The mystery surrounding the tragic death of Notorious BIG, who was killed at the age of 24 in a shooting on March 9, 1997, remains unsolved. Now, a new documentary, Diddy: The Making of a Bad Boydelves into the rumors linking Sean “Diddy” Combs to the incident. The documentary premiered on Peacockincludes interviews with members of Diddy’s inner circle, including his former bodyguard, Gene Deal.
“So was he directly involved in that? He may have been involved,” Deal says in the film. Deal, who worked with Diddy from 1991 to 2005, recalled the events leading up to the murder. He described Diddy as unusually nervous in the week before the shooting, which allegedly prevented Biggie from traveling to London despite Biggie’s plans.
Biggie “told everyone he had to be in London… [but] Puff told everyone he wouldn’t be going to London at all that week,” Deal also said in the documents New York Post Office.
Deal shares how he learned of the last-minute decision while attending a party thrown by ‘Vibe’ magazine after the Soul Train Awards — a party Biggie attended before he was shot and killed.
“I was sitting at the Beverly Hills Hotel and I got a phone call. It was about 9 o’clock. They said, ‘Gene, get ready, we’re going to the Vibe party,'” he recalls. Concerned about the escalating East Coast/West Coast feud following the murder of Tupac Shakur, Deal warned Diddy of the potential danger. “I said, ‘Hey man, if we go to the party tonight, one of us will get killed.'”
After leaving the ‘Vibe’ party, Biggie and Diddy traveled in separate cars. Deal recalls the chilling moment the shot was fired. “Next thing you know you hear, ‘Pow! Pow! Pow! Pow!'” Biggie was hit four times while sitting in his car. As they took him to the hospital, Deal said Biggie’s last words were “Just do it.”
Reflecting on the tragedy, Deal shared the emotional burden of that night. He said: “For many years, I could not hold back my tears when I heard the news that the young man was murdered.
The documentary also highlights Diddy’s denial of any involvement in Biggie’s murder. His lawyers called the allegations “baseless,” while executive producer Ari Mark admitted, “It feels like there’s more to the story.”
— Originally published on Enstarz
Tags Diddy, Notorious BIG