By Nick Neofiditis
As you enter the NYC borough of Brooklyn, there's a sign that reads very bluntly: "Welcome to Brooklyn: Believe the Hype." That sign never read more true than last night as I walked out of the "Notorious" movie premiere in New York.
Surrounded by the likes of Puffy, Mrs. Wallace, Biggie's managers Marc Pitts and Wayne Barrow, Mary J., Lil' Cease, Busta Rhymes, Jay-Z, Beyoncé, Nas, Jadakiss, Faith Evans, a host of family and friends of the late rapper, virtually all of the cast from the film and just about anyone who matters in the hip-hop industry — it's hard to believe I even managed to score a seat in the theater! Besides being privileged enough to enjoy the premiere of the film in such company, I also got a chance to hear and see the reactions of the crowd during the movie and as we flooded out of the theater.
Like the scene in "Notorious" when Puffy is telling Big about the deal he made with Clive Davis — for $42 million — someone in the audience snickered out loud, "That's it!?" It got a good laugh. Seeing people's faces as the murder scene and funeral unfolded was pretty amazing too. You could feel the tension — and believe me, we had tears (yours truly got pretty caught up in the moment!).
Leaving the theater, I saw Diddy congratulating and hugging everyone from Mark Pitts to Lil' Cease. He took tons of pictures with fans and even Julia Pace Mitchell who plays Jan in the film, was excited to meet him and take a picture. You could hear everyone saying how good the film was, rappers and crews shaking hands and hugging it out. Industry execs and interns gave glances of congrats ... the love and feeling of accomplishment was there for fans, and for people who knew Big personally.
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