An unreleased freestyle from The Notorious B.I.G. can now be heard in a new Pepsi commercial.
On Wednesday (Oct. 21), the soft drink company dropped a video featuring a track in which the “Big Poppa” rapper spits a few bars about his love for Pepsi.
“Nothing can beat the P-E-P-S-I, drink it constantly / Something ’bout the taste feels great, less filling / Tell ’em Biggie said drink it all, don’t test me / Nothing else beats a Pepsi / If it is, let’s see/ I’m thirsty,” Big could be heard rapping while staples of his Bedford Stuyvesant neighborhood play on the screen.
The original freestyle was recorded at the D&D Studios during a Hot 97 interview with DJ Enuff, the Chicago Tribune reported. Enuff explained that Biggie wanted to do the freestyle after another group “put down a commercial for a competing soda company.” As Big’s official road DJ, he supported the idea and the two worked together on the concept.
“We were excited about that. And then, this was like the beginning of the culture just being accepted in mass media, all across the damn world,” he told Okayplayer. Enuff and Big reportedly wanted to shoot a commercial with direction from Spike Lee, but it didn’t work out.
Twenty three years later, in honor of the late rapper’s induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Pepsi recruited Enuff and Biggie collaborator Cey Adams to remaster the track and brought in Antnamation to create the animated visuals.
Back in January, it was announced the Ready to Die emcee would become the second solo rapper after Tupac Shakur to receive the honor. He will be inducted alongside Whitney Houston in a ceremony slated to take place on Nov. 8.
Look below for Pepsi’s tribute to the late Biggie Smalls.