Tupac Amaru Shakur was born in the Bronx, New York, on June 16th, 1971, to his mother, Afeni Shakur. At the time of 2Pac's birth, Afeni was a member of the Black Panthers, and was serving a sentence for bomb charges when she gave birth to him.
Tupac Amaru comes from the Incas meaning "shining serpent" and Shakur is Arabic meaning "thankful to God."
Afeni was dealing with plenty of hardships in New York so she moved her family to Baltimore where Tupac enrolled in the Baltimore School for the Arts. Here Tupac wrote his
 first rap under the name DJ New York. Tupac was now finding his artistic ability at this time and really starting to enjoy himself. In June of '87, Tupac's family moved to Marin City, CA. This was very devistating to Tupac because he had to leave school.
Shortly after their arrival, Tupac started hanging around with the wrong people in neighbor and he starts selling drugs. Later in August, Mutulu Shakur, Tupac's stepfather, was sentenced to 60 years in prison for his involvement in a 1981 armored-car robbery.
Tupac begins to realize that he had to stay clean and went back to writing. He would jot down anything that came to mind, he had notebooks and notebooks full of lyrics. Tupac got back into Arts school and really worked on his writing. He began to start singing,
(or rapping) his lyrics and started getting gigs at local clubs.
In 1990, a producer noticed Tupac preforming at a local club. After the producer saw few more preformances, she gave Tupac a job at Interscope Records. Tupac worked with the group Digital Underground as a roadie/dancer. After working with him for awhile, they
noticed that Tupac had rapping ability too. They gave Tupac a small part on a track called "Same Song" from their album "This is and EP Realease". It was a short but very dramatic enterance for Tupac. Interscope was so impressed with his talent, that they
gave Tupac a chance at creating his own album.
 In 1991 Interscope Records gave Tupac individual recognition with the release of "2Pacalypse Now". This was the first  album for
Tupac and was the beginning of his career. The album, which spawned 2 very successful singles, "Trapped" and "Brenda's Got A Baby", went on to the gold status, which is 500,000 copies sold. The album, with references to police officers being killed,
drew notoriety when a slain police officer's family claimed Shakur's music drove the killer to action. With the success of this album, Interscope offered Tupac and 2 album contract. Tupac agreed, and began working on his next album. But before Tupac could
start putting things together, Tupac appeared in the Earnest Dickerson film "Juice" and played a very powerful character.
In the 1992 John Singleton film, "Poetic Justice," Shakur co- starred opposite pop singer Janet Jackson. But Shakur seemed to spend as much time in courtrooms and jail cells than he did on movie sets. A 1993 confrontation with two off-duty Atlanta
police officers led to charges that were later dropped.
On August 22, 1992, while in Marin City, Tupac attends the 50th Anniveriart of the city and during this party an altercation takes place with Tupac and some of his long time enemies. During the fight, a 6 year old little girl is shot and killed. Dan Quayle takes aim at 2Pac and says that the album 2Pacalypse now has no place in our society.
 With all the attention now on him, Interscope realeased Tupac's 2nd album, Strictly 4 My N.I.G.G.A.Z. The album was a instant success. The spotlight had been on him and people were very excited for the release. This album was filled with more
energy, and now that "Tupac" was a household name, he came with some guest appearances from Ice Cube, Ice-T, Deadly Threat, Treach (from Naughty by Nature), the Digital Underground, and a few others. 2 more sings came from the album, they were "Keep Ya' Head Up"
and "I Get Around". Tupac never imagined all the success these 2 sings brought to him. Both singles reached the gold status and the album went platium, which is 1,000,000 copies sold. The album has sold nearly 2 million copies today.
In 1994, was to appear in the movie, "Menance To Society", but he had real problems with the two producers. He was then later sentenced to 15 days in jail for assault and battery on the music video producer. Around the same time, Tupac and his new found group, the Immortal Outlawz released "Thug Life." After not appearing in "Menance To Society", he decided to appeard in
the basketball movie, "Above The Rim", where he played a crime boss/hustler. Later in November, Shakur's was accused of sexual assult charges from a woman that he met in a club and had her preform oral sex on him on the dance floor. In New York, the sex assault trial opens. During apparent robbery he was shot five times and robbed of $40,000 worth of jewelry in the lobby of a New York recording studio.
In December, one day after being shot, Shakur is convicted of other sexual assult charges from a previous encounter. He served eight months before winning release pending his appeal. The judge ordered him to serve 120 days in jail for probation violations.
In 1995, 2 weeks after 2Pac was sent to jail,  Interscope Records released Tupac's 3rd album, "Me Against The World,". The album went to #1 on the Billboard Charts, which made 2Pac the first person in history to have a #1 album and be in jail. In February, he was sentenced in New York to 4 1/2 years in prison for the sex abuse with the woman on the dance floor. While in jail, Shakur married longtime girlfriend, Keisha Morris. In October, after nearly eight months in prison, Shakur
is released on a 1.3 million dollar bond, while he appealed his case, by Death Row Records CEO, Marion "Suge" Knight in exchange for a three album contract with Death Row Records. Tupac agreed and left with Suge.
Shorty after being realeased from jail Suge and Tupac worked on his next album.  Shakur's fourth solo album, "All Eyez on Me," debuted at No. 1 on Billboard's album chart, (eventually going on to sell more than 7 million copies). The songs "How Do You Want It" and "California Love" were both on the top 20 single on Billboard magazine's charts, and "How Do You Want It" became a double-platium single, selling over 2 million copies,
by far 2Pacs most successful songs. Tupac had blow up at this time, becoming the most know, and more importantly the most respected rapper out their. In turn made him the most feared rapper too.
In 1996 the ‘Outlaw Immortalz' burst on the scene with 2Pac, which consisted of Hussein Fatal, Kastro, Napolean, Mussolini, E.D.I, Kormaini and Kadafi. Featuring on 2pac hits such as ‘When We Ride' they emerged
as a more than adequate backing posse for 2pac on Death Row Records. Let's go back a few years. 2pac wasn't signed to Death Row, he hadn't even been in jail. Then came his sodomy, sexual abuse and weapons charges, one
of which (sexual abuse) he was found guilty of. On Valentines Day 1995, 2pac was sentenced to up to 4˝ years, and began serving time immediately in Rikers Island penitentiary in NY. Whilst incarcerated, he claims that
the only old friends who came to visit him were who would be known as Fatal and Kadafi. They made plans to form a group once ‘Pac got out. When Death Row Records CEO ‘Suge' Knight paid the $1.4 million bond to get Tupac
Shakur out, along with several other members, (including ‘Big Syke' or just ‘Syke' from 2pac's old backup crew ‘Thug Life') The Outlaw Immortalz were formed.
The Outlaw Immortalz, as they were then known, featured either all at once or separately on 2pac’s Death Row 7 times platinum double release ‘All Eyez On Me’, then on ‘The Seven Day Theory’, and then even on the ‘Gang Related’ soundtrack.
Somewhat under rated, they also featured on ‘Pac’s anti-Bad Boy record ‘Hit ‘em Up’. The notoriety of this West Coast anthem seemed to get them the recognition they deserved. One of the most promising members of the ‘Outlawz’ was then gunned
down in LA, Kadafi, who was an old friend of 2pac's - formerly known as Dramacydal.
Since then, Fatal (formerly Hussein Fatal) released a solo album which seemed to flop, from below-par production and wack hooks, I suspect. Also released on a small little-known record label was an album by 'Big Syke', from Thug Life/Outlawz.
Collins said doctors determined Shakur died from respiratory
failure and cardiopulmonary arrest. The rapper had been in a
medical-induced coma after having his right lung removed
earlier this week.
Shakur was hit by four bullets September 7 as he rode near
the Las Vegas Strip in a car driven by the head of Death Row
Records, Marion "Suge" Knight, who was slightly wounded. It
was the second time in less than two years that the rapper
was gunned down. The Las Vegas attackers got away, and no
arrests have been made.
Final Week
Saturday, Sept. 7
8:00 p.m. Tupac Shakur attends the Mike Tyson vs. Bruce Seldon fight which was staged at the MGM Grand Hotel.
8:30 p.m. After 109 seconds in the ring, Mike Tyson is declared the winner. Shakur leaves the fight to go to a charit concert. On the way out of the hotel, Shakur and his bodyguards are involved in a physical altercation with another man. Police do not believe this man was in any way connected to the later shooting of Shakur.
11:15 p.m. Shakur and Marion "Suge" Knight are shot. Shakur had been standing up through the open sun roof of a 1996 BMW 750 sedan that was eastbound on Flamingo Road. Shakur is shot four times in the chest. Shrapnel grazed Knight's head. A total of 13 shots were fired at the car Shakur was in. After the shooting, Shakur's car made a U turn and head West on Flamingo. Police reached the car on the Strip where it was caught in traffic. An ambulance then picked up Shakur and Knight transporting them to University Medical Center, where Shakur underwent the first of three operations.
Sunday, Sept. 8
11 a.m. Knight is released from the University Medical Center.
6:20 p.m. Shakur undergoes a second operation at UMC in an attempt to repair damage from the bullet wounds.
Monday, Sept. 9
8 p.m. Metro Police and about 20 friends of Shakur are in an altercation over what police call a "misunderstanding." Tensions are calmed with help from a female friend of Shakur's and four men originally handcuffed during the scuffle are released. No one was arrested. Police have been patrolling outside the hospital out of concern for retaliation after the shooting.
Wednesday, Sept. 11
6 p.m. Knight, accompanied by his attorneys speaks to METRO Police for about an hour.
Friday, Sept. 13
4:03 p.m.,Shakur, his mother at his bedside, was pronounced dead at
EDT at the University Medical Center in Las Vegas, according to hospital spokeswoman Nancy Collins.
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Pac's Albums
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