Big Punisher's debut album Capital Punishment and the single "Still Not a Player" were big hits in 1997 and 1998, making him the first solo Latin rapper ever to go platinum. He joined other Latin rappers in the group Terror Squad, which released a self-titled album in 1999. Big Pun was a huge man, his weight reportedly varying between 450 and 700 pounds. He died of a heart attack at age 28. Two months later his second album, Yeeeah Baby, was released.
Rap star Big Punisher, the nearly 700-pound, platinum-selling rap sensation, made only a couple of film appearances prior to his death at the age of 28, in a hotel room in New York City, in early 2000. ~ Rovi
Born Christopher Rios on November 10, 1971, in Bronx, NY; died on February 7, 2000, in White Plains, NY; married Liza, 1990; three children.
Quit school and left home, c. 1986; using the name Big Moon Dog, formed the Full A Clips Crew with fellow Latin rappers Triple Seis and Cuban Link, 1989; met Bronx producer and fellow Puerto Rican rapper Fat Joe, 1995; appeared on Fat Joe’s “Fire Water” and “Watch Out,” c. 1996; appeared on the Beatnuts’ “Off the Books,” 1997; scored an underground hit with “I’m Not a Player,” 1997; contributed “You Ain’t a Killer” to Soul in the Hole basketball documentary, 1997; released Grammy-nominated, double-platinum debut album, Capital Punishment, 1998; entered a Duke University diet program, 1999; died of heart failure, February of 2000; Yeeeah Baby 2000, and Endangered Species, 2001, released posthumously.
Addresses:Record company—Relativity Records/Sony Music, 550 Madison Ave., 31st Floor, New York, NY 10022, website: http://www.sonymusic.com
Rap musician
Puerto Rican rapper Big Punisher, also known as Big Pun, was the first Latin emcee to score a place on the charts, earning platinum certification for record sales in the process. In a genre dominated by African-American artists, Pun managed to take Latino rap—before him largely a phenomenon only in Pun’s South Bronx neighborhood—into the mainstream. His first single, "I’m Not a Player," predicted the success of his 1998 Grammy-nominated debut album, Capital Punishment. The rapper earned his name for his great girth; while many emcees rhymed about "living large," Big Pun weighed nearly 700 pounds when he died of heart failure in 2000, at the age of 28.
Big Pun was born Christopher Rios on November 10, 1971, in the South Bronx, New York. As a teen he was physically active, and basketball and boxing kept him in shape. He grew up in a strict household run by his mother and stepfather, but he dropped out of high school after just one year. Still hungry to learn, however, he read encyclopedias to expand his knowledge and vocabulary. He moved out of his mother’s apartment when he was 15, and within a few years was an expectant father with bills to pay. He worked odd jobs until he collected on a long-standing legal claim for a childhood accident in a public park and received an estimated half-million-dollar settlement. He began overeating to cope with stress and quickly packed on the pounds. He married his childhood sweetheart, Liza, in 1990. The couple had three children.
Formed Terror Squad In 1989 Pun, then known as Big Moon Dog, formed the Full A Clips Crew with fellow Latin rappers Triple Seis and Cuban Link. In 1995 the three crossed paths with legendary Bronx producer and fellow Puerto Rican rapper Fat Joe (who weighed 300 pounds himself), and whom Pun called his "twin." Fat Joe immediately recognized Pun’s extraordinary rhyming and lyrical skills, and invited him to record a cameo on Fat Joe’s song "Watch Out." Pun became part of a group of Latin rappers associated with Fat Joe, called the Terror Squad. Soon after, Fat Joe orchestrated Pun’s contract with New York’s Loud Records. Pun was one of the few newcomers to appear on The Mix Tape Vol. 1, a compilation put together by legendary deejay Funkmaster Flex. Pun and Fat Joe rode their own floats in the 1998 and 1999 Puerto Rican Day parades in New York City.
Pun released the single "I’m Not a Player" in the winter of 1997 and his debut full-length album, Capital Punishment, was released a few months later. It featured cameos by Wyclef Jean on the reggae-flavored "Caribbean Connection," Black Thought from the Roots on "Super Lyrical," and Wu-Tang Clan’s Inspectah Deck and Prodigy from Mobb Deep on "Tres Leches." He laments mistreatment from an ex-lover in the ballad "Punish Me" and, on the album’s closer, "Parental Discretion," featuring Busta Rhymes, Pun let loose one
of the run-on rhymes for which he was famous: "I recollect when I was just a boy eating Chips Ahoy/wasn’t allowed to raise my voice/now I’m making noise." The single "Still Not a Player" fueled the album to platinum status within a few months of its release.
Rapped About Every Day Life Pun was known for his remarkable breath control and ability to squeeze out a seemingly endless stream of tongue-twisting rhymes in one breath. He also was known for his lyrical humor and ability to string together complex and difficult rhymes. While other rappers wrote about flashy riches, disrespecting women, and the violence and crime of ghetto street life, Big Pun described his style as "sophisticated hard-core," according to Jon Páreles of the New York Times. "I’m talking about everyday life," Big Pun said in an MTV interview quoted in the same New York Times article, "losing your job, losing a loved one, stress, happiness, whatever."
Pun’s rise in hip-hop was fast and steady, and so was his weight gain. When Capital Punishment was released in 1998, he weighed 400 pounds. By the time of his death just two years later he weighed 698 pounds. "He was so big and he knew his weight was causing a health problem," Fat Joe told Rolling Stone. "For a long time, even though he was a big guy, he could do whatever he wanted. He’d play sports with us and everything. As time went on, however, his health got worse." Encouragement from friends and family led Pun to enter a diet program at Duke University during the summer of 1999, but he quickly regained the weight he lost there. "[H]e really wanted to" lose weight, Fat Joe told Rolling Stone online. "It was just overwhelming."
Although he was known for his remarkable live performances, Big Pun’s mobility was increasingly limited by his weight. "Given his size, Pun’s performance is filled with suspense," critic Rob Marriot wrote in the Village Voice. The hot lights and physical stage show clearly tested the rapper’s stamina. Still, Marriot continued, "Big Pun even outshone the headliners." He and Fat Joe rap on Jennifer Lopez’s hit "Feelin’so Good," and were scheduled to appear with her on Saturday Night Live on February 5, 2000, but Big Pun was unable to make it. It was rumored that, during recording for his upcoming album, Yeeeah Baby, a mattress had to be brought into the recording studio for Pun to rest on while he rapped.
Big Pun lived in the Bronx with his wife Liza and three young children, but the family had moved temporarily to a hotel in White Plains, New York, while their home was being renovated. On February 7, 2000, Pun had trouble breathing and collapsed. Paramedics could not revive him, and he was pronounced dead on arrival at a local hospital. The cause of death was later determined to be heart failure. The professional mural company TATS Cru, made up of graffiti artists, painted a 35-foot mural in the Bronx memorializing Big Pun within days of his death. A campaign was launched to rename 163rd Street in the South Bronx "Big Pun Avenue." "He was a ghetto rapper; he didn’t forget his people," one South Bronx grandmother told the Washington Post. "Other rappers tend to forget where they’re from, but not Big Pun. With all the money that he had and everything, he still lived around here, his home was here. He’s a legend. This guy is going to be a legend. for us."
Posthumous Success Big Pun’s last album, Yeeeah Baby, was released a few weeks after his death. All Music Guide’s John Bush said that on the album, "Pun spits out inventive rhymes and paces his delivery with excellence" in a collection of tracks that was "quite seamless." Hip-hop and pop stars Lil’ Kim, Puff Daddy, and Jennifer Lopez appeared together in the video for the album’s first single, "It’s So Hard."
Unlike Tupac Shakur, another deceased rapper, Big Pun left few recordings unreleased before his death.
Nonetheless, his record label, Loud, was able to pull together a handful of Big Pun performances to release on Endangered Species in 2001. The album is a "mix tape for die-hards," Jon Caramanica wrote in Rolling Stone. It included songs from Capital Punishment, guest appearances, and previously unreleased material. "How We Roll," the album’s first single, is built around Janet Jackson’s hit ballad "Let’s Wait Awhile." The Beatnuts’ "Off the Books" is included, featuring Big Pun’s classic cameo. Songs on which Big Pun collaborated by Kool G. Rap, Brandy, Fat Joe, and Ricky Martin appear on the album as well. "What’s most striking about Endangered Species is that it shows Pun’s rejection of musical limits," critic Rashuan Hall wrote in Billboard.
Sources Periodicals Billboard, April 7, 2001, p. 18. Boston Globe, May 4, 2000, p. CAL8. New York Times, February 9, 2000, p. B10; February 10, 2000, p. B3; June 11,2000, p. 11; January 7,2001, p. 6.35. Orange County Register, June 5, 1998, p. F56. Rolling Stone, May 28, 1998, p. 192; May 10, 2001, p. 84. Village Voice, June 9, 1998, p. 69. Washington Post, February 9, 2000, p. B6; February 11, 2000, p. C1.
The first solo Latino rapper to go platinum, Big Punisher was also yet another member of the hip-hop community to fall victim to an early death -- though in his case, it was due to health problems, not violence. In contrast to his large frame, Big Pun was a surprisingly graceful and nimble rapper, delivering his often clever, tongue-twisting rhymes at a torrential pace. Big Pun was born Christopher Rios on November 10, 1971, and grew up in the South Bronx's Puerto Rican community. He endured a rough childhood in an unstable home, and moved out when he was 15, dropping out of high school around the same time. Still, he continued his education on his own, and became interested in rapping and breakdancing (he was a solid athlete during his teen years). In 1989, under the name Big Moon Dog, he and several friends formed a street-corner rap group called the Full a Clips Crew. He later changed his name to Big Punisher, after the Marvel Comics superhero, and caught his big break when he met and impressed fellow Bronx rapper Fat Joe in 1995. He guested on a couple of Fat Joe tracks, "Fire Water" (which also featured Raekwon) and "Watch Out," and following an appearance on Funkmaster Flex's The Mix Tape, Vol. 1, quickly made a name for himself in the underground community. He guested prominently on the Beatnuts' "Off the Books" in 1997, and also worked with B Real and Flesh-N-Bone. Pun scored an underground hit of his own with "I'm Not a Player" in 1997, and also contributed "You Ain't a Killer" to the Soul in the Hole basketball documentary. With Fat Joe's help, he secured a deal with Loud Records.
Big Pun's solo debut, Capital Punishment, was released in 1998 and debuted in the Top Five thanks to "Still Not a Player," a club-ready remix of "I'm Not a Player" that proved massively popular. Earning credibility in the hardcore rap world as well, Capital Punishment went on to sell over two million copies. The following year, Pun teamed up with his mentor, Fat Joe, and several up-and-coming MCs to form the Terror Squad, which released a self-titled debut album. Pun stayed in the public eye with guest work on records by Noreaga and Jennifer Lopez (the hit "Feelin' So Good," which also featured Fat Joe) while working on his second album. Unfortunately, his longtime struggles with overeating and obesity were beginning to get the better of him. At Fat Joe's urging, he checked into a weight-loss clinic in North Carolina, where he lost 80 pounds. However, he returned to the Bronx before finishing the program, and gained back everything he'd lost, plus some extra; reports had his weight fluctuating between 450-700 pounds during his last few years. Tragically, but perhaps not unpredictably, Big Punisher suffered a fatal heart attack on February 7, 2000; he was only 28 years old, and left behind a wife and three children. His completed second album, Yeeeah Baby, was released two months later to positive reviews and entered the charts at number three. 2001's Endangered Species was a compilation mixing hits, guest appearances, and unreleased material; it, too, was a Top Ten seller. Big Pun's life was the subject of the 2002 documentary film Still Not a Player. ~ Steve Huey, Rovi
Christopher Lee Rios[1] (November 10, 1971 – February 7, 2000), better known by his stage nameBig Pun (short for Big Punisher), was a Puerto-Rican Americanrapper who emerged from the underground rap scene in The Bronx in the late 1990s. He first appeared on albums from The Beatnuts, on the track "Off the Books" in 1997, and on Fat Joe's second album Jealous One's Envy in 1995, on the track "Watch Out", prior to signing to Loud Records as a solo artist. Pun's lyrics are notable for technical efficiency, having minimal pauses to take a breath, heavy use of alliteration as well as internal and multi-syllabic rhyming schemes. Big Pun died of a heart attack at age 28. About.com ranked him #25 on its list of the 50 Greatest MCs of Our Time (1987 - 2007).[2]
Big Pun grew up in New York City's South Bronx neighborhood.[3][4] At the age of 5 young Rios broke his leg while playing in a New York park, which would later lead to a large settlement from the city. [5] By all accounts from Pun's family, his early years were very difficult, including witnessing his mother's drug abuse, his father's death,[6] and a stepfather who was very hard on Pun. According to his grandmother, Pun would become angry and self-destructive, punching holes in the walls of his family's apartment. Rios dropped out of high school and for some time was homeless staying in abandoned buildings or at friends' homes.[7]
Music career
Sometime during the '80s, he began to write rap lyrics, forming the Full-A-Clips crew with Triple Seis, and Cuban Link who was at the time named "Lyrical Assassin". At this point Big Pun was operating under the alias Big Moon Dawg. Rios met fellow Puerto Rican and Bronx rapper Fat Joe in 1995 and made his commercial debut on Joe's second album, Jealous One's Envy, in addition to appearing on a b-side to Joe's "Envy" single, "Fire Water."
In 1997, producer Knobody's production partner Sean C took advantage of his new role as A&R at Loud Records to play Knobody's tracks to Big Pun.[8] Suitably impressed the rapper hired Knobody to remix "I'm Not a Player".[8] The remixed song, featuring Joe and titled "Still Not a Player," became Big Pun's first major mainstream hit and major breakthrough for Knobody.[8] The full-length debut Capital Punishment followed in 1998, and became the first album by a solo Latino rapper to go platinum,[9] peaking at #5 on the Billboard 200. Capital Punishment was also nominated for a Grammy. Pun's second album " Yeeeah Baby", although not as succesful as his first also went platinum producing two solid hits in "it's So Hard" and "100%".
Terror Squad Big Pun became a member of Terror Squad, a New York-based group of rappers founded by Fat Joe, with most of the roster supplied by the now-defunct Full a Clips Crew who released their debut album The Album in 1999. The album didn't fare well commercially but it was well received critically and the album was meant to start the foundation for all other terror squad members to release their solo projects.
Death
Excluding his adolescence, Big Pun struggled with his weight for most of his life; his weight fluctuated in the early 1990s between obese and morbidly obese. Big Pun partook in a weight-loss program in North Carolina, in which he lost 80 pounds (36 kg), but he eventually quit the program before completing it, returning to New York and gaining back the weight he had lost.[4] On February 7, 2000, Big Pun suffered a fatal heart attack and respiratory failure while temporarily staying with family at a Crowne Plaza Hotel in White Plains, New York during a home renovation. Pun was pronounced dead at the hospital after paramedics could not revive him. Big Pun was at his highest weight at the time of his death, being 698 pounds.[10] He was cremated a few days later. His second album, Yeeeah Baby, was released two months later.
Legacy
Big Pun: The Legacy documentary
An authorized documentary "Big Pun: The Legacy" was released on September 15, 2009. The film contains multiple interviews with artists, actors, close friends and others whose lives were touched by Big Pun, as well as rare exclusive performances and scene interviews with Big Pun himself. The film also features appearances by Bone Thugs-n-Harmony, Snoop Dogg, DMX, Method Man, U-God, Liza Rios, Xzibit, Cuban Link, Swizz Beatz, DJ Skribble, Chino XL and many more. The film was directed by Vlad Yudin and was distributed through Vivendi/Universal. [11]
A different version of the DVD "Big Pun: The Legacy," was released called "Big Pun: The Legacy (Special Collector's Edition)" a little over a year later on September 28, 2010 through EMI Label Group. This film includes never-before-seen footage and the “Lost Files” archive. [12]
The soundtrack to the film, "The Legacy: The Best of Big Pun" was released through Legacy/Columbia Records/Sony Music on September 15, 2009. [13]
Personal Life
Family
Big Pun met his wife Liza in the eighth grade. They had three children together. The youngest one is carrying on his father's legacy under the alias Chris Rivers (formerly Baby Pun) who started to write rhymes after his father's death. Rivers' debut album Black Rose is yet to be released.
Legal issues
On September 8, 1998, Fat Joe and Big Pun were arrested on assault charges for hitting a man with a baseball bat and stealing the man's gold chain on June 14 that year.[14]
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