#22 The Notorious B.I.G., 'Ready to Die' (1994)

‘Ready To Die’ is the debut record of The Notorious B.I.G., and the only one to be released within his lifetime. Biggie Smalls was signed by Sean “Puffy” Combs to Uptown Records after the latter heard his demo tape. Biggie would subsequently start recording the album in 1993 but when Combs was fired from the label, Biggie’s future was left in the balance. Combs would ultimately start Bad Boy Records, to which Biggie would be signed, but in the interim he made ends meet by selling drugs. By the time the recording was finish, Biggie was 22-years-old.