Total just dropped a surprising revelation about one of hip-hop’s most legendary songs, The Notorious B.I.G.’s “Juicy.”
During their appearance on The Breakfast Club, group members Kima Raynor and Kesha Spivey shared how their vocals ended up on the track—and why they were never credited as featured artists.
“The story behind how we wind up recording ‘Juicy,’ Big was like our little big brother,” Kima explained. “We were close with Big, so we would frequently be in New York hanging out in the studio with him. So he called us one day. He was like, ‘Come to the city.’ He was in the studio. So we went to the studio and he was playing ‘Juicy.’”
She continued, “Kesha started humming something. Biggie was like, ‘Y’all should go in there and put that down.’ So he, you know, just gave us some words or whatever and we went in there and we put it down.”
What started as a casual studio visit turned into an unplanned contribution to one of rap’s most iconic debut singles. Kima added that Diddy called them back the next day to record vocals for “One More Chance,” another Biggie classic that further solidified Total’s legacy within Bad Boy Records.
While the song’s unmistakable hook has always been linked to Total, the group explained why their names never appeared as featured artists when “Juicy” dropped back in 1994.
“It says it now when you Google it, but I assume that it wasn’t necessarily supposed to have been a feature for Biggie because it was his first single,” Kima shared. “And, you know, we were new. I don’t think it was something that was planned — we were just in the studio, and we actually got in trouble because our manager was like, ‘Don’t do that no more.’ But I just think they didn’t plan for his first album to have a feature on it.”
Even without an official credit, Total’s smooth, soulful vocals became an essential part of “Juicy,” helping to define its timeless sound and cement its place as one of hip-hop’s most celebrated anthems.
