, poignant, and always brutally honest, this is Jamie Foxx like we’ve never seen him before.
-
-
Brilliantly Done
- By James Clark on 2023-11-01
Written by: Jamie Foxx
-
The Dark Story of Eminem
- Written by: Nick Hasted
- Narrated by: Nick Landrum
- Length: 12 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The celebrated story of how Marshall Mathers went from school and low-paid jobs in his native Detroit to global superstardom, rehab and comeback. Nick Hasted’s revealing account also looks back at Eminem's most important relationships -with his mother, his teenage soul-mate Kim Scott, producer Dr. Dre and The Bass Brothers who guided and inspired him from the age of fourteen.
Written by: Nick Hasted
-
E.A.R.L.
- The Autobiography of DMX
- Written by: DMX
- Narrated by: Beresford Bennett
- Length: 9 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
His real name was Earl Simmons. As a child, he placed higher on tests than his fellow students and liked to spend mornings with his mother and sisters playing games and making pancakes. But for young Earl - a boy growing up on the streets of Yonkers, New York - that kind of childhood didn’t last long. Beatings, abuse, and neglect very soon had him moving on to other things, like robbing, stealing, drugs, and, eventually, jail. Along the way, however, he found a talent and a passion for rhyme.
-
-
unbelievable
- By mattyk on 2024-05-31
Written by: DMX
-
Tupac Shakur
- The Authorized Biography
- Written by: Staci Robinson
- Narrated by: Jamal Joseph, Staci Robinson
- Length: 14 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Tupac Shakur is one of the greatest and most controversial artists of all time. More than a quarter of a century after his tragic death in 1996 at the age of just twenty-five, he continues to be one of the most misunderstood, complicated, and prolific figures in modern history. Drawing on exclusive access to Tupac’s private notebooks, letters, and uncensored conversations with those who loved and knew him best, this estate-authorized biography paints the fullest and most intimate picture to date of the young man who became a legend for generations to come.
-
-
Fascinating and Inspiring
- By Alla on 2024-04-08
Written by: Staci Robinson
-
Undisputed Truth
- Written by: Mike Tyson, Larry Sloman
- Narrated by: Joshua Henry
- Length: 20 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Philosopher, Broadway headliner, fighter, felon - Mike Tyson has defied stereotypes, expectations, and a lot of conventional wisdom during his three decades in the public eye. Bullied as a boy in the toughest, poorest neighborhood in Brooklyn, Tyson grew up to become one of the most thrilling and ferocious boxers of all time - and the youngest heavyweight champion ever. But his brilliance in the ring was often compromised by reckless behavior.
-
-
Amazing, heart breaking.
- By Mitchell on 2020-04-21
Written by: Mike Tyson, and others
-
The Book of Jose
- A Memoir
- Written by: Fat Joe, Shaheem Reid
- Narrated by: Fat Joe
- Length: 9 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Fat Joe is a hip-hop legend, but this is not a tale of celebrity; it is the story of Joseph Cartagena, a kid who came of age in the South Bronx during its darkest years of drugs, violence, and abandonment, and how he navigated that traumatizing landscape until he found—through art, friendship, luck, and will—a rocky path to a different life. This memoir, written in Joe’s own intensely compelling voice, moves with the momentum of pulp fiction, but underneath the tragicomedy and riveting tales of the streets and the industry is a thought-provoking story about a generation of survivors.
-
-
Best Storyteller
- By Tamika Wilson on 2023-07-20
Written by: Fat Joe, and others
-
Act Like You Got Some Sense
- And Other Things My Daughters Taught Me
- Written by: Jamie Foxx
- Narrated by: Jamie Foxx, Corinne Foxx
- Length: 5 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Jamie Foxx has won an Academy Award and a Grammy Award, laughed with sitting presidents, and partied with the biggest names in hip-hop. In Act Like You Got Some Sense, Jamie shares up close and personal stories about the tough love and old-school values he learned growing up in the small town of Terrell, Texas; his early days trying to make it in Hollywood; the joys and challenges of achieving stardom; and how each phase of his life shaped his parenting journey. Hilarious, poignant, and always brutally honest, this is Jamie Foxx like we’ve never seen him before.
-
-
Brilliantly Done
- By James Clark on 2023-11-01
Written by: Jamie Foxx
-
The Dark Story of Eminem
- Written by: Nick Hasted
- Narrated by: Nick Landrum
- Length: 12 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The celebrated story of how Marshall Mathers went from school and low-paid jobs in his native Detroit to global superstardom, rehab and comeback. Nick Hasted’s revealing account also looks back at Eminem's most important relationships -with his mother, his teenage soul-mate Kim Scott, producer Dr. Dre and The Bass Brothers who guided and inspired him from the age of fourteen.
Written by: Nick Hasted
-
E.A.R.L.
- The Autobiography of DMX
- Written by: DMX
- Narrated by: Beresford Bennett
- Length: 9 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
His real name was Earl Simmons. As a child, he placed higher on tests than his fellow students and liked to spend mornings with his mother and sisters playing games and making pancakes. But for young Earl - a boy growing up on the streets of Yonkers, New York - that kind of childhood didn’t last long. Beatings, abuse, and neglect very soon had him moving on to other things, like robbing, stealing, drugs, and, eventually, jail. Along the way, however, he found a talent and a passion for rhyme.
-
-
unbelievable
- By mattyk on 2024-05-31
Written by: DMX
What the critics say
“Tinsley’s sleek, effective biography introduces major figures in Wallace’s life, complete with interesting backstories, before we meet the influential rapper, giving readers a solid grounding in the pertinent context. A touching tribute to the Notorious B.I.G. balancing larger-than-life stories with poignant personal moments.” (Kirkus Reviews)
What listeners say about It Was All a Dream
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Amazon Customer
- 2023-06-05
B.I.G documentary or Crak documentary 🤔
Well written and read but more about NYC & the Crak era than it was about B.I.G.
READER: If you're unsure of the pronunciation of an artists name that's in a book about that specific craft, so your research next time.
Jeru the Damaja is pronounced; Jah-ru the Damage-ah ... so disrespectful. Be ashamed.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!