Hip-hop is filled with countless “what if” scenarios, but there’s one that heads still debate today:
If Big L signed to Roc-A-Fella Records in 1999, would hip-hop history be altered forever?
We’ll never know if Big L would have eclipsed Jay Z as rap’s headliner but we don’t need Kang the Conqueror altering timelines to know that if Big L was still with us, he’d be a force to be reckoned with.
Lamont Coleman was lighting the underground rap scene ablaze in the mid 90s, with his 1995 debut Lifestylez ov da Poor & Dangerous positioning him as a rookie on the rise. After a few label disputes and a notable run with the DITC crew, L was poised to sign with Roc-A-Fella Records in 1999. A week later, he was killed in a drive-by in Harlem in a case that still is unsolved.
While L’s legacy has lived on in random freestyles, Youtube clips and a smattering of mixtapes, once again we have to give props to Nas and Mass Appeal giving our legends their deserved place in the spotlight. Harlem’s Finest: Return of the King is the latest entry in the Legend Has It series, which has given hip-hop veterans new life all year.
Unlike Mobb Deep’s excellent Infinite album, which featured previously unheard verses from Prodigy, Harlem’s Finest: Return of the King is made up of clips and freestyles that have been readily available for years – many of them reworked verses from the Return of the Devil’s Son project. In essence, Harlem’s Finest plays like a synopsis of his too-brief career, showcasing the immense talent that was taken from us.
“I’m better than every rapper you thought was raw,” L boasts on “RHN,” highlighting his three greatest strengths – his boundless confidence, his vicious aggression and his effortless flow. Seriously, he makes rap sound so easy.
On “Stretch and Bob Freestyle (98),” L blacks out, rattling off an endless stream of insults that are equally intimidating and entertaining: “You ain’t a player, put that cigar out/take that suit off before I suit off and tear your roof off/leave your clothes bloody red like the nose of Rudolph.”
Harlem’s Finest boasts a generous roster of guest stars to flesh out L’s standalone verses. Method Man jumps on “Fred Samuel Playground,” which features production from Conductor Williams – a perfect fit for an MC as rugged as L. Joey Bada$$ matches L’s energy quite well on “Grants Tomb 97” and we even get an appearance from Mac Miller on “Forever.” Mac has always pointed to L as a big inspiration so having their souls connect here is very meaningful, even though the track itself isn’t groundbreaking. And shoutout to McGruff, who shows that his bully bars can still pack on a punch on “Harlem Universal.”
However, the two tracks that will garner the most headlines are the ones featuring the artists that L is most compared to – Jay Z and Nas. Big L and Jay’s infamous “7 Minute Freestyle” makes its streaming debut here and it’s as earth-shaking in 2025 as it was in 1995. L goes ballistic:
So with that bulls***, step to the rear, son
The last thing you want with Big L is a fair one
‘Cause in a street brawl I strike men like lightnin’
You seen what happened in my last fight, friend? Aight then
While Jay blesses us with that 90s flow that I still miss to this day:
Check it out, I’m too cocky, to stop me you gotta kill me
And when I’m gone, you can still feel me, on the real, B
The s*** is eternal, I rock the heavens well
Even if they won’t let me in Heaven, I raise hell
90s Jay is still the best Jay. But even he can’t keep up with L, as he’s literally running out of breath by the end of the song trying to measure up to L’s lofty standards. Rap is a sport and I love when the greats scramble to keep up with each other.
And that takes us to “U Ain’t Got A Chance,” which features a fresh feature from Nas, the man who once said that L’s talent terrified him. While it’s an unfair to directly compare L and Nas’ verses – Esco is quite literally chasing a ghost – Nas still drops one of the best verses I’ve heard all year:
They jack anything on the internet, stupid kinda
Believe in that, you believe in chupacabra
Making funny music, it’s doo-doo, caca
Brain freeze, stuck face, need agua, palabra
Give your little cute mama the side eye, a fly guy
Then give that coochie a drive-by
You don’t keep her secure like Assata
Picturing a world with Big L, Jay Z and Nas all competing for the crown at the same time blows my mind.
Harlem’s Finest is mostly a showcase for L’s harcore lyricism, but we do get glimpses of concepts that could have evolved his art into a more introspective sound. The brief but soulful “All Alone” has L reflecting on his insecurities, burdened by the loneliness that swirls around him. “How Will I Make It” is even more morose, as he paints a picture of his sorrowful youth: “Even my holidays get damaged cuz on Christmas I asked Santa for a father and a hot sandwich.” There was so much more to Big L than “rappity rap” – he was an artist at heart.
Harlem’s Finest: Return of the King is a tricky album to score. The album recycles lots of verses that have lingered around the Internet for decades, and I can understand if longtime L fanatics are let down by the lack of new material. It’s the curse of most posthumous projects. Also, the project feels more like a one of those Funkmaster Flex 90s freestyle mixtapes than a full-formed LP. And some of the bars don’t age very well (there’s very liberal use of the F-word throughout, which is quite jarring today).
But one thing that cannot be questioned his L’s voracious desire to win. Harlem’s Finest is a snapshot of the talent we lost – effortless flows delivered with a ferocity that we haven’t seen in 26 years. It’s a sobering experience – I’m glad that a new generation of fans will experience one of rap’s most unsung talents, but I’m saddened that his potential was never realized.
Would Big L have taken over rap? This album doesn’t definitively answer that question – it’s just gives another glimpse into what could have been.
Best tracks: “7 Minute Freestyle,” “U Ain’t Got A Chance,” “Stretch and Bob Freestyle (98)”
3.5 stars out of 5
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