Born Tupac Amaru Shakur in New York City, he grew up primarily on the streets of Oakland, California. His first breakthrough in music came in 1991 as a member of the group Digital Underground. In the same year he received individual recognition for his album "2Pacalypse Now," but this album was also the beginning of his notoriety as a leading figure of the gangsta permutation of hip-hop, with references to cop killing and sexual violence. His solo movie career also began in this year with Juice, and in 1992 he co-starred with Janet Jackson in Poetic Justice.

But law confrontations were soon to come: a 15-day jail term in 1994 for assault and battery and, in 1995, a conviction for sexual assault of a female fan. He was released after serving eight months pending an appeal, but following the Tyson vs Seldon fight in Las Vegas, Nevada, he was hit by four bullets while riding in a car driven by Death Row Records chief executive Marion 'Suge' Knight. His right lung was removed in emergency surgery and, after six days in a medical coma, he died.


Renamed Tupac Amaru Shakur in 1972 by his mother after Tupac Amaru, an Inca who was sentenced to death by the Spaniards. Tupac Amaru, in the Inca language, means "shining serpent". He had the words "thug life" tattooed across his abdomen. Was going to play the role of Malik in Higher Learning (1995) More of his music has been released since his death than was while he was alive. Founding Member of the Outlawz In the song "Life Goes On" from the "All Eyez on Me" album, he rhymes about his own funeral. Tupac is listed as the most successful gangsta MC in the "Guinness Book of World Records." Jim Carrey was his favorite actor. He was offered a record contract at the age of 13. However, his mother refused to let him sign anything at such a young age. She felt he had a lot to learn about the world before joining the music industry. 10 albums have been released after his 1996 death; all have gone platinum. In November 1994, he was robbed and shot five times by a pair of muggers in the lobby of a New York recording studio. Tupac survived the attack, and afterwards frequently boasted of his durability in his lyrics. As a teenager, he studied drama at Baltimore's School for the Arts, where he rhymed under the name MC New York. Started his career on Tommy Boy/Warner Bros. Records with Digital Underground. His 1996 song "Ghetto Gospel" was released in 2005, with some vocals by Elton John, and went to #1 in the UK, despite the fact he had been dead for eight years. His albums have sold 38 million copies in the USA alone. According to Guiness Book of Records 2004, he is the highest selling rap/hip-hop artist selling over 67 million copies worldwide He is the first rap/hip-hop artist in history to have a wax model of himself set to be placed in Madamme Tussaud's in Las Vegas Wrote a song, but died before he could finish it. Rap artist Eminem finished the song with his own lyrics and released it shortly afterwards. Biological Father Is Billy Garland. His song "Hit 'Em Up", which Shakur considered a "classic battle record" is scathing attack on one-time friend Notorious BIG, Bad Boy Records, and Puff Daddy. In addition, Shakur claimed that he slept with Faith Evans (Notorious BIG's wife) in the song's lyrics. Read the article in "Entertainment Weekly" about his "Me Against The World" album's debut at number one, while incarcerated. The album's title song also appeared in Michael Bay's 1995 film "Bad Boys", which opened in March-- while Shakur was behind bars. Used an interpolation of the 1984 El Debarge song "A Dream" for his hit "I Ain't Mad At Ya". Tupac's version, however, is at a faster tempo than the original. The song "To Live and Die in LA", was called by Shakur (who recorded the song under the name "Makaveli", for the "Seven Day Theory" album) "California Love, part 2-- without gay-ass Dre." It is unknown if "gay-ass Dre" is serious slur against Dr. Dre, who left Shakur's label Death Row records shortly after producing two tracks for "All Eyez On Me". Gang member Orlando Anderson, often cited as Tupac's killer, was later murdered himself during an altercation at a LA car wash, on May 29th 1998. It should be noted that Anderson was never charged in the slaying. His career triumphs--a number one album and pop single-- both happened on the 13th: Rap's first double album, "All Eyez on Me" (certified by the RIAA as of December 2006 at 9 million copies sold) hit store shelves on February 13th 1996. His only number one pop single "How Do U Want It?", reached the apex of the Hot 100 on July 13th 1996. Sadly, it was on September 13th (a Friday) that Shakur succumbed to injuries sustained in a Las Vegas shooting. His first album, "2Pacalypse Now" was released November 12, 1991 and was certified gold. It contains 13 songs and reached number 13 on the R&B/Hip-Hop albums. Shakur renamed his publishing company to "Joshua's Dream" in honor of a young, terminally ill child whose dying wish was to meet him. Tupac used the Roland D70 synthesizer for his album "All Eyez On Me" (as seen in an interview with MTV in 1996). His 1996 song "Me and My Girlfriend" (from the rapper's posthumously released "Don Killuminati" album) chronicles Shakur's relationship with his pistol, which he frequently carried for protection. The "finger fucking" Shakur refers to in the song is actually a euphemism for pulling the trigger. The song was covered in 2003 by Beyonce and Jay-Z with a slightly altered chorus; it reached the top ten of the American pop charts. Along with friends, he founded the "Junior Black Panthers" in his youth. Mentioned in the rap-rock song "Mope" by Bloodhound Gang, along with personalities like Luciano Pavarotti, The Notorious B.I.G., Falco, Tori Spelling, Bo Jackson and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Tupac died with less than $100,000 in the bank.