Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas is a 2004 action-adventure game developed by Rockstar North and published by Rockstar Games. It is the seventh title in the Grand Theft Auto series, following 2002's Grand Theft Auto: Vice City. Set within the fictional state of San Andreas, the game follows Carl "CJ" Johnson, who returns home after his mother's murder and finds his old gang has lost much of their territory. Over the course of the game, he attempts to re-establish the gang, clashes with corrupt authorities and powerful criminals, and gradually unravels the truth behind his mother's murder.
2Pacalypse Now is the debut solo studio album by American rapper 2Pac. It was released on November 12, 1991 through TNT Recordings and Interscope Records. Recording sessions took place at Starlight Sound Studio in Richmond, California. Production was handled by members of Digital Underground production team The Underground Railroad, namely Big D the Impossible, Shock G, Pee-Wee, DJ Jay-Z, Raw Fusion and Live Squad. It features contributions from Stretch, Angelique, Dave Hollister, Pogo, Poppi, Ray Luv and Shock G among others. The album's title is a reference to the 1979 war film Apocalypse Now.
Aaron Bernard Tyler, better known by his stage name MC Eiht, is an American rapper. Many of his songs are based on his life in Compton. His stage name was partly inspired by the numeral in KRS-One's name. He chose Eiht for its links to "hood culture", including Olde English 800 and .38 caliber firearms. He is the de facto leader of West Coast hip hop group Compton's Most Wanted, which also included fellow Compton-based rappers Boom Bam, The Unknown DJ, Tha Chill, DJ Mike T, DJ Slip and Ant Capone. He is also known for his role as A-Wax in the 1993 film Menace II Society, as well as playing the character Ryder in the 2004 video game Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.
Christopher Bellard, also known by his stage name Young Maylay, is an American rapper, record producer and actor based in Los Angeles. He is best known for his portrayal of Carl "CJ" Johnson, the main character of the 2004 video game Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.
Loyal to the Game is the ninth studio album and fifth posthumous studio album by American rapper Tupac Shakur. The album was produced by Eminem and consists of remixes of previously unreleased music recorded by Tupac before his death in 1996. Released in the United States on December 14, 2004, Loyal to the Game debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200 chart. It was later certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).
Gregory Edward Jacobs, known professionally as Shock G and by his alter ego Humpty Hump, was an American rapper and musician who was best known as the lead vocalist of the hip hop group Digital Underground. He was responsible for Digital Underground's "The Humpty Dance", 2Pac's breakthrough single "I Get Around", and co-producer of 2Pac's debut album 2Pacalypse Now.
Don't Go 2 Sleep is a compilation EP by American rappers Makaveli and Daz Dillinger. It has eight tracks. There are two other (bootleg) versions of the EP, but the original has only eight tracks. It was released December 24, 2001, on D.P.G. Recordz. The tracks were recorded at Death Row Records between 1995–96 for Tupac's and Boot Camp Clik's project "One Nation". Later when Daz left Death Row, he stole an unknown amount of Tupac's unreleased masters, some of which can be heard on this EP. The only track left untouched by Daz is "They Don't Give a Fuck About Us", all other tracks were remixed and Daz also added himself onto tracks he originally didn't appear on, despite Dillinger marketing the EP as an original collaboration album.
"Changes" is a song by American rapper 2Pac featuring R&B group Talent. It was recorded in 1992 before being remixed and released as a single from Shakur's Greatest Hits compilation on October 13, 1998 . The song makes references to the many wars in the Middle East, the war on drugs, the treatment of black people by the police, racism, the reconciliation between the black and white people in America, the perpetuation of poverty and its accompanying vicious-cycle value system in urban African American culture, and the difficulties of life in the ghetto.
The East Coast–West Coast hip hop rivalry was a dispute between artists and fans of the East Coast hip hop and West Coast hip hop scenes in the United States, especially from the mid-1990s. A focal point of the rivalry was the feud between East Coast–based rapper the Notorious B.I.G. signed by Puff Daddy and their New York City–based label, Bad Boy Records, and West Coast–based rapper Tupac Shakur signed by Suge Knight and their Los Angeles–based label, Death Row Records. The feud culminated in the murders of both rappers in drive-by shootings within six months of each other; both murders remain unsolved. The rivalry ended with a "peace" summit in 1997 at the behest of Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan.
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.
"Children's Story" is a song recorded by British-American hip hop artist Slick Rick. Taken as the second single from his album The Great Adventures of Slick Rick, the song was a Top 5 hit on both the Hot R&B Singles and the Hot Rap Tracks charts. It is one of the most sampled rap songs of all time.
"Runnin'" is a 1995 song written and performed by rappers 2Pac, The Notorious B.I.G., Stretch, Dramacydal and reggae superstar Buju Banton. Recorded in 1993, the song holds significance as the only song 2Pac and the Notorious B.I.G. officially recorded together prior to hostility arising between the two rappers. The song, originally slated to appear on 2Pac's 1993-1994 shelved solo album that later turned to be Me Against The World, then on Thug Life's 1994 debut album, Thug Life, Volume I, was scrapped both times due to varying controversies. It was later featured on the 1995 One Million Strong compilation album. It charted at #81, #57 and #13 on the Billboard Hot 100, Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks & Hot Rap Singles charts, respectively.
Mark Jordan, better known by his stage name DJ Pooh, is an American record producer, rapper, actor, voice actor, screenwriter and film director who has produced albums for many rappers such as King Tee, Snoop Dogg, Ice Cube, and 2Pac.
"Go Hard" is the second single from DJ Khaled's third studio album, We Global. The hip-hop track features American rapper Kanye West and American singer T-Pain and their trademark auto-tune effect. The song is produced by The Runners. It first charted on the Bubbling Under R&B/Hip Hop chart on December 4, 2008, debuting at number 25, where it peaked at number 15, and charted on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs debuting at number 85 and then rising to number 53. It also debuted at number 69 on the Billboard Hot 100 the same week the album We Global was released due to digital downloads, also at number 19 on the Hot Rap Tracks.
Yafeu Akiyele Fula, better known by his stage name Yaki Kadafi, was an American rapper and a founding member of the hip-hop group Outlawz. He was shot and killed on November 10, 1996.
Ronald Hudson is an American artist, bassist, composer and record producer. He is notable for the hit song "West Coast Poplock", which was later sampled in Dr. Dre and Tupac Shakur's song entitled "California Love".
"West Coast Poplock" is one of the most popular singles by Ronnie Hudson And The Street People and was released in 1982. Immediately adopted as an anthem by KDAY, "West Coast Poplock" has rarely left radio since its release nearly 40 years ago. It contains elements from the 1981 song "So Ruff, So Tuff", performed by Roger Troutman and co-written by himself and brother Larry Troutman. Various rappers have sampled it, from N.W.A, Snoop Dogg and Dr. Dre to Scarface and Mos Def. The song is notable for its sample in "California Love" by 2Pac featuring Dr. Dre and Roger Troutman, which was released on Death Row Records record label in 1996. Ronnie Hudson made a comeback with his album entitled Westcoastin', in which the "West Coast Poplock" was renamed to "West Coast Poplock 2020" and was re-mastered.
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas is an open-world, action-adventure video game developed by Rockstar North and published by Rockstar Games. First released on 16 October 2004 for the PlayStation 2, San Andreas has an in-game radio that can tune in to eleven stations playing more than 150 tracks of licensed music, as well as a talk radio station. The songs featured on the radio stations originated in or before the early 1990s, the period in which the game is set.
"Stress" is a song by French electronic music duo Justice, the tenth track on their debut studio album Cross. A music video for the song, directed by Romain Gavras, was released on 1 May 2008 through the website of American rapper Kanye West. The video, which was subject to severe criticism, is notable for its extremely controversial content, which includes scenes of young teenagers committing acts of gang violence across Paris. The song itself received positive reviews from critics.
Hip hop music, developed in the South Bronx in the early 1970s, has long been tied to social injustice in the United States, particularly that of the African American experience. Hip hop artists have spoken out in their lyrics against perceived social injustices such as police brutality, poverty, mass incarceration, and the war on drugs. The relationship between hip hop music and social injustice can be seen most clearly in two subgenres of hip hop, gangsta rap and conscious rap.
