100 Best Albums
- 13 FEB 1996
- 27 Songs
- Greatest Hits · 1998
- Greatest Hits · 1995
- All Eyez On Me · 1996
- All Eyez On Me · 1996
- Greatest Hits · 1998
- Greatest Hits · 1993
- R U Still Down? (Remember Me) · 1997
- All Eyez On Me · 1996
- Loyal to the Game · 2004
- Greatest Hits · 1996
Essential Albums
- 100 Best Albums The final album released during 2Pac’s lifetime was also his most successful—two discs and more than two hours of the rapper, actor, activist and poet at the absolute peak of his popularity. Released in February 1996, All Eyez on Me is his only Diamond-certified collection and features his only No. 1 single—the libidinous “How Do You Want It” backed with the giddy “California Love” (here in remixed form). In a recording career that lasted less than five years, hip-hop's most complex figure showed us many sides—the political firebrand of 1993’s Strictly 4 My N.I.G.G.A.Z., the introspective diarist of 1995’s Me Against the World and the temperamental hothead of his Makaveli project, released shortly after his death in September of ’96. However, most of the 27 tracks on All Eyez on Me showcase 2Pac as a gangsta-rap tough guy, an Alizé-sipping lothario, a Benz-pushing big shot and a California party-starter. In short, one of the reigning kings of ’90s G-funk on one of the genre’s most defining releases. But a harder exterior emerged after a series of personal struggles: his being shot in 1994, financial troubles, serving eight months in prison, and signing with West Coast rap powerhouse Death Row Records. Though All Eyez on Me has the sound of an upbeat party album, it also has the vicious rhymes of the most hardcore gangsta-rap release, with 2Pac setting his sights on jealous men, backstabbing friends, groupies, gold diggers, the police and the media. The lush hooks of ’80s funk and R&B are given new thump by producers like Johnny “J”, DJ Quik, Daz Dillinger, the era-defining Dr. Dre—and Pac himself. 2Pac’s boasts range from the straightforward to the technical (“So mandatory my elevation, my lyrics like orientation/So you could be more familiar with the n***a you facin’/We must be patient, nothin’ better than communication/Known to damage and highly flammable, like gas stations”). And he’s supported by an absolutely stacked roster of West Coast hip-hop all-stars, including Death Row superstar labelmates, titans of ’90s Bay Area rap and members of 2Pac’s own Outlawz crew. “2 of Amerikaz Most Wanted”, a Top 40 single, features the first collaboration between 2Pac and Snoop Dogg, and they trade bars like they’d been working together for years. Though All Eyez on Me has deeply personal tearjerkers (“Life Goes On”), incredibly filthy sex raps (“What’z Ya Phone #”) and evocative storytelling (“Shorty Wanna Be a Thug”), it’s best known for anthems of defiance like “Ambitionz Az a Ridah” and “Picture Me Rollin’”, in which one of music’s greatest writers embraces the angry, funky, celebratory, larger-than-life side that made him an icon of ’90s gangsta rap.
- On his third album, the stressed-out California poet turned a critical eye from his bleak surroundings to his own conflicted psyche. Me Against the World marks 2Pac’s official shift from gangsta to philosopher, sacrificing none of the rebellion. He imparts bittersweet brotherly advice over glossy G-funk (“Young N****z”), spits sincere thug love ballads (“Temptations”) and dodges haunting premonitions of his own death on the bluesy “So Many Tears”. And then there’s “Dear Mama”, the best rap song about moms ever made.
Artist Playlists
- He spoke truth to power as an icon of West Coast hip-hop. Timeless. Irreplaceable. 2Pac.
- Militant, thoughtful, defiant, unpredictable—always Pac.
- The sources of his flair and swagger, militancy and roughness.
- The complex gangsta still looms over rap decades after his death.
- From hits to deep cuts, breaking down the samples that inspired one of rap’s most vital artists.
- Grab the mic and sing along with some of their biggest hits.
Compilations
Appears On
- Thug Life
- A conflicted revolutionary’s epic songbook.
- DJ Touré explores 2Pac's musical legacy on the icon's birthday.
- Exploring the rich history of Golden State rap.
- “I Ain’t Mad at Cha” proved to be a chilling, poignant epitaph.
- DJ Juanyto spins 2Pac's biggest hits for his 50th birthday.
- Estelle celebrates 2Pac's birthday plus Bereola joins.
About 2Pac
2Pac is arguably the most influential rapper of all-time. In fact, his closest analogue may not be late rival The Notorious B.I.G., but rather dorm-room icons of the mythologized past: Jimi Hendrix, Bob Marley and James Dean. Even if his legend has become a tall tale, his music remains an indelible testament to the multitudes he contained. He was born Lesane Parish Crooks in 1971, but his mother (a Black Panther leader) swiftly changed his name to Tupac Amaru Shakur in honour of the last Incan emperor to perish while resisting Spanish rule. For much of his career, he embodied this revolutionary, fight-the-power ethos on songs like “Trapped” and “Keep Ya Head Up”, befitting the Afrocentric, conscious-minded milieu of the early ’90s. But there was also the funkadelic player (“I Get Around”), the insular loner (“Me Against the World”), the savage warlord (“Hit ’Em Up”) and the sensitive poet (“Brenda’s Got a Baby”). And as Death Row Records’ strain of gangsta rap defined the middle years of the decade, he became the label’s avatar. Originally branding himself MC New York, 2Pac incorporated influences from the East and West Coasts, not to mention the South, to create a universalist message and sound that explains why murals of him can be found all the way to Sub-Saharan Africa. But you don’t have to travel far to witness his impact: Even two decades after his untimely demise, 2Pac’s influence can be heard in everyone from Lil Wayne to Kendrick Lamar to Future.
- HOMETOWN
- Harlem, NY, United States
- BORN
- 16. Juni 1971
- GENRE
- Hip-Hop/Rap