Today In Hip Hop History: Biggie Gets Booed At Soul Train Music Awards In L.A. 25 Years Ago

On this date in 1997, The Notorious B.I.G. was booed on stage before presenting the award for Best R&B Soul Single Female at the 1997 Soul Train Music Awards.

The audience in Los Angeles wasn’t too friendly towards Biggie, primarily since his then-rival Tupac Shakur was just shot and killed in Las Vegas six months earlier. Big gave a cynical “What’s up, Cali?” as the boos and jeers grew louder and more intense.

Biggie was killed a little more than a day later in a drive-by shooting after leaving the Vibe Magazine Soul Train Awards after-party. Biggie’s sudden murder proved that Tupac’s murder the year prior was more than a random shooting and that the East Coast vs. West Coast beef was more than just a rap beef between two former friends.