Iconic Biggie Smalls Mural Will Stay On Brooklyn Building After Jewish Landlord Relents

Graphic by Angelie Zaslavsky
An iconic mural of the rapper Notorious B.I.G. will stay on a Bedford-Stuyvesant wall following a reversal by the building owner, Solomon Berkowitz, dnainfo reports.
The mural is a Brooklyn landmark, which neighborhood activists have sought to preserve. Notorious B.I.G., born Christopher Wallace, lived in Bed-Stuy, and is closely associated with the neighborhood. He was murdered in 1997.
DnaInfo reported that Berkowitz reversed his decision to remove the mural after hearing about a massive backlash.
“To be honest, he just didn’t know how important Biggie is to Brooklyn,” the mural’s creator, Naoufal “Rocko” Alaoui, told dnainfo.
Contact Josh Nathan-Kazis at [email protected] or on Twitter, @joshnathankazis.
Did you know that only 2% of Forward readers donate to support our nonprofit newsroom? That 2% make it possible for millions to read the Forward without a paywall or subscription — removing any barriers to the full and fair Jewish story.
But while the Forward is free to read, it isn’t free to produce. Big stories — like deep dives into the antisemitism data, political scoops or reporting trips to college campuses — take months of research and fact-checking. All while we keep you informed of what you need to know each day.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Forward Publisher & CEO
