Rolling Stone has obtained an exclusive excerpt from R. Kelly's upcoming biography 'Soulacoaster: The Diary of Me.'
In the excerpt, R. Kelly talks about making Biggie cry with "I Believe I Can Fly":
One time we were on tour together and we were staying at the same hotel in Detroit. It was late and the after-party was over. The hotel-lobby party was over. The hotel-room party was over. There were still people hanging out in the lobby. And I was back in the lobby where they had this piano. I had just recalled that childhood dream with the cartoon characters chasing me. I remember the melody from that dream and was trying to figure out the rest of the lyrics, working on what would become "I Believe I Can Believe Fly." Biggie and his crew came in the lobby about four in the morning.
Hit the jump as the story continues.
"What's up, baby! Great show, baby! What you doing?"
He came over to the piano, and I started to play it for him: "I believe I can fly, I believe I can touch the sky . . ." but so far that's all I had.
"I'm gonna tell you right now, B, that's a smash. That's a big hit right there. That's a Grammy winner, Rob."
When I was playing it for him, I was thinking – he's a hardcore rapper; this is gonna be too soft for him – but when I got through and looked up, his face was wet with tears.
"My brother," he said, "they gonna be playing that when you and I have moved on to the other side of time."
I was blown completely away because here was one of the greatest in rap, recognizing a song that was about humanity, about uplifting people and feeling the power of the song that took me beyond Biggie the rapper or Biggie the writer. That connected me with Biggie the man. Biggie was the first person to hear me sing "I Believe I Can Fly." That was a great moment.
Comments