R&B singer Sean Kingston has been cast to play slain Hip-Hop icon Christopher “Notorious B.I.G.” Wallace in an upcoming biopic about the rapper’s rise to fame and his violent death.
Kingston, who is enjoying the success of his massive hit single “Beautiful Girls,” beat out hundreds of hopefuls who hoped to land a role in Notorious, which is being executive produced by Sean “Diddy” Combs.
“When I first heard about that movie, it was through management,” Kingston said. “My management told me about it and, you know, I had auditioned for it and I met with the director and I nailed it and he gave me a shot now at being in the movie.”
Kingston’s “Beautiful Girls” has been the #1 single on the Billboard Hot 100 for the past four weeks.
The 17-year-old singer stated that he has taken acting lessons in the past.
“I went to acting school when I was younger,” Kingston said. “I want to get into every aspect of the business and see where it takes me. I’m grateful for the fact that my music is able to bridge genres – I’m ready to do that will any business opportunity that comes my way – it’s always been important to for me not to limit myself.”
Producers for Notorious include B.I.G.’s mother Voletta Wallace and his former managers Mark Pitts and Wayne Barrow, while George Tillman will direct the film, which was written by journalists Cheo Hodari Coker and Reggie Rock Bythewood.
Christopher “Notorious B.I.G.” Wallace was shot and killed in on March 9, 1997 in a drive-by shooting in Los Angeles, just six months after rap rival Tupac Shakur was cut down in hail of bullets in Las Vegas.
Both murders remains unsolved.