About 2Pac

Arguably the greatest MC of all time, 2Pac (aka Tupac aka Pac aka Makaveli), known for his raw lyrics was born in East Harlem, Manhattan and was surrounded by struggle his whole life. Several relatives were involved in the Black Panther party. As a child he formed a lasting friendship with Jada Pinkett (later Jada Pinkett Smith, wife of Will Smith). In 1988, he moved to California where he would begin his rap career as a backup dancer for Digital Underground. In 1991, 2Pac released his first solo album, 2pacalypse Now. While less commercially successful than his later works, it would go on to become influential on several future rappers, including Nas and Talib Kweli. His 2nd album, Strictly 4 My N.I.G.G.A.Z., was more commercially successful and featured 2 of his biggest hits, “Keep Ya Head Up” and “I Get Around” and featured several artists including Ice Cube. Shakur was known as much for his exploits off stage as on. He dated Madonna for a short time and had several run-ins with the law, and became the only artist to ever have an album, Me Against the World, debut at #1 while in prison. He would accuse Diddy and The Notorious B.I.G. of having him shot in New York, starting a coastal feud that dominated much of the ‘90s rap headlines. Shakur’s infamous diss track, “Hit’em Up”, would not only insult Diddy and B.I.G., but also Lil’ Kim, Faith Evans, Mobb Deep and Prodigy, and Jay Z (though the Jay diss was removed in most versions). After being released from prison, Tupac released rap’s first double album, All Eyez on Me, on Death Row records, the West Coast label which also featured Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg. Eyez has sold over 9 million copies. On September 7th, 1996, Tupac Shakur was shot 4 times in Las Vegas. He would die several days later. As one of the first successful West Coast socially conscious rappers, Pac has had an influence on almost every rapper to follow him.