2Pac

Released: July 21, 1998

Songwriter: Davey D

Producer: The Stealth Music Group

Davey D: In 1991, Tupac got his first real taste of trouble when he was stopped for jay walking in downtown Oakland. According to Pac, the police officers did not take a liking to his name, for they said some unfavorable things. Pac in return responded and the result was him being arrested and brutalized. This incident resulted in him filing a 10 million dollar lawsuit against the City of Oakland. It wasn't long afterwards that Tupac released the first of his six albums. The first was entitled 2Pocalypse Now and it highlighted Tupac’s passionate, political, and thug life side. Songs like "Trap" while politically on point, stirred up much of the controversy when it depicted an Oakland police officer being shot at the end of the video. This particular song caught the attention of Dan Quayle, who expressed his outrage. Other songs like "Brenda Got a Bay" brought attention to the emotional and heartfelt side of the rising star. Tupac gained national fame when he played the role of Roland Bishop, a violent, insecure, short-tempered, psychotic individual, and the blockbuster movie Juice. Initially, director Ernest Dickerson had invited Digitial Underground's Money B to audition for the movie. Tupac went along for the ride. Once there, he read the part cold turkey and was hired to play his role, which left many wondering if Tupac was acting or just being himself. As Tupac's popularity began to soar, so did his troubles. In the Summer of ’92 while attending Marine City's 50th Anniversary, Tupac and his entourage had a confrontation with some old acquaintances. During the ensuing fight, a gun was drawn, shots were fired, and a little six-year-old laid dead as an innocent bystander. Tupac's brother Mercedes, who at the time rapped for the group Tony! Toni! Toné! and later for Thug Life, was arrested and charged. Eventually he was let go for lack of evidence. Tupac later found himself embroiled in more controversy when a Texas cop was shot and killed. The widow of the slain officer filed the multi-million dollar civil suit against Tupac, claiming that it was his music and lyrics that influenced the young perpetrator to kill. If that wasn't enough, also in that year, Tupac while visiting the set of Fox TV's In Living Color had an altercation with the limo driver. The result was him being arrested and charged with assault. Eventually the charges would drop. Seemingly wherever Tupac went, trouble followed. First Tupac found himself being charged with assault after he and a group of friends beat up the film directors known as the Hughes Brothers. This incident stemmed from him being fired from the movie Menace II Society.

(-Ciety, -ciety, -ciety, -ciety)

Tupac Amaru Shakur (June 16, 1971 – September 13, 1996), known by his stage names 2Pac and Makaveli, was an actor and a highly influential rapper who is considered by many to be the greatest of all-time due to the revolutionary spirit and thug passion he mixed into his music. During his music career, he made appearances in movies such as his acclaimed debut in Juice (1992), Poetic Justice (1993), and Above the Rim (1994).

Born in Harlem, New York City to Black Panther Party members Billy Garland and Afeni Shakur, Tupac would later move to Baltimore before settling in the Bay Area cities of Oakland and Marin City in the late 1980s. There, he joined his first rap group Strictly Dope with Ray Luv before connecting with Shock G and Digital Underground. He was a roadie and backup dancer for the group before his breakthrough performance on their 1991 song “Same Song.”

2Pac released his debut album 2Pacalypse Now in 1991, which featured intense storytelling on singles such as “Trapped” and “Brenda’s Got a Baby.” His sophomore album Strictly 4 My N.I.G.G.A.Z featured one of his signature songs, the Digital Underground-assisted “I Get Around.” After working on the Thug Life group album in 1994, 2Pac released Me Against the World the following year, which is considered by many to be his best album, peaking at #1 on the Billboard 200 and receiving a Grammy nomination—all while he sat in prison.

more tracks from the album

In His Own Words

From the album

In His Own Words (1998)

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Trouble Followed (Davey D)2Pac

2Pac

In His Own Words