I'm not buying this nonsense. First off, it's been said that when Russell Poole (the lead investigator) uncovered evidence pointing to rogue cops being involved in Big's murder, the higher-ups in the department deliberately torpedoed his case. Secondly, they've been circling the wagons for years, trying to prevent Voletta Wallace from getting justice for Big. She's filed suits against both the police and the city for their roles in Big's killing, and the cover-up that followed.

Lastly, that 'administrative error' line is pure bullshit. That autopsy was probably leaked on purpose, as a gift-wrapped middle finger to Big's family. It's been 15 years, and they still won't show Big any respect.

To answer some of your points:

Jay’s first album dropped in the spring of ’96; three months after All Eyez on Me, four months before Pac died; and on an indie label (Roc-A-Fella/Priority) with a small budget. He wasn’t a franchise player with a multimillion dollar promo budget, as Pac (Death Row/Interscope) and Big (Bad Boy/Arista) were; and as Nas had with Sony for It Was Written. Jay also didn’t have a marketing wiz backing his play when he dropped, like Nas had with Steve Stoute, who constructed the marketing plan for It Was Written. Even still, Jay and his partners moved close to a million units practically on their own, and their indie hustle led to them writing their own ticket with Def Jam later.

It’s debatable whether Jay would’ve blew as large as he did had Pac and Big lived; but he still had the skill set to become a force in the game, regardless of whether he had them to compete against. As another poster mentioned, you could use Michael Jordan for comparison. It took MJ seven years to win a championship, because Magic Johnson, Larry Bird and Isiah Thomas were all in his way at some point. But MJ was still a legend in the making, and eventually he got his rings. Say what you will about Jay, but he showed a mastery at record-making and marketing from the start, so he might’ve blown up anyway, no matter the competition.

There was an article published on D.O.C. that described his style pre-accident almost perfectly; saying he sounded as if he had fire-breathing lungs. He had one of the greatest voices of any emcee in the game, and lyrically, he was almost peerless. And to think he was only 20-21 years old at the time.

It's sad that that freeway crash robbed DOC of his voice; but it's miraculous that he even lived through it. I read that he went through the windshield when the car crashed; and Dr. Dre said when he visited him in the hospital, DOC was so disfigured, Dre could only recognize him by his haircut.

I wouldn't call it cheesy, but this one has been a longtime favorite.

Gotta pick DoggyStyle. All of the interludes and songs fit together seamlessly, and I still bump that joint from end to end today. Ready to Die was near-perfect too, but DoggyStyle is the album I'd pick if I could only listen to one rap album for the rest of my days.