Do you sometimes live your life based on the teachings of the great Biggie Smalls?
Yeah, we do, too.
Notorious B.I.G. taught us that we can't change the world until we change ourselves.
To this day, he's still important to New York City and our forever-evolving New York state of mind. That's why we're glad photographer David McIntyre recovered these never-before-seen photos of Biggie.
McIntyre, 54, recently told DNAInfo he shot photos of Biggie for Interview magazine in 1994, mere months from the release of Biggie's first album Ready to Die.
"He was a very shy guy," McIntyre said about Biggie. "But once we started shooting he was definitely involved in the process and very serious about looking at them to improve the shot."
After McIntyre delivered the prints for publication, he lost the negatives. He then searched tirelessly over the years to find them, but never could.
David McIntyre
Until now.
Now, McIntyre recovered the photos while sorting through clothes for donation. He found an envelope in an old jacket, and in the envelope were 15 frames of the Notorious B.I.G.
And he's hoping to showcase them in a free exhibition, which will reveal the photos in a large-than-life format.
"I knew I had to do something with them, but just throwing them up on the internet didn't appeal to me," McIntyre stated.
In order for the free exhibition to occur, McIntyre is trying to raise $28,000 on Kickstarter to display the prints for free in an NYC gallery. So far, he's raised $7,432 of that goal.
"I just want to communicate to people my respect for Biggie and Brooklyn and share it with people who feel this way," McIntyre said. "That's my mission."
Want to help McIntyre complete his mission? Then donate on Kickstarter. And then look out for more info about when and where the exhibition will be.
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