--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Biggie was a lyrical genius: he was a…" description: "\"Biggie was a lyrical genius: he was a musical painter with words. As he rapped, you would see the picture come to life as you heard his story. You hear..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af7/r-kelly-2614_genius_biggie-was-a-lyrical-genius-he-was-a-mus_987341.jpg" --- # Biggie was a lyrical genius: he was a musical painter with… ![“Biggie was a lyrical genius: he was a musical painter with words. As he rapped, you would see the picture come to life as you heard his story. You hear a lot of rappers rap; you hear a lot of singers sing, but you don't see the movie in your head the way you do when you hear Biggie rap.” quote by R. Kelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af7/r-kelly-2614_genius_biggie-was-a-lyrical-genius-he-was-a-mus_987341.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af7/r-kelly-2614_genius_biggie-was-a-lyrical-genius-he-was-a-mus_987341.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af7/r-kelly-2614_genius_biggie-was-a-lyrical-genius-he-was-a-mus_987341.jpg) > “Biggie was a lyrical genius: he was a musical painter with words. As he rapped, you would see the picture come to life as you heard his story. You hear a lot of rappers rap; you hear a lot of singers sing, but you don't see the movie in your head the way you do when you hear Biggie rap.” [R. Kelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-kelly/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Biggie’s vivid lyrics create cinematic images, unlike typical rap or singing. **In simple terms:** His words paint pictures in listeners’ minds. Key Takeaway Appreciate storytelling in music. Themes creativity storytelling hip‑hop Mood nostalgic inspired Type analytical appreciative When to use this quote - music criticism - creative writing - teaching lyric analysis Key Concepts visual language lyative depth artistic expression Questions to Reflect On - How does vivid lyricism affect you? - Can you describe a favorite lyrical scene? A Different Perspective Not all listeners visualize; some focus on rhythm. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Genius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/genius/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Picture](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/picture/) [Rapper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rapper/) [Rappers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rappers/) [Story](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/story/) [Words](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/words/) ## Related quotes > [I don't feel that rap has been respected as an art form. Because people have seen rappers rap off the top of their heads,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ice-t/i-don-t-feel-that-rap-has-been-respected-as-an-art-form-because/) [Ice T](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ice-t/) > [I can't really rap the way rappers rap; I drive a 2002 Toyota Avalon.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lil-dicky/i-can-t-really-rap-the-way-rappers-rap-i-drive-a-2002-toyota-avalon/) [Lil Dicky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lil-dicky/) > [I feel like there's a lot of rappers that could out-rap me and I wouldn't want to face any of them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-glover/i-feel-like-there-s-a-lot-of-rappers-that-could-out-rap-me-and-i/) [Donald Glover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-glover/) > [90% of the people that rap are just rappers, they rap what they see, a lot of them exploit other peoples lives, I've been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cormega/90-of-the-people-that-rap-are-just-rappers-they-rap-what-they-see-a/) [Cormega](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cormega/) > [Hip-hop is getting to the point now where they are going to start sounding like Al Jarreau or Bobby McFerrin or some of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-clinton/hip-hop-is-getting-to-the-point-now-where-they-are-going-to-start/) [George Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-clinton/) > [Now honeys play me close like butter play toast, from the mississippi down to the east coast, condos in queens indo for weeks sold…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/biggie-smalls/now-honeys-play-me-close-like-butter-play-toast-from-the-mississippi/) [Biggie Smalls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/biggie-smalls/) > [I listen to a lot of Biggie, he's so lyrical.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megan-thee-stallion/i-listen-to-a-lot-of-biggie-he-s-so-lyrical/) [Megan Thee Stallion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megan-thee-stallion/) > [Drake is a lyrical genius, and he's great with melodies, and Pharrell is an amazing producer and songwriter.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justine-skye/drake-is-a-lyrical-genius-and-he-s-great-with-melodies-and-pharrell/) [Justine Skye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justine-skye/) > [It's a total big difference between a person that got lyrics and a person that can make hit singles. I'm a person that can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/waka-flocka-flame/it-s-a-total-big-difference-between-a-person-that-got-lyrics-and-a/) [Waka Flocka Flame](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/waka-flocka-flame/) > [I didn't get into rap to be no lyrical genius. I got into rap to feed my family and help the people in need…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/waka-flocka-flame/i-didn-t-get-into-rap-to-be-no-lyrical-genius-i-got-into-rap-to-feed/) [Waka Flocka Flame](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/waka-flocka-flame/) > [You don't want R&B singers to get into beef. Leave that to the rappers, let them do that - R&B, be classy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-kelly/you-don-t-want-r-b-singers-to-get-into-beef-leave-that-to-the-rappers/) [R. Kelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-kelly/) > [Ghostface, when it comes to hip-hop, was one of my favorite rappers and definitely one of my favorites in the Wu-Tang. He's also a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/no-i-d/ghostface-when-it-comes-to-hip-hop-was-one-of-my-favorite-rappers-and/) [No I.D](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/no-i-d/) > [I like Biggie. Like 'Pac, he was one of the best rappers in the business. Why would I try to do something to him?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suge-knight/i-like-biggie-like-pac-he-was-one-of-the-best-rappers-in-the-business/) [Suge Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suge-knight/) > [You can't even tell, but a lot of the time your favourite rappers are wearing a bunch of fake jewellery.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vic-mensa/you-can-t-even-tell-but-a-lot-of-the-time-your-favourite-rappers-are/) [Vic Mensa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vic-mensa/) > [I prefer rappers who have something intelligent to say.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jemele-hill/i-prefer-rappers-who-have-something-intelligent-to-say/) [Jemele Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jemele-hill/) ## More by R. Kelly > [Downstairs in my house, I have a museum room. I keep all of my awards down there, and childhood photos, and even all the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-kelly/downstairs-in-my-house-i-have-a-museum-room-i-keep-all-of-my-awards/) [R. Kelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-kelly/) > [If there's no fire, there's no scream. If there's no scream, then no one hears you and no one comes to help you in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-kelly/if-there-s-no-fire-there-s-no-scream-if-there-s-no-scream-then-no-one/) [R. Kelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-kelly/) > [Well, I believe that the depth of your struggle can determine the height of your success. I was inspired to come out of everything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-kelly/well-i-believe-that-the-depth-of-your-struggle-can-determine-the/) [R. Kelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-kelly/) > [You know, I'm no different from a fireman. You got to run into a fire no matter how big the blaze is](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-kelly/you-know-i-m-no-different-from-a-fireman-you-got-to-run-into-a-fire/) [R. Kelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-kelly/) > [Sometimes silence can seem so loud.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-kelly/sometimes-silence-can-seem-so-loud/) [R. Kelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-kelly/) > [They say marriage will change you but it didn't change me. Being in love changed me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-kelly/they-say-marriage-will-change-you-but-it-didn-t-change-me-being-in/) [R. Kelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-kelly/) > [I have always been infatuated with country music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-kelly/i-have-always-been-infatuated-with-country-music/) [R. Kelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-kelly/) > [I gave a Christmas party last year - well, two Christmases ago - where I did a Sam Cooke show. I didn't perform as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-kelly/i-gave-a-christmas-party-last-year-well-two-christmases-ago-where-i/) [R. Kelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-kelly/) > [When you're me, when you're R. Kelly, everybody wants a piece of you, and if you don't give 'em a piece they'll find a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-kelly/when-you-re-me-when-you-re-r-kelly-everybody-wants-a-piece-of-you-and/) [R. Kelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-kelly/) > [I will always do R. Kelly - I'm not perfect, but I'm perfectly me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-kelly/i-will-always-do-r-kelly-i-m-not-perfect-but-i-m-perfectly-me/) [R. Kelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-kelly/) > [I really don't chase songs. I get in the studio, I know what I gotta do; I'm pretty much programmed to do it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-kelly/i-really-don-t-chase-songs-i-get-in-the-studio-i-know-what-i-gotta-do/) [R. Kelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-kelly/) > [I only feel sorry for weak people. And mostly what I've come to find is that the weak people are the ones that are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-kelly/i-only-feel-sorry-for-weak-people-and-mostly-what-i-ve-come-to-find/) [R. Kelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-kelly/) > [I want people to notice my writing abilities are real and that I'm not just stuck in one situation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-kelly/i-want-people-to-notice-my-writing-abilities-are-real-and-that-i-m/) [R. Kelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-kelly/) > [I'm not very good at picking stuff up off the radio. It takes me way too long to learn other people's music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-kelly/i-m-not-very-good-at-picking-stuff-up-off-the-radio-it-takes-me-way/) [R. Kelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-kelly/) > [I've really been writing a lot of country songs. I used to get criticized for doing a 'Bump Grind,' then turning around and doing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-kelly/i-ve-really-been-writing-a-lot-of-country-songs-i-used-to-get/) [R. Kelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-kelly/) [Explore all 158 R. Kelly quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-kelly/) ## More Genius quotes > [“If people fully understand you, they will think of you as a normal, if they half understand you, will think of you as a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-f-moonzajer/if-people-fully-understand-you-they-will-think-of-you-as-a-normal-if/) [M.F. Moonzajer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-f-moonzajer/) > [Woman, in short, has an unconscious life, man a conscious life, and the genius the most conscious life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-weininger/woman-in-short-has-an-unconscious-life-man-a-conscious-life-and-the/) [Otto Weininger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-weininger/) > [ Next came the Patent laws. These began in England in 1624; and, in this country, with the adoption of our constitution. Before then \[these?\],… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/next-came-the-patent-laws-these-began-in-england-in-1624-and-in-this/) [Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/) > [The truth is I've just never had any kind of plan at all for my career, which is probably not a very flattering thing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ty-burrell/the-truth-is-i-ve-just-never-had-any-kind-of-plan-at-all-for-my/) [Ty Burrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ty-burrell/) > [What we shall need is not geniuses, or cynics, or misanthropes, or clever tacticians, but plain, honest, straghtforward men.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-bonhoeffer/what-we-shall-need-is-not-geniuses-or-cynics-or-misanthropes-or/) [Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/) > [I have no physical genius about me. I can't dribble a ball and run at the same time, I can't do lay-ups - I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rich-mullins/i-have-no-physical-genius-about-me-i-can-t-dribble-a-ball-and-run-at/) [Rich Mullins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rich-mullins/) > [I have known many chess players, but among them there has been only one genius - Capablanca!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emanuel-lasker/i-have-known-many-chess-players-but-among-them-there-has-been-only/) [Emanuel Lasker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emanuel-lasker/) > [A time will come when the science of destruction shall bend before the arts of peace; when the genius which multiplies our powers, which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francois-arago/a-time-will-come-when-the-science-of-destruction-shall-bend-before/) [Francois Arago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francois-arago/) > [One is not born a genius, one becomes a genius; and the feminine situation has up to the present rendered this becoming practically impossible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/one-is-not-born-a-genius-one-becomes-a-genius-and-the-feminine/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) > [The beginning of genius is being scared shitless.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-ferdinand-celine/the-beginning-of-genius-is-being-scared-shitless/) [Louis-Ferdinand Celine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-ferdinand-celine/) > [Treason implies responsibility for something, control over something, influence upon something, knowledge of something. Treason in our time is a proof of genius. Why,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/treason-implies-responsibility-for-something-control-over-something/) [Antoine de Saint-Exupery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/) > [Mediocrity knows nothing higher than itself, but talent instantly recognizes genius.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/mediocrity-knows-nothing-higher-than-itself-but-talent-instantly/) [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) > [With the proper training, I could've been an evil genius.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-carlin/with-the-proper-training-i-could-ve-been-an-evil-genius/) [George Carlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-carlin/) > [Never try to judge any one](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajat-dogra/never-try-to-judge-any-one/) [Rajat Dogra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajat-dogra/) > [“genius is a path that we can all take and derive much benefit, happiness, fulfillment, and success from...not a genetic windfall or divine gift.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-patrick/genius-is-a-path-that-we-can-all-take-and-derive-much-benefit/) [Sean Patrick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-patrick/) [Browse all 5,125 Genius quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/genius/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Biggie was a lyrical genius: he was a musical painter with words. As he rapped, you would see the picture come to life as you heard his story. You hear a lot of rappers rap; you hear a lot of singers sing, but you don't see the movie in your head the way you do when you hear Biggie rap.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "R. Kelly" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-kelly/biggie-was-a-lyrical-genius-he-was-a-musical-painter-with-words-as-he/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Genius" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-kelly/biggie-was-a-lyrical-genius-he-was-a-musical-painter-with-words-as-he/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af7/r-kelly-2614_genius_biggie-was-a-lyrical-genius-he-was-a-mus_987341.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af7/r-kelly-2614_genius_biggie-was-a-lyrical-genius-he-was-a-mus_987341.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af7/r-kelly-2614_genius_biggie-was-a-lyrical-genius-he-was-a-mus_987341.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Biggie was a lyrical genius: he was a musical painter with words. As he rapped, you would see the picture…” — R. Kelly", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "R. Kelly", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-kelly/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Biggie was a lyrical genius: he...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-kelly/biggie-was-a-lyrical-genius-he-was-a-musical-painter-with-words-as-he/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-kelly/biggie-was-a-lyrical-genius-he-was-a-musical-painter-with-words-as-he/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```