The Notorious B.I.G. – Unbelievable Lyrics

“Unbelievable” was the last song recorded for Ready To Die as the album was ready to be turned in but Biggie specifically wanted to get a street banger from Premo to use as the B-side for his album’s radio-friendly lead single “Juicy.” At the time, Premier lived in the Brooklyn home of musician Branford Marsalis and constantly crossed paths with Biggie, who played him selections from the album.

Preem used “Warning” as inspiration and hooked up the beat while using a line from Biggie’s track “The What” and a line from R. Kelly’s 1993 single “Your Body’s Callin’” for the hook, which was specifically requested by Biggie himself. Since the album was ready for submission before this song’s creation, the budget was closed, so Premier only charged Biggie $5,000 for the track at a time he was an in-demand producer during the boom bap era of the mid-1990s.

DJ Premier provided more details around the creation of “Unbelievable” in a Ready To Die retrospective from XXL and he also talked about the track in Episode 2 of his production series So Wassup:

Unbelievable Lyrics by The Notorious B.I.G.

[Intro]
Biggie Smalls is the illest (Uh)
What? Uh
Biggie— Biggie— Biggie Smalls is the illest
Uh
Biggie Smalls, Biggie— Biggie— Biggie Smalls
Biggie— Biggie— Biggie Smalls is the illest
Uh, yeah
Biggie— Biggie— Biggie Smalls is the illest

[Verse 1]
Live from Bedford-Stuyvesant, the livest one
Representing BK to the fullest
Gats, I pull it
Bastards ducking when B.I.G. be bucking
Chickenheads be clucking, in my back room fucking
It ain’t nothing
They know B.I.G. be handling
With the MAC in the Ac’ door paneling
Bandaging MC’s, oxygen, they can’t breathe
Mad tricks up the sleeve
Wear boxers so my dick can breathe
Breeze through in the Q
Forty-five by my side, lyrical high
And those that rushes my clutches get put on crutches
Get smoked like Dutches from the master
Hate to blast ya but I have to
You see I smoke a lot
Your life is played out like Kwame
And them fucking polka dots
Who rock the spot? Biggie
You know how the weed go, unbelievable
[Chorus]
It’s unbelievable
Biggie Smalls is the illest
It’s unbelievable
Biggie— Biggie— Biggie Smalls is the illest
It’s unbelievable
Biggie— Biggie— Biggie Smalls is the illest
It’s unbelievable
Biggie— Biggie— Biggie Smalls is the illest

[Verse 2]
B-I-G, G-I-E
A-K-A., B-I-G
Get it? Biggie
Also known as the bon appétit
Rappers can’t sleep need sleeping
B.I.G. keep creeping
Bullets heat-seeking, casualties need treating
Dumb rappers need teaching
Lesson A: Don’t fuck with B-I
That’s that “Oh I, thought he was wack”
Oh, come, come now, why y’all so dumb now
Hunt me or be hunted
I got three hundred and fifty-seven ways
To simmer sauté, I’m the winner all day
Lights get dimmer down Biggie’s hallway
My forte causes Caucasians to say
“He sounds demented”
Car weed scented, if I said it, I meant it
Bite my tongue for no one
Call me evil, or unbelievable

[Chorus]
It’s unbelievable
Biggie Smalls is the illest
It’s unbelievable
Biggie— Biggie— Biggie Smalls is the illest
It’s unbelievable
Biggie Smalls is the illest
It’s unbelievable
Biggie— Biggie— Biggie Smalls is the illest

[Verse 3]
Buck shots out the sun roof of Lexus coupes
Leave no witnesses, what you think this is?
Ain’t no amateurs here
I damage and tear, MC’s fear me
They too near not to hear me
Clearly, I’m the triple beam dream
One thousand grams of uncut to the gut
It seems fucked up, the way I touched up the grill
Trying to play gorilla when you ain’t no killer
The gat’s by your liver, your upper lip quiver
Get ready to die, tell God I said hi
And throw down some ice for the nicest MC
Niggas know the steelo, unbelievable

[Chorus]
It’s unbelievable
Biggie Smalls is the illest
It’s unbelievable
Biggie— Biggie— Biggie Smalls is the illest
It’s unbelievable
Biggie— Biggie— Biggie Smalls is the illest
It’s unbelievable
Biggie— Biggie— Biggie Smalls is the illest
[Outro]
It’s unbelievable
Biggie— Biggie— Biggie Smalls is the illest
‘Believable
Biggie— Biggie— Biggie Smalls is the illest
‘Believable
Biggie— Biggie— Biggie Smalls is the illest
Biggie Smalls— Biggie— Biggie— Biggie Smalls
Biggie— Biggie— Biggie Smalls is the illest