The Notorious B.I.G's mother Voletta Wallace, who had been guarding his legacy, died of natural causes after a stint in hospice care.
The pioneering 1990s rapper, born Christopher Wallace, was also known to fans as Biggie Smalls and was one of the reigning hip-hop stars of his era until he was murdered in a drive-by shooting in 1997 aged 24. The case remains unsolved.
His legend only grew following his untimely death, nurtured by his mother, who successfully ran his estate throughout the remainder of her own lifetime.
Her son's estate was thought to be worth $160 million, up from the $10 million it was estimated at when Biggie was killed, via TMZ.
Voletta died of natural causes on Friday morning in Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania, the Monroe County Coroner confirmed to The Daily Mail.
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A spokesperson said: “Voletta has died, on hospice care, at her residence in Stroudsburg, Penn. Voletta died of natural causes.”
A Jamaican immigrant, Voletta gave birth to The Notorious B.I.G. on May 21, 1972, in Brooklyn, where she worked as a preschool teacher and raised Biggie as a single mother.
The New York icon reached superstardom in the 90s in a short time while signed to Diddy’s Bad Boy Records, where he released albums, Ready to Die and Life After Death, the latter of which debuted atop the Billboard 200 and arrived just weeks after he was gunned down in Los Angeles.
Biggie is notably hailed as one of the pillars of East Coast hip-hop during the ’90s “golden era,” including hits such as Juicy, Hypnotize, Ten Crack Commandments, Going Back to Cali, Mo Money Mo Problems and many more.
Voletta previously described her son's music as "noise," that expertly detailed street life in Brooklyn.
Since his death, she admitted his music took on a new meaning for her as she aimed to preserve his legacy, with the rapper being hailed as one of the greatest lyricists.
She told AP in 2017, 20 years after his death: “I remembered my son said, ‘Don’t listen to my music.’ And I never listened to his music. I heard it on the radio and it sounded good, because it was clean. But I said, ‘You know what, I have to. I have to listen to that music.’ And that’s what I did.
“I cried so much that day just listening to the music. I remember I sat, I stood. I rested my head on the stereo and I just cried like a baby. And that was therapy for me. And I said, ‘Oh my God – that was a talented young man to put those words together.’ He had a beautiful voice. I love his voice,” she continued.
