Big Pun was the stage name for Christopher Lee Rios, a Grammy-nominated rapper
whose solo debut, Capital Punishment, was the first hip-hop record by a solo
Latino artist to achieve platinum status. Born in New York City on November 10,
1971, he was raised in the Bronx, where he began rapping under the name Big Moon
Dawg. After changing his alias to Big Punisher (and subsequently shortening it
to Big Pun), he met fellow Bronx-based rapper Fat Joe in 1995, making his
commercial debut as a guest artist on Fat Joe's second album, Jealous One's
Envy. Big Pun scored an underground hit ...