Chattanooga music scene mourns loss of local rapper

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (WDEF) — A Chattanooga rapper was the victim of a homicide earlier this week.

James McReynolds, better known as ‘Biggie Moe,’ was reported to be shot in his vehicle on January 9.

The local rapper was 57 years old at the time of his passing.

He leaves behind an impact on the local music industry and his loved ones.

“Biggie Moe… He was a creative. He had a God-given talent man to be able to create at any given moment. Like any given moment. Something would happen and it would spark an idea and he didn’t wait. He kept his Bluetooth speaker with him. He kept his notepad with him. We could literally be in a nightclub like at 2 in the morning and Biggie Moe would get an idea and he would pull his pad out and right the idea down in the middle of the nightclub. Like he was that persistent on not missing the opportunity to create,” friend and artist Lil Mo Films said.

Chattanooga rapper, Biggie Moe, was killed in a homicide on Tuesday, Jan. 9. Lil Mo Films shared this image of the duo.

Local R&B, Hip Hop radio station, Power 94 shared some of their experiences with the artist.

“Biggie Moe was that guy who always had a song. He had a song in his heart, and he had a song in his head. And he always wanted you to hear it. And he would always ask you to come listen to it– if you had time to go sit in a car and listen to it, the whole production with the music and everything, if you didn’t have time, he’d just start singing it to you right there on the street. He was that guy,” Operations Manager for Brewer Broadcasting, Keith Landecker said.

Power 94 has a recurring segment called, Street Flava that features local artists every hour.

“Everybody here at Power 94, we’re all saddened by the news. We felt like he was a friend at the station. If we saw him out, he was always going to recognize and come up to us… Address us about his music, perform a little bit for us… But he really impacted the music scene, greater than he interacted with us. We’re on the back end of it– we’re getting his finished products and some of his ideas. But there’s a lot of artists that he was working with day to day that he really supported, or they really supported him. So, there’s a lot of people that are going to hurt a lot from this, or are hurting a lot from this,” Digital Media Manager/On-Air Personality at Power 94, Big Tula said.

Tula said Biggie submitted lots of music over the years for consideration for their rotations–Street Flava in particular.

“It’s sad that this is how some of our community members are going to learn about Biggie Moe. I’m happy that they are getting to know this man and see the positive person he was. And the big personality that he was. It’s sad that this is the reason some people are introduced to him. He definitely deserves all the flowers that he’s getting now. I know some of the organizations that do music have given him flowers over the years, so I applaud them for thinking in advance making sure that he was appreciated before this. Because a lot of times we don’t get to do that in time. So I’m just glad he did get those positive affirmations before. And I’m glad that he’s getting it now, because he deserves it,” Tula said.

One of his last songs is titled, “If the Good Lord Wakes You Up.”

Friend of the artist, Lil Mo said, “If the Good Lord Wakes You Up,  you have a chance to make it. I’m trying to hold back my tears… He told me– he said, ‘Mo I think this the song.’ He said, ‘I think this the one.’”

As many are reflecting on his legacy, they are paying tribute to his music.

“You know, I’m going to miss him man. I’m going to miss him. You know, whenever it came to encouraging words…  I think we took it for granted man. We just figured he was gonna always be here. You know, Biggie Moe gonna be here. But he’s gone,” Lil Mo said.

While many in the community are mourning his loss, the circumstances surrounding Biggie Moe’s death are still under investigation.

“The senseless violence that continues to happen, I don’t know how we can move forward and get past all this… But there’s something that’s gotta happen. Because I mean to lose somebody like this… that I don’t know of anybody that had any ill will towards him or any bad feelings towards him. It’s been… A lot of people like this. It’s senseless. It makes no sense… It just keeps happening and it’s sad every time. There’s been plenty of artists that have sent me their music and before I can even review it or get it out, they’re no longer here. I do take some happiness in knowing that he heard himself over the years– on the radio. And that he knew that we supported the music that he’s put out,” Tula said.

“He impacted Chattanooga a lot. A great big impact. And not just Chattanooga because– Moe wasn’t just a local legend, he held his thing down in Texas, Indianapolis, Ohio, and a lot of other places like you’ll be surprised. He’s been doing his thing since the early 90s maybe late 80s. You’ll be surprised. He’s going to leave an everlasting impact on everyone he came across,” friend and artist, Cho Chaser said.

Cho Chaser also described his time in and out of the studio with Moe as meaningful: “It was a great experience. A very great experience. Full of life when you’re in the studio, full of life out of the studio. He was like a big brother, he was like an uncle at the same time. I always said, ‘Moe you’re like an uncle. You’re old enough to be an uncle.’ But he was like, ‘Cho you’re my brother.’ And we was always together- Moe and Cho.”

Lil Mo said, “Biggie Moe was older than us. He was like the first person we looked at like a superstar.”

He went on to praise Biggie’s sense of style and iconic white suit.

“He had this white suit. Now he put a lot of stuff on, but when he put the white suit on, when Biggie Moe put the white suit on, it’s finna go down. When he hit the room, you knew he was there. He had a big presence. He could literally change the vibe in a room. He could change the whole room when he walked in it. You know, he was just light it up, man,” Lil Mo Films said.

Lil Mo is proposing for the city to honor Biggie Moe by putting his classic white suit in the Bessie Smith Hall.

He wants to honor what Biggie brought to the local music industry in Chattanooga.

“We’ve had people in this community who have made it big in the music industry. Because local music is that vibrant, and more importantly, it’s that good. We’ve had people like Usher who’s come out of this and made it big because Usher got his ‘big break.’ Well then there’s a lot of people who are like the backbone of the local music scene. Some of them don’t get that big break. But they’re just as important because they’re the kind of people who have laid the tracks for the local music scene in this city. And Biggie Moe is one of those dudes that – he helped lay the tracks. He was one of those guys that always had music,” Landecker said.

The operations manager continued to compliment the local music scene in Chattanooga by saying, “Here’s the great thing about our Street Flava program, we been doing it for over 25 years, and we’ve never run out of music. We have never run out of music. That is amazing.”

“He didn’t get his big break, but around here in Chattanooga, he was big. That’s why we called him Biggie Moe. Cause he was out doing what he does… and boy, we always loved getting some music from him. He would stop you anywhere, and if you had time, he would sing it. And not only just sing the hooks, he would sing everybody’s part– he was just a guy that is going to be missed. He really is,” Landecker said.