Tupac Amaru Shakur, also known by his stage names 2Pac and Makaveli, was an American rapper and actor. Considered to be one of the greatest and most influential rappers of all time, academics regard him as one of the most influential music artists of the 20th century and a prominent political activist for Black America. In addition to his music career, Shakur also has tons of starring roles in movies and wrote numerous poems. Shakur is among the best-selling music artists, having sold more than 125 million records worldwide. His lyrical content has been noted for addressing social injustice, political issues, and the marginalization of other African-Americans, but he was also synonymous with gangsta rap and violent lyrics.
Marion Hugh "Suge" Knight Jr. is an American record executive and convicted felon who is the co-founder and former CEO of Death Row Records. Knight was a central figure in gangsta rap's commercial success in the 1990s. This feat is attributed to the record label's first two album releases: Dr. Dre's The Chronic in 1992 and Snoop Dogg's Doggystyle in 1993. Knight is currently serving a 28-year sentence in prison for a fatal hit-and-run in 2015.
Menace II Society is a 1993 American teen crime drama film directed by the Hughes Brothers in their directorial debut. Set in the Watts and Crenshaw neighborhoods of Los Angeles, the film follows the life of Caine Lawson and his close friends. It gained notoriety for its scenes of violence, profanity, and drug-related content, and also received critical acclaim for the performances of Turner, Jada Pinkett, and Larenz Tate, the direction, and its realistic portrayal of urban violence and powerful underlying messages.
"Hit 'Em Up" is a diss track by American rapper 2Pac, featuring the Outlawz. It is the B-side to the single "How Do U Want It", released on June 4, 1996. The song's lyrics contain vicious insults to several East Coast rappers, chiefly Shakur's former friend turned rival, The Notorious B.I.G.. The song was recorded at Can Am Studios on April 19, 1996. A previous version of the song was recorded on October 31, 1995.
Live Squad was an American hip hop group and production team from Hollis, Queens, New York consisting of brothers Stretch and Majesty and DJ K-Low, best known for their early collaborations with Tupac Shakur.
Gridlock'd is a 1997 American black comedy crime film written and directed by Vondie Curtis-Hall, and starring Tupac Shakur, Tim Roth, Lucy Liu and Thandiwe Newton. It was the directorial debut of Curtis-Hall, who also has a small role in the film. The film's opening was relatively low, despite critical acclaim; its opening weekend netted only $2,678,372 and it finished with a little over $5.5 million. Shakur died four months before the film's release.
Above the Rim is a 1994 American sports drama film co-written and directed by Jeff Pollack in his directorial debut. The screenplay was written by Barry Michael Cooper, adapted from a story by Benny Medina.
Gang Related, alternatively known as Criminal Intent, is a 1997 American action crime film written and directed by Jim Kouf, and starring James Belushi, Tupac Shakur, Dennis Quaid, Lela Rochon, David Paymer and James Earl Jones. The film follows two corrupt cops who attempt to frame a homeless man (Quaid) for the murder of an undercover DEA agent that they themselves had actually killed.
Pusher 3 is a 2005 Danish crime film written and directed by Nicolas Winding Refn. It is the third film of the Pusher trilogy. A Hindi remake of the first film was then released in 2010, with an English-language remake following in 2012, with Zlatko Burić reprising his role.
Randy Walker, better known by his stage name Stretch, was an American rapper and record producer, working in Live Squad. In the early 1990s, he joined 2Pac's rap group Thug Life. The November 30, 1994, shooting of Shakur led to their split. On November 30, 1995, Walker was shot and killed at the age of 27.
The Dragon Family is a 1988 Hong Kong action film directed by Lau Kar-wing starring Andy Lau, Alan Tam and Max Mok.
"I Ain't Mad at Cha" is a song by American rapper 2Pac from Shakur's fourth studio album, All Eyez on Me (1996). It was released on September 15, 1996 two days after Shakur's death as the album's fourth and final single. The song features contemporary soul singer Danny Boy providing vocals for its hook and was written by Shakur, Danny Boy and Daz Dillinger, who produced the song using a sample from DeBarge's "A Dream". The lyrics focus on Shakur reminiscing about past friends, love interests and associates he has lost touch with. The song is widely considered one of Shakur's best with Cheo Hodari Coker calling it "possibly the best song 2Pac has ever recorded". In 1998, The Source ranked the song's three verses second in its category of "dopest verses" in the history of hip-hop.
"Who Shot Ya?" is a song by American rapper the Notorious B.I.G., backed by Sean Combs. Bad Boy Entertainment released it on February 21, 1995, on an alternate reissue of Wallace's single "Big Poppa/Warning". Its new B-side "Who Shot Ya", a revision of a track already issued earlier in 1995, was "controversial and hugely influential." Widely interpreted as a taunt at Tupac Shakur, the single provoked a "rap battle" between the two rappers, formerly friends.
James Rosemond, often known as Jimmy Henchman or sometimes Jimmy Henchmen, is an American former entertainment record executive and convicted criminal.
Charles Alan Philips was an American writer and journalist. He was best known for his investigative reporting in the Los Angeles Times on the culture, corruption, and crime in the music industry during the 1990s and 2000s, which garnered both awards and controversy. In 1999, Philips won a Pulitzer Prize, with Michael A. Hiltzik, for their co-authored series exposing corruption in the entertainment industry.
On September 7, 1996, at 11:15 p.m. (PDT), Tupac Shakur, a 25-year-old American rapper, was fatally shot in a drive-by shooting in Las Vegas, Nevada. The shooting occurred when the car carrying Shakur was stopped at a red light at East Flamingo Road and Koval Lane. Shakur was in Marion "Suge" Knight's car, who was also injured in the shooting. Although Knight was only grazed by a bullet in the shooting, Shakur died from his injuries on September 13, 1996, six days after he was shot.
The Boys of Ghost Town is a 2009 American drama film directed and produced by Pablo Véliz and written by Rosalio Martinez and Manuel Garcia. It stars Danny Trejo, Marian Zapico, and Garcia. The film follows Danny Ortega's release from prison, struggles with joining civilization, love, friendship, revenge, and his eventual rise to becoming a drug lord himself.
Ram Laxman is a 2004 Bengali film directed by Babu Ray and produced by Jhuna Majumdar and Narayan Ghosh. The film features actors Prosenjit Chatterjee, Anu Chowdhury, Tota Ray Chowdhury in the lead roles. Music of the film has been composed by Babul Bose.
The American rapper Christopher Wallace, better known as the Notorious B.I.G., was murdered in a drive-by shooting in the early hours of March 9, 1997, in Los Angeles, California. He was 24 years old. Prior to the event, Wallace promoted his second studio album Life After Death, and attended an after-party in Los Angeles instead of traveling to London.
The Doorman is a 2020 American action thriller film directed by Ryuhei Kitamura. The film stars Ruby Rose, Aksel Hennie, Rupert Evans, and Jean Reno and follows a former Marine turned luxury apartment doorman who must protect her brother-in-law and his two children from a gang of ruthless criminals who are after a stash of precious artwork hidden in the walls somewhere in the building. The film was theatrically released in Russia on October 1, 2020 and released direct-to-digital in the United States on October 9, 2020. The film received negative reviews and grossed $307,873 from an international theatrical release.
