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2Pac - Greatest Hits
: :An indispensable and definitive collection showcasing the passionate genius of the late rapper. The album's nonchronological sequence highlights the contradictory impulses that made Tupac's music so commanding; the 21 well-loved 'hits,' some slightly reedited for legal reasons, are accompanied by four previously unheard songs. Of the new material, the raw-sounding 'God Bless the Dead' has been the subject of the most speculation, owing to its subject matter: a eulogizing of the late Notorious B.I.G.--a mysterious feat, since Tupac was killed six months before Biggie. And, making its first proper appearance on ...
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All Eyez on Me
: essential recording:Simultaneously serving as both endless fodder for intellectual debates and the album most likely to be blaring out of the adjacent car's window, All Eyez on Me is a phenomenon that packs a wallop with every listen. Unquestionably the most nihilistic album to top the Billboard charts--and it's doubtful that any will match it--Eyez also manages to dish out the good-times dance tunes and still flow seamlessly. Recording commenced within hours of Tupac Shakur's release from prison, and a year's worth of pent-up ideas are unleashed with a fury ...
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Me Against the World
: essential recording:The gruesome details surrounding Tupac's third solo offering are enough to give any music fan the willies. Released when Tupac was in jail serving time for a rape conviction and just after his recovery from being shot-up gangland-style at a recording studio, this was his most introspective piece of work to date. The heavy-hearted album opens up with a radio commentary describing the circumstances surrounding his shooting, and then plunges headfirst into Pac's infatuation with death. 'So Many Tears,' 'Death Around the Corner,' and 'If I Die 2Nite' are ...
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Until the End of Time
: essential recording:The gruesome details surrounding Tupac's third solo offering are enough to give any music fan the willies. Released when Tupac was in jail serving time for a rape conviction and just after his recovery from being shot-up gangland-style at a recording studio, this was his most introspective piece of work to date. The heavy-hearted album opens up with a radio commentary describing the circumstances surrounding his shooting, and then plunges headfirst into Pac's infatuation with death. 'So Many Tears,' 'Death Around the Corner,' and 'If I Die 2Nite' are ...
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R U Still Down? (Remember Me)
: :26 cuts of 'gangsta rap' that only increase in doom when you realize the guy talking it didn't live to laugh about it. Perhaps he now knows the answer to his question, 'I Wonder If Heaven Got a Ghetto,' which shows up here twice. Shakur, like most hard rappers, liked to sound tough, kicking it with song titles unprintable in a family newspaper. But, underneath the braggadocio, there was fear. 'Only Fear of Death,' 'Nothing to Lose,' and 'I'm Losin' It' tell a far different story than 'Fake Ass Bitches.' His ...
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Better Dayz
: :2Pac's been dead for more than six years, and in that time his estate has released a dizzying array of questionable posthumous material--with much more to come in 2003, by the way (the liner notes list documentary soundtracks, another unreleased double album, DVDs, etc.). On the first disc's 'Intro,' an unnamed street reporter wonders, 'Where are these songs coming from?' After repeated listens, your best guess would be from his unfinished studio outtakes. Nevertheless, these tracks were apparently recorded during his prolific, vexed Makaveli stage. 'When We Ride on Our Enemies' ...
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Strictly 4 My N.I.G.G.A.Z.
: :The late Tupac Shakur's second album recalls the densely sampled sonic strengths of Public Enemy's Fear of a Black Planet, except here the bass lines are cranked and the sly samples tend to the gentler touches of Motown and Curtis Mayfield than James Brown. This contrast between hard and soft is appropriate because Shakur is as likely to sweetly honor black sisters ('Keep Ya Head Up') as he is to get angry in your face. Consequently, even with guest spots including the Ices Cube and T., 2Pac's strong raps remain this ...
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All Eyez on Me
: essential recording:Simultaneously serving as both endless fodder for intellectual debates and the album most likely to be blaring out of the adjacent car's window, All Eyez on Me is a phenomenon that packs a wallop with every listen. Unquestionably the most nihilistic album to top the Billboard charts--and it's doubtful that any will match it--Eyez also manages to dish out the good-times dance tunes and still flow seamlessly. Recording commenced within hours of Tupac Shakur's release from prison, and a year's worth of pent-up ideas are unleashed with a fury ...
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Loyal to the Game
:Album Description:2PAC 'LOYAL TO THE GAME' Includes the lead single 'Thugs Get Lonely Too' in addition to 11 other PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED songs and 4 bonus tracks. FEATURED ARTISTS INCLUDE: 50 Cent, Jadakiss, Lloyd Banks, Nate Dogg, Obie Trice, Outlawz, Ron Isley, Sleepy Brown, and Young Buck. Executive Producers: Afeni Shakure and EMINEM Album Produced by EMINEM Additional Production By: Scott Storch, Red Spyda, and Raphael Saadiq
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2Pacalypse Now
: essential recording:All the elements that made this rap star great are already in place on this authoritative debut, released when he was not even yet of drinking age. 'Young Black Male' and 'Trapped' exemplify his more overtly political style, later abandoned when he signed up with the Death Row label; 'Crooked Ass Nigga' is the kind of violent gangsta-rap tune that made 2Pac a bogeyman to the genre's foes. On 'I Don't Give a Fuck,' Shakur keeps his humor up while conveying the oppressive reaction a young black male encounters ...
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