“Hi My Baby!”
That signature saying from Big Ang (Angela Raiola – star of VH1’s hit reality show “Mob Wives” and her spinoffs ‘Big Ang” and “Miami Monkey”) was just one of the many things we can remember about her. Big Ang sadly passed away in February after a battle with cancer. Wednesday (March 9) marked the series finale of the “Mob Wives” and as the tagline of the show goes, ‘What’s Done Is Done.’ After the final episode, VH1 hosted a special tribute titled ‘Larger Than Life: A Celebration of Big Ang’, hosted by Nina Parker and radio personality Nessa.
I attended the tribute taping which was filmed on Monday (March 7) at the Viacom building located in Times Square. The studio space had disco ball lights, a Drunken Monkey bar (named after Big Ang’s bar located in Staten Island), white zebra pillows on white leather couches with bling embedded on them, iconic lip art, and huge photos of Big Ang on the walls. The audience received wine and at the end of the taping everybody did a shot of Patron in her honor – as it was her favorite – and as she always said, “party, party, party!”
Big Ang’s family, including her children AJ and Raquel and her sister Janine, attended the special, her “Miami Monkey” co-star Marissa Sabatelli was also in attendance, as well as longtime friend Lana Graziano – sister to Renee Graziano (star of “Mob Wives:) and Jenn Graziano (creator and executive producer of “Mob Wives.”) The long list of celebrities who attended and spoke included: Nicole ‘Snooki’ Polizzi, Yandy Smith, Carmen Carrera, Dr. Jenn Mann, Joe Budden and Vinny Guadagnino . Video messages were sent in from Teresa Giudice, Andy Cohen, Kim Zolciak, Jenni ‘JWoww’ Farley, DJ Pauly D, Dr. Mehmet Oz, Joy Behar, Michelle Buteau, Vivica A. Fox, Jackie Christie, Mimi Faust, Shaunie O’Neal, VH1 ‘Black Ink Crew’ and Love & Hip Hop Atlanta star Stevie interacted on Facetime. Due to air time constraints not all conversations that were filmed got to be shown, so as an audience member I got to see exclusive, and touching, footage.
Ang’s friends, who also were her “Mob Wives” co-stars, had nothing but wonderful things to say about her. Carla reminisced on how Ang would call her up and be like, “Carla, I have someone to set you up with.” Renee and Karen remembered their long history of friendship with Big Ang and how amazing she is. Drita discussed how Big Ang made her laugh harder than anyone ever has and the importance of having old school characteristic traits. As Drita put it, “They don’t cut people from that same cloth anymore.”
Big Ang’s death has brought awareness to the dangers of smoking cigarettes and the increasing number of people who are losing their lives to cancer. The audience was told to stand up if they had lost a loved one to cancer and, unsurprisingly, just about everyone in the studio stood up – including myself. This is why we can all take a cue from Big Ang to live our lives to the fullest. Be the peacemaker and bigger person. Work hard and spend your money because you deserve it and you can’t take it with you when you go. Wake up every day with a positive attitude. Cherish your loved ones and stay true to yourself. Always remember that family comes first over everything. Be the type of person that Big Ang was! Her legacy will live on through all of us.