The former host of MTV’s Top Of The Pops had been scheduled to meet with Biggie but the rapper missed his flight and stayed back in Los Angeles, California.
EastEnders’ Richard Blackwood has claimed that rap legend Biggie Smalls could have been alive today if he had met up with him like he’d planned. On the day of Biggie, real name Christopher Wallace’s, death, the star was supposed to catch a flight to London, to get interviewed by actor and presenter, Richard. The former host of MTV’s Top Of The Pops had been scheduled to meet with Biggie but the rapper missed his flight and stayed back in Los Angeles, California.
Hours later, Biggie met his tragic fate. On 9th March 1977, Biggie was murdered in a drive-by shooting. An unidentified man stepped out and wounded him with four bullets, and despite being rushed to hospital for emergency surgery, Biggie died at the age of just 24.
On the Winners Talking podcast, Richard said that if Biggie had flown down to London like he’d planned, his fate could’ve possible been different.
Recalling the incident, Richard said: “Back then, he was supposed to fly to the UK to do an interview that was with me.
“So literally, like, he was supposed to fly to the UK to just do an interview with me. It was supposed to be in Yo! Sushi in Dean Street in the West End.
“I got to work… this is before the internet. I got to work and they said, ‘Oh, he’s dead’. And I said, ‘Don’t be stupid, that’s not even a funny joke’. They said, ‘No, he died a few hours ago’.
“I’m like, ‘Stop it’ and they go, ‘No, no no. We’ve got to do a new show. He’s dead. He got shot’.”
Back in 2009, the film Notorious was released in cinemas globally. The biography style production depicts the life of Biggie, from the start of his rap career to his awful demise.
On the podcast, Richard opened up about how he felt watching the film expressing that his ‘heart sunk’.
Richard said: “I watched that movie and there’s a scene in the car where Faith Evans is saying to him, ‘Aren’t you supposed to be in London now?'”
“Every time I see that scene my heart goes [sinking gesture] because he was specifically coming for my interview. And he just chose to miss the flight and he died.
“I say that to say, that these things are normal to me. If he had seen me, he would probably still be alive to this day.
“I’m a part of that history, as distant as it is. I’m a part of that. Do you understand what I’m saying?
“To me it’s the norm because, ‘Yeah, B.I.G knew who I was because he was coming to see me’.”
Like this story? For more of the latest showbiz news and gossip, follow Mirror Celebs on TikTok , Snapchat , Instagram , Twitter , Facebook , YouTube and Threads .
