To commemorate what would’ve been Biggie‘s 50th birthday on May 21, the MTA plans to release limited-edition MetroCards featuring the face of the hip-hop icon. The cards will only be available over the weekend at four train stations near Biggie’s old Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood, Gothamist reports. The locations include the Lafayette Avenue C station, Clinton-Washington Avenue C and G stations and the Atlantic Avenue-Barclays Center stop. One of the Clinton-Washington stations will also feature the iconic image of the rapper wearing a crown.
According to an MTA spokesperson, only 50,000 commemorative Biggie MetroCards will be released at the four stations. Some lucky fans will get their hands on the cards, which will be randomly inserted into the MetroCard vending machines.
“Biggie Smalls, Notorious B.I.G., the greatest rapper in New York history at least, some would say the greatest rapper of all time,” Janno Lieber, Metropolitan Transportation Authority chairperson and CEO, said during a press conference at Grand Central Terminal on Thursday, amNY reports.
The MTA has pulled off similar promotions in the past with special MetroCards featuring Game of Thrones, Paul McCartney, Wu-Tang Clan and David Bowie.
Biggie Smalls, whose legal name was Christopher Wallace, grew up at 226 St. James Place near the Clinton Hill-Bed-Stuy border. The hip-hop legend released two Grammy-nominated projects and had hits such as “Mo Money Mo Problems,” “Juicy” and “Hypnotize.” He died at the age of 24 in 1997 when he was shot in a drive-by shooting in Los Angeles.
“I’m from Brooklyn, and he’s the man who coined that amazing phrase, ‘Spread love it’s the Brooklyn way,’ and we thank the Notorious B.I.G. for his legacy, especially from Brooklyn, but for all New York,” Lieber said.
