ARTIST

Tupac Shakur

Tupac Shakur will go down in history as the rapper who always lived up to his wild reputation. Always known as a gifted rapper and a brilliant lyricist, Tupac was often touted as being the Marvin Gaye of hip-hop, complex and talented, but a "Trouble Man" to the core. He parlayed his music career into a successful film career and was one of the hardest-working men in show biz, churning out five albums, five films, and numerous guest appearances in just under five years. Tupac led a full life and accomplished a great deal before his murder in 1996.

Born in jail and raised in Oakland, California by a former member of the Black Panthers, Tupac began his career as a backup dancer for Digital Underground, a northern California rap group. Soon, the charismatic Tupac began rapping in the group and then left to pursue a solo career. His brilliant 1991 debut was 2Pacalypse Now. Tupac followed up his debut with a hardcore masterpiece that responded to the controversies surrounding him and featured appearances by the other two most controversial West Coast rappers, Ice-T and Ice Cube. It also spawned two breakthrough singles "Keep Ya Head Up" and "I Get Around." Tupac also starred in the Janet Jackson movie Poetic Justice, another glimpse into the vulnerable side of this multi-faceted artist, and Above The Rim, a basketball movie with a soundtrack produced by former N.W.A. rapper and current A-list rap producer, Dr. Dre.

Tupac recorded his next record, Me Against The World, for Dre's Death Row Records, but found himself in prison when it was released. Featuring the hit single "Dear Mama," Me Against The World was a moodier, more introspective album, finding Tupac looking and sounding less like a thug and more like the sensitive man he claimed to have become. Once out of prison, the freshly energized rapper spent months in the studio recording his double album opus, the first of its kind in hip-hop, All Eyez On Me, which featured a duet with Dr. Dre titled "California Love" and guest turns by Snoop Doggy Dogg, George Clinton, Roger Troutman, and Method Man. He also managed to shoot two more films (Gridlock'd and Gang Related), make numerous guest appearances on other rappers' records, and record a pseudo-follow-up entitled The Don Killuminati: The 7 Day Theory before he was shot in Las Vegas in 1996. He death was a major blow to the rap community and heated up the already steaming East vs. West rivalry. Many people believed his death was orchestrated by rival label Bad Boy and their main players Sean "Puffy" Combs and rapper The Notorious B.I.G., who was later shot himself in Los Angeles. These theories remain rumors in the already legendary story of Tupac Shakur.

Tupac recorded so much material before he died that more Tupac albums have been released since his death than were released while he was alive, thanks to his mother Afeni Shakur's efforts to keep his memory and music alive. These posthumous albums include R U Still Down? (Remember Me?), Lost Tapes 1989, One Million Strong, Still I Rise, Rose That Grew From Concrete, Until The End Of Time, and 2002's Better Dayz, along with his one disc released under the Makaveli alias, Don Killuminati: The 7 Day Theory. A prophetic and prolific artist to say the least, Tupac led a career of constant controversy, but one also filled with many accomplishments and achievements.

Written by Frank Meyer