Month: May 2026

It’s a tall order to choose the best rapper of all time. There are so many beloved artists to choose from. But one late artist was the choice of more than 259,000 people.

The wildly popular poll was posted by Ranker. The site ranked the top 250th rappers of all time. And one musician was ranked at the top. The number one slot was held by the Notorious B.I.G. According to Ranker, he was known for his “powerful storytelling and unparalleled flow,” and “changed the landscape of East Coast hip-hop in the ’90s.”

Who Were the Top 5 Top Ranked Rappers of All Time?

Who came next? The Notorious B.I.G.’s West Coast rival, Tupac Shakur. Both men, of course, met early deaths after being shot. The site noted Tupac’s “profound lyrics.”

Kendrick Lamar clocked in at number three on the list. Eminem was fourth. The fifth-place rapper was Nas.

You can read the full list on Ranker. Other lists have placed Notorious B.I.G. lower. For example, a list of the best rappers by Billboard has Jay-Z in the top spot, and Notorious B.I.G. is sixth. “Building a reputation for delivering gritty tales in a laid-back style, accented by deep-toned, rumbling vocals and a signature dark sense of humor, Biggie went on to score 16 Hot 100 hits,” that site wrote.

A list on IMDb has Shakur in the top spot. Notorious B.I.G. places second on that list. “A contender for best rapper of all time and a gifted East Coast storyteller whose gritty, objective realism won him enormous respect and credibility,” All Music wrote of him.

Biggie Smalls AKA Notorious B.I.G. Was Only 24 Years Old When He Died

It’s fairly astonishing to realize that Notorious B.I.G. was only 24 when he died, given his influential impact on the genre.

Christopher Wallace, aka Biggie Smalls and the Notorious B.I.G., “lived a short life. He was 24 years old when he was gunned down in 1997 in Los Angeles, a murder that has never been solved,” according to Biography.com.

“Smalls was from New York and had almost single-handedly reinvented East Coast hip hop — overtaken in the early 1990s by the West Coast ‘g-funk’ sound of Dr. Dre and Death Row Records,” that site reports. His death may be caught up in that rivalry.

“With his clear, powerful baritone, effortless flow on the mic and willingness to address the vulnerability, as well as the harshness, of the hustler lifestyle, Smalls swung the spotlight back towards New York and his label home, Bad Boy Records,” Biography.com reported.

“In just a few short years, the Notorious B.I.G. went from a Brooklyn street hustler to the savior of East Coast hip-hop to a tragic victim of the culture of violence he depicted so realistically on his records,” noted All Music. After his death, he “became a symbol of the senseless violence that plagued inner-city America in the waning years of the 20th century,” All Music wrote, noting that Notorious B.I.G.’s life and death were both a product of his time.

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Costco’s beloved hot dog combo has stayed the same for 40 years. Fans can get a hot dog with soda for $1.50. It’s a Costco deal staple.

And now there’s something new. “The Costco food court formerly only allowed people to pair their hot dog with a 20-oz. soda,” wrote People. Customers can now get the combo with a bottle of water instead, and People noted that this is the first change to the popular combo in four decades. Added People, “The hot dog combo has a devoted fan base, and the brand has promised in turn not to raise its price.”

Fans Had Mixed Reactions to the Costco Hot Dog Combo Change

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A fan shared a screenshot on Instagram revealing the change. “I love that Costco is now also offering the hot dog combo with water!” the fan wrote.

Customer response on the fan’s Instagram thread was swift. Not everyone was thrilled. “There’s a water button on the fountain drinks. So hmmmm. Stupid move,” wrote one person.

Some fans quibbled over the $1.50 price, with one writing, “This doesn’t make sense. I noticed they removed the bottled water vending machine that was 25¢ so shouldn’t it be $1.25? Just sayin’.” Wrote another, “It’s bizarre they took the machines w/bottled water away…I always got a bottle or 2 on my way out…no forewarning or sign…BIZARRE!!”

There’s even a Reddit thread devoted to the change. “They’ve had this option in Canada for a while. I don’t drink pop, so I was stoked for the new option as I used to just get the hot dog with no drink before haha,” a fan noted on that thread.

According to Fox Business, the typical combo consists of a “$1.50 quarter-pound all-beef hot dog and 20-ounce soda.” The change allows customers to instead get a “16.9-ounce bottle of Kirkland Signature water,” Fox Business reported.

Fox noted that people can still get the original combo with the soda instead, which also comes with free refills. So, the combo isn’t really changing unless people desire the healthier option.

The Costco Hotdog Combo Change Has Also Made the Rounds on TikTok

One fan shared a TikTok showing the new water and hot dog combo.

“Let’s go to Costco and pick up the hot dogs. They now offer water choices with a hotd og. They used to only give me the soda cups without the soda because I couldn’t carry 200 cups of soda. Now I can get the water,” that customer wrote, going up to the counter at a Costco, while pushing a shopping cart.

That video generated almost 500,000 likes. It was posted in November 2025, showing that the change has actually been available to customers for some time. It’s just that the change is suddenly creating a social media buzz, meaning that more people are finding out about it. The change was made without fanfare.

Some people liked the change. “So happy to see water bottles available for the hotdog combos you get now!! That seems a lot more helpful than the empty cups,” a woman wrote on the TikTok video.

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Fans of The Crown on Netflix have watched as the series moved through history. First, viewers were treated to a young Princess Elizabeth as she inherits the throne following her father’s death.

Then, the now-Queen deals with family dramas and the introduction of Princess Diana to the Royal Family. The Crown subsequently dealt with Diana’s tragic death. Many fans expected that the show would logically move on to current angles, such as the Queen’s death, and the conflicts with Prince Harry and his wife, the former Meghan Markle.

Instead, it appears that Netflix will be moving back in time, as the streaming giant is on board with a prequel.

The Crown Will Reportedly Feature Queen Victoria’s Death

Daily Mail broke the story that the production company for The Crown “has got the green light to create the new project which will span the period from Queen Victoria‘s death in 1901 to the wedding of the then Princess Elizabeth in 1947.”

A source told Daily Mail, “Netflix has been locked in negotiations with the company for quite a long time about this spin-off series, but they’ve recently finally managed to seal the deal and come to an agreement.”

Netflix has not formally confirmed this information, though. According to Town and Country, the time frame means the show would dial back to cover the reigns of four kings: Edward VII, George V, Edward VIII, and George VI, which occurred between the rules of both Victoria and Queen Elizabeth II. The latter ruled for 70 years.

The time frame also means that Edward’s abdication due to the Wallis Simpson romance would be covered. The aftermath of the abdication, including Queen Elizabeth II’s coolness toward her uncle, was featured in previous seasons of The Crown, but the series started after Edward had already abdicated the throne, changing forever the trajectory of the young Princess Elizabeth, whose adored father would die relatively young.

Queen Victoria’s Death Caught People by Surprise

Since The Crown closely tracks real-life events, what happened in real life when Queen Victoria died?

Victoria’s death was monumentally important. “When Queen Victoria died at the age of 81 on 22 January 1901, it took her family, court and subjects by surprise – very few had been able to contemplate the mortality of the monarch who had ruled over Britain and its empire for almost 64 years,” History Extra wrote. “Her death marked the end of the Victorian era.”

The queen suffered a number of stressors and tragedies in the lead up to her death. According to History Extra, her son died of throat cancer, her daughter was struggling with cancer, The Boer war was raging, her other son was shot, and her grandson died of a fever.

Victoria was fading dramatically before she died. “She was confined to a wheelchair, almost blind and had lapses of memory and moments of confusion,” History Extra reported. Chaos erupted after Victoria’s death, giving Netflix a lot to work with.

According to Daily Mail, casting for the prequel has not yet been determined.

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