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01
During the final year of his life, Shakur recorded close to 150 songs, often completing three per day; he wrote lyrics in the studio and typically performed his verses in one take, as he believed rappers who couldn’t nail a verse immediately weren’t ready. He felt that R&B, however, deserved multiple takes for vocal tracks.
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02
After his 1996 death, 10 albums have been released; all have gone platinum.
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03
Shakur renamed his publishing company to Joshua’s Dream in honor of a young, terminally ill child whose dying wish was to meet him.
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04
Shakur was a huge fan of Tim Roth and was excited to work with him, but Roth disliked the idea of a rapper acting until they tested together; they became very good friends until Shakur’s death.
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05
His favorite singer was Prince.
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06
More of his music has been released since his death than while he was alive.
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07
He read for the role of Bubba Blue in Forrest Gump 1994, which went to Mykelti Williamson.
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08
Jim Carrey was his favorite actor.
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09
His godmother Assata Shakur was found guilty of the 1973 murder of a New Jersey state trooper; she broke out of prison and fled to Cuba. In 2013, she was added to the FBI’s list of Most Wanted Terrorists.
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10
As a young man, he also studied ballet and dance.
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11
According to Guinness Book of Records 2004, he is the highest selling rap/hip-hop artist, selling over 67 million copies worldwide.
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12
He is the first rap/hip-hop artist in history to have a wax model of himself placed at Madame Tussaud’s in Las Vegas, Nevada.
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13
In the song Life Goes On from the album All Eyez on Me 1996, he rhymes about his own funeral.
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14
Tupac is listed as the most successful gangsta MC in the Guinness Book of World Records.
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15
He was offered a record contract at age 13, but his mother refused to let him sign anything, feeling he had a lot to learn about the world before joining the music industry.
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16
Wrote a song but was gunned down before he could finish it; rapper Eminem finished the song with his own lyrics and released it shortly afterward.
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17
Gunned down on a Friday the 13th.
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18
Was originally cast in Menace II Society 1993 but was fired after a physical altercation with director Allen Hughes.
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19
Shakur considered singer Don McLean and Kate Bush as influences; he also cited African-American poet Maya Angelou and William Shakespeare as equally important.
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20
A lifelong fan of Star Wars, Shakur lobbied to read for the role that became Mace Windu in 1996, but was gunned down before he could; Samuel L. Jackson was cast.
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21
Renamed Tupac Amaru Shakur in 1972 by his mother after Tupac Amaru, an Inca sentenced to death by the Spaniards; Tupac Amaru means shining serpent in the Inca language.
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22
His career triumphs occurred on the 13th: All Eyez on Me released February 13, 1996; his only No. 1 pop single How Do U Want It? reached the top on July 13, 1996; he died on September 13, a Friday.
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23
In November 1994, he was robbed and shot five times by muggers in the lobby of a New York recording studio; he survived and later boasted of his durability in lyrics.
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24
First music artist to have a No. 1 LP while in prison.
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25
Was planning to record with the Wu-Tang Clan near the end of his life, as he admired their sound and lyrics.
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26
The Don Killuminati: The 7 Day Theory was recorded and mixed in seven days in August 1996; released November 5, 1996, it debuted at No. 1 on both pop and R&B/Hip-Hop charts, selling 663,000 copies in its first week; it is his best-selling album with 28 million worldwide.
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27
Appeared in the music video Whatta Man 1993 by Salt-N-Pepa.
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28
His first album, 2Pacalypse Now, was released November 12, 1991, certified gold, with 13 songs reaching No. 13 on R&B/Hip-Hop albums.
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29
Moved out of his mother’s house at age 17.
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30
His 1996 song Ghetto Gospel was released in 2005 with vocals by Elton John and went to No. 1 in the UK, eight years after his death.
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31
His 1996 song Me and My Girlfriend chronicles his relationship with his pistol; it was covered in 2003 by Beyoncé and Jay-Z.
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32
Cited Prince as an inspiration and sampled his music on All Eyez on Me; Shakur mentioned in an MTV interview that he loves women like I love women.
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33
His song Hit Em Up is a scathing attack on The Notorious B.I.G., Bad Boy Records, and Sean Diddy Combs; Shakur claimed he slept with Faith Evans in the lyrics.
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34
Recorded much of All Eyez on Me with a Neumann U87 microphone and on analog tape, considered archaic by 1995 standards.
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35
Shakur was gunned down on September 7, 1996 at approximately 11:15 pm at the corner of Flamingo and Koval streets in Las Vegas.
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36
His No. 1 single California Love was certified at sales of two million copies in 1998.
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37
Gang member Orlando Anderson, often cited as Tupac’s killer, was murdered in a car wash altercation in Los Angeles on May 29, 1998; he was never charged.
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38
Used the name Makaveli, an altered spelling of Machiavelli, about whom he read while in prison.
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39
In a 2005 Rolling Stone Magazine vote, Tupac was named No. 6 of the 100 Immortal Artists of All Time behind Elvis Presley and John Lennon.
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40
Was good friends with fellow hip-hop MC M.C. Hammer, also from Oakland, California.
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41
His albums have sold 38 million copies in the United States alone.
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42
He completed the 27-song All Eyez on Me, considered his magnum opus, in two weeks; sessions began hours after his release from prison, and it debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200.
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43
He had the words thug life tattooed across his abdomen.
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44
He also performed under the stage name Makaveli; his song Dear Mama was added to the Library of Congress in 2010.
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45
Was John Singleton’s first choice to star in Shaft 2000 when it was going to be called Son of Shaft.
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46
Had been rapping since he was 18 years old 1989.
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47
Ranked No. 3 on VH1’s 50 Greatest Hip Hop Artists.
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48
Was the original choice for Joseph Jody Summers in Baby Boy 2001, which went to Tyrese Gibson.
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49
Posthumously inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2017.
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50
Was going to play Malik Williams in Higher Learning 1995, which went to Omar Epps.
