Music

Faith Evans was married to The Notorious B.I.G. when he died in 1997. The two had one child together. Their relationship was riddled with infidelity and several breakups.

Updated on November 20, 2023

Published on March 9, 2022

Although they were not together at the time of his death, Faith Evans and The Notorious B.I.G. remain forever linked. More than 25 years after the death of the hip-hop icon, Evans has played a major role in keeping Biggie’s legacy alive. She opened up about where the celebrity relationship stood leading up to Biggie’s death.

Why did Faith Evans and Biggie separate?

Faith Evans and The Notorious B.I.G.’s relationship was riddled with cheating on Biggie’s end. But after Biggie’s former friend turned rival released “Hit Em Up,” a diss track that alleged Tupac Shakur slept with Evans, Biggie and Evans’ relationship grew even more rocky. They tried to rekindle things during Christmas 1996 as Evans detailed in her memoir Keep The Faith, but she found out the rapper was still seeing other women. 

Evans became pregnant with the couple’s son, and Biggie publicly denied that he was the father. They split a final time and Evans began dating another man, Todd Russau. Still, there was clear love between the two.

In a 2019 episode of Evans’ TV One’s Uncensored special, she revealed details of her last run-in with Biggie. They attended the same party at the Peterson Automotive Museum in Los Angeles. Friends in Evans’ entourage spotted Biggie and asked Evans if she would go and speak to him, which she denied.

Biggie sent one of his close friends to get Evans’ attention. “He made sure he sent Cease over to where me and my friends were,” she said. “He [Cease] said that B.I.G. said what’s up to me and I told him to tell him [B.I.G.] the same.” After leaving the party, she heard of a nearby shooting and that Biggie was injured. 

How Faith Evans has paid tribute to The Notorious B.I.G.

Unfortunately, when Evans arrived at the hospital, she was informed that Biggie didn’t make it.  She immediately stepped into wife mode and had the difficult task of identifying his body at the coroner’s office. Evans also made the call to her mother-in-law to break the painful news and helped to plan Biggie’s memorial service.

Just two months after Biggie’s death, Evans teamed up with Biggie’s friend and mentor, Diddy, to memorialize him via song. In May 1997, they released a tribute single, “I’ll Be Missing You.” The song samples the Police’s 1983 hit single, “Every Breath You Take.” It won the Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group.

In 2017, Evans released a collaborative project featuring songs with Biggie in an album titled The King & I. She also works closely with his estate on a variety of projects.

Faith Evans and Biggie’s son is an actor

Faith Evans gave birth to Biggie’s baby on Oct. 29, 1996. Christopher Wallace, Jr. was born just four months after his father’s death.

Wallace, Jr. played the young version of his father in the 2009 biopic Notorious. He followed that up with roles in films such as Everything Must Go, Monsters and Men, and She’s Missing. He also had a main role in season 3 of Scream: Resurrection.

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