Tupac Shakur Part 01 (Final)

Document text

O O
FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION
FREEDOM OF INFORMATION
AND
PRIVACY ACTS
SUBJECT: TUPAC SHAKUR

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PageSerial Description " COVER SHEET O1/03/1997
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b7C
b7CFEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTICQION
FOIPA
DELETED PAGE INFORMATION SHEET

FREEDOM OF INFORMATION
AND
PRIVACY ACTS
SUBJECTT O Tupap _S11:;kyr_ __ ii I _
FILE NUMBER __ 266A-OLA-2Q1_8Q74 VI-IQ! _ _ _ _ _ _
SECTION NUMBER: _ ,7 _1_ _ _ _
FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION


2/3:/1995!
FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION
Precedence: ROUTINE Date: 01/03/1997
4/{oz FBI Headquarters Attn: NSD, CT Branch, DTS, DTOU
From! Los Angeles
NSD~6
Approved By: I I
Drafted By:  mpbh}I92'I'I'M'
Case ID #= 266A-LA-2o1so7,¬3
I- ECEASED!; _
ERIC WRIGHT, AKA EAZY~EVICTIM  DECEASED!; WC
AOTDTDEATH THREATS
00; LOS ANGELES
ARMED AND DANGEROUS
synopsis: Status of investigation and request for extension to
PI.
Previous Title: | _|
ET AL;
TUPAC SHAKURVICTIM  DECEASED!;
EAZY-EVICTIM  DECEASED!;
ACT-DT-DEATH THREATS;
O02 LOS ANGELE$
Preliminary Inquiry Initiated: 10/1'7/1996, set to expire
01/17/1995.
Enclosures: One original and five copies of a Letterhead
Memorandum, dated 01/O3/1997.
Details: Title marked changed to reflect the true name of
EAZY-E.
Enclosed for the Bureau are one original and five
copies of a Letterhead Memorandum, dated O1/03/1997, which
contains the current status of captioned matter.
ALL llroammon uonulm I
anus rs UNOLABSIFID
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To: FBI Headquarters From: Los Angeles
Re: 266ALA~201807, 01/03/1997
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Several leads remain outstanding at Los Angeles
regarding captioned matter. Los Angeles anticipates several
interviews of witnesses and victims. Several LAFO files need to fbe reviewed for background information onE::::::kherein he is blc
referenced, to include the following files:
12-61-026-66697
87-473
92-6836
179-914
183-1734
It is requested that this Preliminary Investigation be
extended thirty days as a result of pending investigation.
ARMD AND'DANGEROUS
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In92
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0-93  Rev. 01/25/91! DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION
TRANSMIT VIA:
ii Tbkqpe
DATE: L/LH/1?
PAGE L or E
FM DIRECTOR FBI
TO FBI LOS ANGELEX
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UNCLAS
CITE: //D51Il//
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SUBJECT: N 1 I? ET AL; TUPAC JSHAKUR - VICTINCOMMUNICATION MESSAGE FORM
PRECEDENCE: CLASSIFICATION:
E] Immediate CI TOP SECRET
1U Priority SECRET
IX! Routme CONFIDENTIAL
UNCLAS E F T 0
UNCLAS
bbA~LA-E0160?!/ROUTINE/
.921
 DECEASEDH ERIC 9292IRIGHT~| AKA EAZY-EVICTIN  DECEASEDH AOT-DT-
DEATH THREATS? O0: LOS ANGELES-
REFERENCE LOS ANGELES EC DATED 11/3/I7.
PRELININARY INQUIRY  PI! INITIATED LU/L?/I71 TO EXPIRE ON
1|/1|?/T71 EXTENDED TO E/lb/J7.,...4.. ,
./= ~
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PI IS EXTENDED FOR A 30-DAY PERIOD TO ALLOU ADDITIONAL TIME
FOR L08 ANGELES T0 DETERMINE wnhuza suaazcw |:|AN» owns ARE
ENGAGED IN CRIMINAL ACTIVITY IN FURTHERANCE OF THEIR SOCIAL
AND/OR POLITICAL GOALS. DURING THIS INVESTIGATIVE PERIOD-| LOX
5_>92 .,'"-r.'.4~ /-' I/I ~"-L3  $3
* E A E I  *******¥' FOR COMM CENTER usz ONLY ******* W
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JAN 3 1% I997
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HIHIII I8 UNCLASSIFIID A
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0-93A  Rev. ouzs/91! DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION
COMWHHHCATKHTNH%SAGEFURh[
PAGE E UNCLAS
ANGELES SHOULD ATTEMPT To DETERMINE UHETHER THE EXTORTIONATE
meACTIVITY BEING CONDUCTED BE mo OTHERS IS To PROVIDE
FINANCIAL BACKING FOR THEIR ORGANIZATION oa IS ONLY FOR PERSONAL
FINANCIAL GAIN.
IF LOS ANGELES DESIRES FURTHER EXTENSION OF THIS PI A
REQUEST FOR SUEH EXTENSION SHOULD BE SUBMITTED T0 THE DOMESTIC
TERRORISM OPERATIONS UNIT1 FBIH01 PRIOR TO THE E/lb/I? EXPIRATION
DATE.
BT
////

0»93B  Rev. 01/2s/91! DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE '
FEDERAL BUREAU OF lNVES'l'IGA'I'lON
COMMUNICATION MESSAGE FORM
PAGE 3
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ass  Rev. 01/25/91! DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION
COMMUNICATION MESSAGE FORM
TRANSMIT VIA: . PRECEDENCE: CLASSIFICATION:
Teletype E1 Immediate TOP sncmvr
Priority SECRET
DATE-= 3/1-V *7 [3 Routine CONFIDENTIAL
UNCLAS 1: F T 0
PAGE 1. OF 2 UNCLAS
FH DIRECTOR FBI by.
T0 FBI L08 ANGELES  ET=bA~LA-BULBS?!/PRIORITY/
B1
UNCLAS
CITE: A //D5+]|//
0 /SUBJECT: I |ET AL-&#39;92 TUPAC SHAKUR - VICTIN
7 J
 DECEASED!% ERIC URIGHT1 AKA EAZY-E - VICTIM  DECEASED!% AOT~DT-
DEATH THREATS% 00: L08 ANGELES.
REFERENCE L08 ANGELES EC DATED E/LE/5?.
PRELIMINARY INQUIRY  PI! INITIATED LU/1?/R51 T0 EXPIRE ON
E/LE/371 EXTENDED T0 3/16/17-
PI IS EXTENDED FOR THIRTY DAYS T0 ALLOW TIME FOR L08 ANGELES
T0 RECEIVE RESPONSES T0 0UTSTANDING LEADS AND T0 DETERMINE
WHETHER THE EXTORTIONATE ACTIVITIES OF SUBJECT ARE IN FLTRTHERANCE
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0-93A  Rev. oms/91! DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
FEDERAL.BUREAIIOFINVEFUCMJTON
CONHHHUCATUMWNESSAGEFORMI
PAGE E UNCLAS
OF THE SOCIAL AND/OR POLITICAL GOALS OF THE JEUISH DEFENSE
LEAGUE.
IF LOS ANGELES DESIRES A FURTHER EXTENSION OF THIS PI1 A
REQUEST FOR SUCH EXTENSION MUST REACH THE DOMESTIC TERRORISM
OPERATIONS UNIT1 FBIHQ1 PRIOR TO THE 3/L8/R? EXPIRATION DATE.
BT
////

0-93B  Rev. 01/25/91! DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION
COMMUNICATION MESSAGE FORM
PAGE 3
ADI_N_I§TRAT,&#39;[_Y§ NOTE/TIC_KL._EK_ COUNT?
NOTE: THIS TELETYPE AUTHORIZES A 3D-DAY EXTENSION OF CAPTIONED
PI. THIS IS THE SECOND EXTENSION OF THIS PI.
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UNCLAS E F T O
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nm__3/1&#39;1/9?
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&#39; FM FBI LOS ANGELES 66A~LA~201807!_ P!
To nzascwon FBIIROUTINEI
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UNCLAS -
CITE: //341o=nsn»6// _b7C
PASS: FBIHQ FOR NSD, CT BRANCH, DT SECTION, DTOU.
SUBJECT: I l ET AL; TUPAC saaxun - vxcwzm
 DECE..%ED!: ERIC WRIGHT, AKA EAZY-E  VICTIM  DECEASED!; AOI-
P" urn THREATS; oo= nos ANGELES.
REFERENCE BUREAU TT DATED 02/1a/91.
PRELIMINARY INQUIRY  PI! INITIATED 10/&#39;17/95, TO EXPIRE! 1 &#39;
"-.6/9&#39;7, EXTENDED TO 3/18/97. &#39;
FOR INFORMATION OF THE BUREAU, CAPTIONED {~¬A1&#39;TEIR EXPIRED
ON O3/18/97. LOS ANGELES CONDUCTED NO INVESTIGATION WAS
CONDUCTED AFTER THE; EXPIRATION DATE.
ALL IQWQTHI 
ll!
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Approved: _O Jr ________O_____ _ __ ___Original 
Iel19::- _________m
Time Received: ___________________~___ Telpn
MRI/JULIAN DATE:
FOX DATE 8: TIME OF ACCEPTANCE: i

111- &#39;15 " &#39;  ,J1  ._
PAGE 2 yazm, 266A-LA201807, UNCLAS .
LOS ANGELES REQUESTS AN mcwmzsxon TO TI-IE PI mm TO RECENT
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FM DIRECTOR FBI
T0 FBI LOS ANGELES  ELLA-LA-EDIBU?HPRIORITYI
BT
UNCLAS
CITE: //lJ5&#39;lI//
l/SUBJECT:I J lav AL% TUPAC SHAKUR - VICTIM
7/ - ~
 DE EASED!% ERIC HRIGHTw AKA EAZY-E - VI TIH znscsasznaa AOT-DT-
nzawu runzarsa oo= L08 ANGELES.
REFERENCE LOS ANGELES cc vars» 3/1?/1?- b7
PRELIMINARY IuauIRv  PI! INITIATED In/I?/Rs. cxrcuncn T0
H/L?/1?.
PI Is zxwzunzn FOR THIRTY nnvs TO ALLOH TIHE FOR Lo: ANGELES
T0 RECEIVE RESPONSES T0 oursrannzus LEADS AND T0 DETERMINE
WHETHER THE EXTORTIONATE ACTIVITIES or suauzcr ARE IN FURTHERANCE
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0-93A  Rev. 01/25/91! DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
FEDERAI-BUREAU DNHHTGATHMV
COMWHHHCNHONDGEEAGEFDRM
PAGE E UNCLAS
OF THE SOCIAL AND/OR POLITICAL GOALS OF THE JEUISH DEFENSE
LEAGUE. _ -
LOS ANGELES IS REHINDED THAT THIS IS THE THIRD AND FINAL
EXTENSION OF THIS PI. AT THE END OF THIS INVESTIGATIVE PERIOD1
LOS ANGELES MUST EITHER CONVERT THIS MATTER TO A FULL
INVESTIGATION  IF UARRANTED! OR CLOSE THIS INVESTIGATION.
BT
////

o_-933 am. 01/15/91! DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
FEDERALIHHHHJOFINVESHGATKHJ
COMmnHCATRMWh
$AGEluud
PAGE 3
AIQINISIKAIIIE NOIE/TI§§LE§ CQQNI:
NOTE: THIS TELETYPE AUTHORIZES A 3D-DAY EXTENSION OF CAPTIONED
PI. THIS IS THE THIRD AND FINAL EXTENSION OF THIS PI.
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SJBJECT: N | FT AL; TUPAC JHAKUR ~ VICTIH
 DECEASED!? ERIC HEIGHT; AKA ElZYE  VICTIM lDECEl$EDli ADI-
DTDEATH THREATS? OD! LBS ANGELE$-
REFERENCE BUREAU TT DATED 02/18/97. - _
PRELIHINQRY INQUIQY  PI! INITIATED 10/17/969 TD EXPIRE UN
2/16/971 EXTENDED TU 3/18/97-
FDR INFORMATION UF THE BUREAU; CIPTIUNED MATTER EXPIRED
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PAGE THO DE FBTLA 0006 QNCLAS
T LOS ANGEL-ES REQUESTS AN EXTENSION TD THE PI DUE TD RECENT
INFORMATION CJNCERNING an Aanxnnu-A_ vxcnn NAHED
:|ma ALLEGATIDN InP|.ICATE$ S ovsanlus on BEHALF
OF THE JEWISH DEFENSE LEAGUE_lJDL} alrULE EXTORTING:
LAFU REQUESTS 9! EXTENSION TU DETERMINE WHETHER THE
EKTURTTUVATE QCTIVITIES OF SUBJECT ARE IN FURTHERANCE OF THE
SEJCIAL ANOIOR POLITICAL GUQLS OF THE JDL.
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2/31/1995! i -
I FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION
Precedence: ROUTINE Date: 09/22/1997
To: /FBI Headquarters Attn: NSD, CT BRANCH.
DTOU
Birmingham
Boston
Cincinnati
Dallas
Indianapolis 
Las Vegas
New York
San Diego &#39;
San Francisco Attn: Santa Rosa RA
Seattle
FrOm: Los Angeles
NSD-6Contact: SA I
*===fs=* BY= lilml-=>bh**?
Case ID #= &#39;266A-LA-201807 ~ --T" "
Title:  |
_ AOT-DT-DEATH THREATS;&#39;
_ OO: LOS ANGELES
Synopsis: Request for subscriber checks.
Previous Title:| I
I
TUPAC SHAKUR - VICTIM  DECEASED!;
EAZY-E  VICTIM  DECEASED!; _ bqp
AOTDTDEATH THREATS; "
.- O0: LOS ANGELES &#39;
Full Field Investigation Instituted: 04/15/1997.
Details: For information of receiving offices, on October 17,
1996, a preliminary inquiry  PI! was initiated at Los AngelesFi d i o corroborate source information t  a known organized crime figure, -along with a
group of unidentified individuals were utilizing death threats in
the furtherance of extortion attempts targeted towards two former
prominent rap musicians from the Los Angeles area and other
victims yet unidentified. &#39;
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To: FBI Headquarters From: Los-Angeles
R92 266A&#39;LA20l807, 09/22/1997
~.
JDL, and others yet unidentified have been extorting money from
the victim and&#39; rap music stars via death threats. The scheme involves1 other subjects making telephonic death threats to the
r p s ar. Subjects then intercede by, contacting
offering protection for a fee". Source reported that ERIC b7C
WRIGHT, also known as EAZY-E, who owned RUTHLESS RECORDS, -
Woodland Hills, California was a victim of this extortion scheme
prior to dying from AIDS.Shad also reportedly targeted
TUPAC SHAKUR prior to his recent murder in Las Vegas, Nevada.
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III
On March 27, 1995, filed a civil lawsuit against
RONALD SWEENEY, Entertainmen ney for the WRIGHT estate.
This lawsuit, titled COMPTOWN RECORDS INC, et a1 V. LAW OFFICES
RONALD SWEENEY, et al", civil case number BC 124555 was filed in
Los Angeles Superior Court, Los Angeles, California and pertains
erty rights of RUTI-ILESS RECORDS. During the lawsuit,ffered as  e two letters purportedly signed by ERIC
WRIGHT, granting part ownership of RUTHLESS . Theletters were deeme orged by an expert witness.  dvised
the results of this lawsuit were classified confi en ia and
require a subpoena, which is pending. It is believed thatreceived approximately $1.5 million in the court settlemen;
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To: FBI Headquaxcers From: Los Angeles
Re: 266ALA-201807, 09/22/1997 b7Q
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from the aforementioned court settlement.
Los Angeles appreciates the assistance of receiving q
offices in this matter. l b&#39;~
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Set Lead 1:
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 :2/31/199:! "
|FI5I3lEFlI92l.IBIJFIEUKIJ  IF:l|U92II55?T1CiIYT1 !ll
Precedence: ROUTINE Date: 10/20/1997
T NSD Attn &#39; C 0: . TLos Angeles Attn: SAg?:iiff::f
?f::::]NS 
From: Sacramento l &#39;
Contact: IAI I6/ b7CApproved By: i N
7";Case ID #= 266A-LA-2oieo7<Q Pending!
LE&#39;1&#39;1n..,- &#39;
TUPAC SHAKUR - VICTIM  DECEASED!;
EAZY-E  VICTIM  DECEASED!;
AOT  DT - DEATH THREATS &#39;
O0: LATitle:
Synopsis: No subscriber info available for  ithout
issuance of subpoena or court order to Pacific Bell.
Full Field Investigation Instituted: O4/15/1997
Reference: 266A-LA-201807 Serial 289
Details: A review of current local directories and Sacramento
indices was negative for telephone
It is noted that is handled by Pacific
Bell Telephone Company, WhlC now requires a subpoena or court
order for any published or nonpublished subscriber information,
directed to Custodian of Records, Pacific Bell Telephone Company,
2150 Webster Street, Room 735A, Oakland, California 94612.b7C
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ix.
ALLIINUBILTIOIOUITAIIQD I/92
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FREEDOM OF INFORMATION
AND
PRIVACY ACTS
SUBJECT__ _T_l_1pac Shakur A
FILE NUMBER _ 266A-LA-ZOl?8O&#39;Z I I ___
SECTION NUMBER ,_ O L I I _
FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION

FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION
Precedence: ROUTINE Date: 10/17/1996
To: FBIHQ Attn: NSD, CT Branch,
DTS, DTOU
Los Angeles
From: Los Angeles
NSD-6
contact: SA
Approved By:
Drafted By: mpbheVC _  12.7.-L "=&#39; . , . ....o__.__
. mmmmn @92°"Title: |  .ET @~~~m mzzaTUPAC SHAKUR-VICTIM  DECEASED!; °920k92kou~lp GU QLUEAZY-E-VICTIM  nscmsno!; uusow? 3
AOT"DT-DEATK THREATS;
oo= LOS ANGELESb7C
ARMED AND DANGEROUS
Synopsis: Request to open a 266A matter regarding death threats
and extortion involving rap music stars TUPAC SHAKUR  deceased!,
EAZY-E  deceased!, and other victims yet unidentified.
Details: _Oq_2!11/3§, wriggg &#39; v
was contacte concerning matter captioned: UNSUB S!;
BOMBING OF THE AMERICANARAB ANTI~DIsCRIMINATION COMMITTEE  ADC!
OFFICE, 1905 E. 17TH STREET, SANTA ANA, CALIFORNIA, 10/ll/85;
ALEXANDER MICHEL ODEH-VICTIM  DECEASED!; EXPLOSIVE AND INCENDIARY
DEVICE: O0: LOS ANGELES 
74A-3595!.
ri 1 &#39; w advised writer hat WC
10711
| and ofhers yet unfHenfif1ed_
avebeen
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*7-<. /K,private estate, and are protected by gun-toting body guards
associated with the JEWISH DEFENSE LEAGUE  JDL! The subjects
onvince the victim they have worked a deal out with the
person s! making the death threats and the threats cease The
victim then pays the subjects for the protection services 7rendered and resume their normal lifestyle with no fear of b&#39;
further death threatsextorting money from various rap music stars via death threats
The scheme invoives[::::]and other subjects making telephonic
death threats to the rap star Subjects then intercede by
contacting the victim and offering protection for a fee The
victim and their family are taken to a safe haven", usually a
C . . . .
. . . . . &#39; b
:identified EAZY-E  deceased! who reportedly was
targeted by subjects for extortion prior to dying from
complications associated with AIDS. EAZY-E resided in Van Nu s,
Californi
In addition to the aforementioned, on 10/8/96,
Det.   LAPD! and writer interviewed a Los Angeles
source of proven reliability, concerning the ODEH bombing matter.
During that interview source corroborated the above information.According to source,[:::::]reportedly enlists the services of onenot further identified at this time!, whom source
escri e as a capper or ambulance chaser, to assist with the
extortion scheme. Source stated that[::::]used this same scheme
when he would rip off drug dealers. Source stated the monetary
amount being extorted is in the $50,000 range.
Writer is familiar with captioned subjects as their
names have surfaced in the ODEH investigation and also a case
captioned JEWISH DEFENSE LEAGUE; D5/T; OO: L05 ANGELES"
 IOOA-LA169742-Closed!.
Since two independent sources have reported captioned
matter, it is recommended that a 266A matter be opened and
assi ned to writer with Det nd DeI ] LASD! as co case agents. D :::::]
607

CPNet.com - Tupac Shakur Page l of 2
on l8 1996  PNA§§§s§gmmm 0§;s1 AM~ ~-92 92
._! ._!
To Front Page - College Press Network
Shakur a victim of his message
Rapper cannot escape world he idealized
Tupac Shakur: One of the leading 
gures of gangsta rap.
I993 
le photo.
.B?_K§MwTN_
6_E.6I;
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ET.,..._M..-.._.._.._..a-n.~.-.._..._.._.._.._,.._..._.
CPNet Opinion Editor
Last Friday, dozens of Tupac Shakur fans gathered
outside University Medical Center in Las Vegas to
mourn the death of their slain idol.
Mortally wounded during a drive-by shooting near the
Vegas strip, Shakur 
nally met the end he so .
vehemently invoked in many of his songs.
But in this time of grief and mourning, what was the real impact of his message?
In a society where racial equality has yet to be reached, Shakur simply polarized
the opposing sides with his message of hate and intolerance. Instead of using his
talents to bring the races together, he did everything imaginable, whether
intentional or not, to make peaceful co~existence impossible.
Living in a country where homicide rates are the highest in the world, Shakur
blindly promoted the indiscriminate use of guns and violence to make amends.
Shakur even became a victim of his own message when he was shot 
ve times
during a 1994 robbery attempt.
Although Shakur tried to convey a positive image of women and fatherhood in
some of his early songs, whatever credibility he possessed quickly deteriorated
when in 1995 he was arrested and sentenced to jail for sexually attacking a
21-year-old woman
Shal<ur&#39;s detrimental message fueled the 
res of political conservatives who called
for such extremes as censorship and nation-wide imposition of what they
considered to be "true" family values. Even in pronouncing his own First
Amendment rights, Shakur maraged to attract negative publicity to this most
intrinsic right guaranteed to all Americans.
Last Sunday, the Rev. Jesse Jackson was quoted in a Los Angeles newspaper as
mane WK D 4-1 p &#39;  " a s er i

. &#39;5
~ J D _ 
CPNet.com ~ Tupac Shakur - Page 2 of 2
saying: "This is so, so sad. Sometimes the lure of violent culture is so magnetic
that even when one overcomes it with material success, it continues to call." What
I would like to know is what the Rev. Jackson considers overcoming violence. As I
recall, Shakur overcame violence by explicitly endorsing it. Therefore, he could
never have overcome it. On the contrary, he just became another victim in a
hopelessly tragic way of life he himself helped advance.
Of course, Shakur is not alone. He joins the long list of "dead heroes" who in living
have done their part to propagate a perilous way of life without regard to future
consequences. Just as Jerry Garcia in his promotion of drug use during the 60s and
70s, Shakur will forever be remembered for leading a generation down the road of
neglect and despair.
Unfortunately in our world, all the wrong role models attract the attention of the
masses. Whether they be athletes or politicians, these individuals degrade the most
basic values of integrity and rectitude. To make matters worse, in shame they are
still heralded by their fellow peers.
Tragically, those who seek to make a positive difference, simply go overlooked or
are suppressed by the powers that be. It is disappointing that 28 years after his
death, Dr. Martin Luther King&#39;s message of non-violence and assimilation can be
superseded by the narrow, intolerant message professed by individuals such as
white supremacists, anti-Semite and in this case, Tupac Shakur.
New index of college newspapers online
Subscribe to our free CPNews email service
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Posted: September 18, 1996.
Copyright © 1995, 1996, Colle e Press Network. All rights reserved.
http://www.cpnet. com
T
Oct 18 1996 08:51 AM

Q e Q
l &#39; -92!
Zpac Pages Newzletter Edition 2 Volume I Page 1 of 2
Inside The Mind Of
2pac Shakur
I MK ix K if I! K7 I I A,LLI]II"¢""F*92"," f~ Y"
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Disclaimer: The followin is an excerpt from Vibe Magazine. HERE-W 13 W-l°1~15$Il&#39;
There was never a beef, only a difference of opinion. My homeboy Suge
gave me the best advice that I could ever get from anybody. When people
ask him if he&#39;s bee
ng with Bad Boy and with Puffy, he&#39;s says it s like me
going to the playground to pick on litle kids. That&#39;s like me being mad at
my little brother cause he&#39;s getting cash now. I&#39;m not mad at that, I&#39;m just
mad at my little brother when he don&#39;t respect me. And when you don&#39;t
- respect me, I&#39;m a spank that ass. I don&#39;t give a fuck how rich you got tn the
block I&#39;m your big brother. I&#39;m a break your big ass down. That&#39;s myonly
point. I feel as though he wrong, he got out of hand. He got seducedby the
power-not because he&#39;s an evil person, but because money is evil; ilit&#39;s not
handled right. If you lose your composure you could do anything.Fear got
stronger than love and uiggas did things that they weren&#39;t reallysupposed
to do. They know in their hearts, that&#39;s why their in hell now.They can&#39;t
sleep. That&#39;s why they&#39;re telling all the reporters and all the people "Why
they doing this? They fucking up hip-hop, blah, blah, blah"cause they in
hell. They can&#39;t make money, they can&#39;t go anywhere, theycan&#39;t look at
themselves cause they know the prodigal son has retui-ned.I&#39;m alive; the
ghost is walking around. And I&#39;m around talking, in jail Ididn&#39;t talk. Now,
everybody who thinks that I disrespected, I love my eastcoast fans. I&#39;m
from there. I&#39;m eating New York Pizza, I drive New Yorkjeeps but I&#39;m
saying let&#39;s keep it real for a second. If you&#39;re halfthe lover of music that
you are, go back and study. Study how Party And Bullshitwas me before I
met Biggie. You don&#39;t hear my style in his raps. Studyhow after I met
Biggie, Ready To Die comes out and his whole stylechanges study. Study
why I would be mad when half of the major NewYork rappers or their
managers, or their agents or their somebody wasthere when I got shot-and
nobody couldn&#39;t give me no information. Juststudy that. Study how when
Wu-Tang got their chain snatched atsix-six-duece, I not only found who
did it but gave them the message thatif they wanted to see the niggas that
Oct18 1996 08:51 AM

yo g 10
Zpac Pages Newzletter Edition 2 Volume I Page 2 of 2
did it, they could see them. Man to Man, just you and them-no guns, no
nothing if you feel like that. That&#39;s all I ask for. If you&#39;re going to act like a
gangster or a "G" or a king of New York, I&#39;m a expect that. And when you
don&#39;t come through, then Pmgoing to want to crush your empire. And
that&#39;s what it&#39;s time for. for thelatest on
Visit Y_ibeMagazine Qnline and check out the rest of this interview.
Its pretty interesting, and de
nitely check out the video clips of the
interview also available on Vibe Magazine Online.
This Page is Webmastered by Gurjeet Litt [email protected]
Oct 18 1996 ~ 08:51 AM

" 92 1 1
4
Shakur Hurt in Drive-By Shooting Page 1 of 3
Shakur Hurt in Drive-By Shooting
Controversial Rapper Critically Injured After TysonFi A-LL IIV&#39;I&#39;.?8R.lE-§£_.gIUll&#39; CQNTILINEDBBy Sharon Waxmcm &#39; c929292°92&#39;1l W-1:92&#39;9292a92l
Special to The Washington Post qU92¥92P92-#10 0 AL, 5°;Monday, September 9 1996; Page D01 &#39;l"""~$92392-vii q92$7__q92
The Washington Post
LOS ANGELES, Sept. 8 -- "Gangsta" rap star Tupac Shakur was in critical condition in a Las
Vegas hospital today after an assailant pumped four bullets into his head and chest during a
drive-by shooting Saturday night.
The 25-year-old rap star was shot as he and Marion "Suge" Knight, chairman of Death Row
Records, Shakur&#39;s label, were on their way to a nightclub about 11:15 p.tn. after watching the
Mike Tyson-Bruce Seldon heavyweight title 
ght at the MGM Grand Hotel, police said.
Shakur underwent emergency surgery for multiple gunshot wounds and remained under
heavy police and private guard in the trauma-intensive care unit, according to a spokesman
for University Medical Center. Knight, 31, was hit in the head-by shrapnel and was released
from the hospital today.
The shooting was the most serious in a string of violent incidents involving the rap star, who
appeared Wednesday at the MTV Video Music Awards, where he and members of his .
entourage got into an argument with several men in the lobby of New Yorks Radio City
Music Hall. Police were called to break it up.
In November 1994, Shakur was shot 
ve times in the lobby of a New York recording studio
when muggers stealing his jewelry opened 
re. He has spent much of the past 2 1/2 years in
court or in custody on various charges.
A handsome, swaggering man with long eyelashes and a penchant for showy jewelry, Shakur
has been a prominent symbol for gangsta rap music, enthusiastically followed by teenage fans
and long criticized by adults for its explicitly violent and sexual images. Saturday&#39;s incident
underscored the link between some rap stars ~ despite their celebrity status -- and the
dangerous milieu that gave rise to their music. .
Oct 18 1996 08:47 AM

__ -..
, .. !
Shakur Hurt in Drive-By Shooting Page 2 of 3
In the weekend shooting, Knight was driving with Shakur in a convoy of IO cars about a
quarter-mile from the glittering casino strip when a white Cadillac with four people inside
pulled up alongside their black BMW and a passenger opened 
re. Local media reports said
dozens of witnesses looked on in horror.
Police said they had begun an investigation into the shooting but had no suspects yet.
"Drive-by shootings are not milmown here, but they usually occur between rival gang
members whose reasons are for retaliation for other shootings," said Las Vegas Police Lt.
Marc Maston. "I can&#39;t tell you the motivation behind this."
But he said police were optimistic they would 
nd the assailants. "This particular incident
apparently had several witnesses. If they are credible, with good information, this should be
solvable."
Spokesman for Death Row Records could not be reached for comment as to possible motives
for the shooting. Shakur said earlier this year that he believed the 1994 robbery-shooting was
a setup, fueling speculation in the hip-hop industry that rivalry between East Coast and West
Coast rap labels may have taken a violent turn.
Shakur himself has had many run-ins with the law in recent years. In June, the singer faced a
l20day sentence for probation violations stemming from offenses including assault and
battery and a 1994 sexual abuse conviction in New York. He had been allowed to remain free
on $1.4 million bail -- paid by Death Row Records -- pending his appeal.
Shakur served ll months in prison for his involvement in the attack on a 21 -year-old woman
in a New York hotel room. He had been convicted in Los Angeles of assault and battery on a
music video producer and for carrying a loaded, concealed weapon, and was scheduled for
sentencing this week on the weapons charge.
But in the world of rap, Shakur&#39;s convictions seemed only to enhance his status. His fourth
solo album, "All Eyez on Me," a two-volume, 27-track recording featuring guest turns by
fellow rappers_$_r3
oopAIQoggy Dogg, l§appin&#39; 4;&#39;l_"ay and__Method Man, debuted earlier this year
and has sold more than 5 million copies. His previous album, MeAgainst the World, had
the dubious distinction of being the 
rst album to reach No. 1 while its singer was in prison.
Shakur also starred opposite Janet Jackson in the 1993 movie "Poetic Justice" and has been
working on another 
lm, "Gridlock."
In interviews earlier this year, Shakur had said he was tired of living up to his outlaw image,
one he had chronicled in a tattoo on his chest that pronounced "Thug Life. "
"l lived Thug Life," he said. "It was stupid . . . it&#39;s suicidal."
But the rapper also said that he expected he would die violently. In July, Shakur told the
British newspaper the Observer: "It&#39;s going to happen. All the [black people] who change the
world die in violence. They don&#39;t get to die like regular ways. {Expletives] come take their
lives."
Oct 18 1996 0g;47 AM

Q Qt 1
Shakur Hurt in Drive-By Shooting Page 3 of 3
@CAPTION: Tupac Shakur in New York at the MTV Video Music Awards, three days
before the attack.
@CAPTION: Rapper Tupac Shakur, shown here last week, took four bullets in the head and
chest in a drive-by shooting Saturday night in Las Vegas.
©Copyright 1996 The Washington Post Company
Back to the tog
Oct 18 1996 08:47 AM

1 _ 3 ~ J
Tupac and the Fall on the Road to Calvary Page I of 4
T upac and the Fall on the
Road to Calvary
By Jordan Pelaez
F 7 77777 &#39; T77" 7The 
rst time l entered the gallery in The Prado where
Raphael&#39;s The Fall on the Road to Calvary  ca. 15 l 7! hangs, I
simply stared at this monstrous ten foot high, eight foot widecanvas, and let the tears ow for ten minutes. If the friend I lI
Al.-...was with hadn&#39;t snapped me out of it, I might still be in  in WW ,,,.Madrid. I parenting mg. 1 n §- 3=tu°92§LZ.*&#39; <te|_;u¢,,q/Raphael painted a mob scene, teeming with Roman soldiers, qgtttgt, 1,, Qexecution spectators, horses, carts, mourners, and, way off in N we ¢92
the distance at the end of the procession, Calvary, more a
mound than a hill, where two crosses have already been
erected. But at the painting&#39;s center are just two 
gures. Jesus, I,
. fallen with his left hand on a rock and his right still trying to f
support the massive weight of the cross, looks back over his 1
le
 shoulder. There stands a group of 
ve women--
rst and 7&#39;
foremost among them, Mary, his mother. Mary holds her hand outstretched, willing even now
to do anything she can to save her child. Her look personi
es despair and alienation. The look
in Jesus&#39;s eyes bespeak compassion for the trial of his mother; even in this crisis, he seems
like he&#39;s trying to console her.
I knew those looks well. They were the looks, I thought that 
rst time, that passed between
my wife and my daughter as the latter lay dying of cancer. But further viewings brought me to
a different understanding. My own face once bore one of those looks, and so does the face of
every mother, and every child, who faces an untimely death.
So when I got the news that Tupac Shakur had died of his drive-by wounds, I thought
instantly of his mother. Given the life of distress that Tupac and his mother lived, how many
times had they shared such glances, held them, broken them off only because the pain of
sustaining such moments of intensity is 
nally too much for any heart to bear?
The other day on the AOL discussion group The Velvet Rope, some fool mocked the idea
that Tupac could be compared in any way to John Lennon. But Tupac and Lennon and Elvis
at least had this in common: The 
rst, perhaps greatest, love of their life was their mother.
And this is no small thing, because all of them made some of their most important music
because of it: Lennon&#39;s "Julia," the early Elvis ballads that are clearly directed at his mom
 catch the end of his second 
lm, Loving You!, and Tupads "Dear Mama."
Oct 18 1996 08:48 AM

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Tupac and the Fall on the Road to Calvary Page 2 of 4
Of course, thafs not the only comparison, or even necessarily the most important one that
could be made between Tupac and the great rock rebels. Fools are reluctant to admit Tupac to
full equality in this matter, because that would mean admitting other things. For instance, that
Tupac equaled the greats in the emotional intensity and rhythmic power of his records. Or
that the majority of Tupacs songs were uplifting, positive, respectful of women, and
concerned with encouraging young black men not to commit crime, which he generally
portrayed as a foolish and ugly thing even when it&#39;s seductive or unavoidable. It would
require admitting that Tupac was sent to prison for a crime that white rock stars have
committed, and continue to commit, with absolute impunity. It would require acknowledging
that although Tupac did once shoot two men, it was in self-defense; they were off-duty
Georgia cops who had drawn down on him in the after-midnight streets of Atlanta. It would
require recognizing that Tupac is not the only rock star with unsavory associates.
But refusing to allow Tupac to enter the lists of rock&#39;s fallen greats is the least of the sins
fools make when talking about them. These fools, who include just about every writer I&#39;ve
read on the subject, spend all their time avoiding a simple truth: Tupac was not a murderer;
he got murdered. He wasnot the criminal this time; he was the victim of a shooting. But of
course, if you tell the story that way, you cant come out and say, as the media from
Newsweek to The Village Voice have done, that this thuggish young nigger got what&#39;s
coming to him. _
On that basis, so did Jesus, who preferred the company of whores, thieves, tax cheats  from
the government end!, and other miscreants. Not that Tupac was anything like Jesus. But those
Bible stories exist to try to teach us not about Jesus so much as about forgiveness and
compassion. What cases like Tupac&#39;s prove, over and over again, is that we live in a time and
a place where the concept of forgiveness does not exist. Our society isn&#39;t about forgiveness,
it&#39;s about vengeance--which, it&#39;s tempting to say, is one reason it turns out so much art like
Tupac&#39;s, and so little like Raphael&#39;s.
i Z in i i i But that wouldn&#39;t be a terribly accurate thing to say,
either. In the 
rst place, Raphael&#39;s society is our
society--the hideous American cultural landscape of
 today grew straight up out of the culture that
l produced the Renaissance, and the colonialism that
i brought Tupac&#39;s ancestors and my own to America.
And while it may be true that Raphael&#39;s world
valued harmony and order far more than ours, that&#39;s
mostly true of its artistic productions--for most
 people, who had no access to art at all, the
Renaissance world was a miserably impoverished
l and dangerous place to dwell.
It may be true, as John Berger puts it in his new book, Titian: Nymph and Shepherd  Prestel,
$24.50!, that "our century [is]...always searching for rage and wisdom, rather than harmony."
But it is not the decline of belief in God or the holy Roman Catholic church or the clinical
application of the artistic values of the Renaissance that has made it so. It is rather the way
we have allowed the other side-~the colonizing, predatory, "nature red in tooth and claw"
Oct l8 1996 08:48 AM

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Tupac and the Fall on the Road to Calvary Page 3 qf4
side--to dominate. In the society that worships not God or Jesus but the free market,
competition and "the sanctity of the contract," compassion and forgiveness have been erased.
When was the last time you offered a cold cup of water to the sick or visited the imprisoned?
But no artist is bound entirely by the prejudices of his time. Great artists transcend our
everyday pettiness. There is no excuse for the Tupac lyrics that demean other people, and in
portraying violence with so much explicitness that it became for some sad souls allegedly
attractive, he played a dangerous game. Great art, we have been reassured, escapes the
small-minded bigotry of its time. Maybe not always. If we looked at The Fall on the Road to
Calvary the way the art of Tupac and other rap performers is usually seen, Jesus and Mary
would not be the central 
gures. For standing just above Jesus in the picture, closer to its
center and with a more directly active role in the proceedings, is a large muscular man. His
head is turned to the right, where a mounted Roman of
cer waves papers at him; this is
surely Simon the Cyrene, the man who according to the gospels was ordered to help Jesus
carry the cross after he stumbled. Simon is represented here, however, in another
umnistakable way: Raphael drew this Libyan Jew, alone among the company, with a huge
hooked nose, which in his time was a way of saying "Hymietown." Judged the way our
society judges rap--by caricature, not context-The Fall on the Road to Calvary is antisernitic.
According to Luke 3:28-31!, the women looking
on wept when Jesus stumbled, and he found the I
energy to speak to them. "Daughters of Jerusalem," 1
Luke has him say, "weep not for me, but weep for l
yourselves, and for your children. For behold the
days are coming in the which they shall say,
Blessed are the barren, and the wombs that never .
bare, and the paps which never gave suck. Then
shall they begin to say to the mountains, Fall on us;
and to the hills, Cover us."&#39; ,
If I do not quite believe that we have reached those i
days, Tupac is one of the reasons. With all my heart, I wish that he had had the time to grow
in wisdom and maturity; that he could have avoided the lethal situations into which he
continued to fall. But I have seen his video for l Ain&#39;t Mad At Cha" and I know that he had
come much further along the path than those who treat him as if he were the murderer.
That video has mostly been described in terms of its sensational opening moments, in which
T upac is shot in the chest and dies, "just like in reality"; and inevitably, in terms of the dead
musical celebrities that Tupac then encounters in heaven. But those details have nothing to do
with what the video is about, nor is it surprising that folks would rather talk about anything
else, including trivia. Because the true topic of "I Ain&#39;t Mad At Cha" is precisely compassion
and forgiveness.
In the video, Tupac forgives everyone-~the brothers known and unknown who could not stay
the course, his partners in Thug Life, the mother about whom his music often expressed such
deep but conicted emotion but who stayed beside him  that look undoubtedly upon her face!
that long week in the hospital, those who condemned him from the start and along the way.
Oct 18 i996 08:48 AM

92
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Tupac and the Fall on the Road to Calvary Page 4 of 4
He also prays for other ghetto youth to have a better chance--and a happier result. The video&#39;s

nal images tell the true story. The friend who was with Tupac when he was shot dresses up,
visits his friend&#39;s grave, then goes home, where he hugs mother, wife and baby girl. Fade to a
black screen, on which is written: Dedicated to Mutula Shakur and Geronimo Pratt. Tupac&#39;s
fathers. In the end, the son forgives his fathers, which is as close as I could imagine anyone
coming in this life to reaching a kind of emotional maturity.
We will not be permitted to know what kind of grown man or mature artist Tupac Shakur
might have become. Those who do not think this is a tragedy, or believe that what he had
done to him is only what he had done to others, miss the point far, far more than those of us
who, all along, forgave him his sins because of his talent
© Copyright I996. The Unofficial Death Row HQ. All Rights Reserved
Oct 18 1996 08:48 AM

0 Q 4
, t &#39;3
2pac Pages Newzletter Edition 2 Volume 1 Page 1 of 2
2p ac Newz ~Hs~..a&#39;".s..ma1ass§@m*awEmmQL_B" °9292m.L queues-*  ""* -""" "r"" * " * ******* u$q
Meow °9292Sa=-it
Tupac Shakur has lined up his next acting gig. The rapper will co-star
opposite Tim Roth in the dark comedy "Gridlock." Actor Vondie Curtis
Hall wrote the script and will direct. The movie is about two druggies who
want to go straight, but can&#39;t get into any rehab centers. They are framed
for the murder of a drug dealer and then the police come after them aswell
as the real murderers. Tupac has also completed the script for an up
coming movie called "Live to Tell", he will also be staring in this one.
Back in April Zpac was sentenced to 120 days for violating his parole, he
was to start serving this sentence on June 7/96 but the judge granted him
an extention until Tupac has 
nished production on an upcoming movie.
Tupac is appealing this sentence, and the word right now is that he should
win. Zpac will you please stay out of jail!!!
Last Month 2pac appeared in court to face Illegal weapon charges and
instead of the Judge giving Tupac jail time, he ordered Zpac to put on a
benefit concert in California for under privillaged youths.
I As I had stated in last month Q Zpac Pages N ewzletteglpac has 
nished
making two videos, "2 of Americaz ost an e , and How Do U Want
It". Well, 2pac is also making a video for his new track called "Hit Em
Up", which is not avaliable on his new album So, y&#39;all be on the lookout for
that.
NEW ALBUM, Zpac will be releasing a new album. The material on this
new album will be similar to "Me Against the World". A release date has
not been set yet.
Within the month, there will be an Of
cial 2pac Homepage coming up on
the net, I will post the address as soon as I recieve it. On the Of
cial 2pac
Homepage you will be able to purchase those hard to 
nd singles andother
merchandise, as well as kept up to date with 2pac&#39;s future projects.
Oct 18 1996 08:48 AM

.-&#39;-92.
! _i
Zpac Pages Newzle
er Edition 2 Volume 1 *_   &#39;I
___,.. ....,_. 92_ &#39;~
This Page is Webmastered b&#39;{Gurjeet Litt [email protected]
"--~.._ _ ,-Page 2 of 2
Oct 18 1996 08:48 AM
v

I I
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Zpac Pages Newzletter Edition 2 Volmne 1 Page 1 of 2
The New 2pac Track c
There was some concern from some of you that I was being hypocritical
because I praised the 2Pac record that attacks bad boy while at the same
time I&#39;ve been advocating peace...I wanted to clarify a couple of points...
First and foremost..I&#39;m de
nitely forpeace.. If there is anyway I can help
facilitate that.. I would and will do that.. One of the things I would most
likely not do is play the song on my radio show without a briefcommentary
before and after.... What I 
rst thought about hit u up wasits ferocity.. It
was a straight up dis song... and in the context of throwingdown and being
com petetive on wax..I likeed it on that level.. Up untilnow people have been
beating around the bush.by using fancy metaphorsand similes and saying
something but not saying nothing..ie LALA.. The 2Pac song reminded me
0LTim.. .. and my 
rst thoughts werewill Tim Dog come back
with a resp0nse...after I printed the message..Iremembered that he did..but
it was weak... So really I guess I just liked thedirectness of the song and
considering what was said some of the remarkswere in line... ie Mobb Deep _
a week after 2Pac had been shot were down inwashington n<:6ii&#39;si&#39;ga"""&#39;"
making jokes about it.. They kept saying theyknew who shot Pac...So they
got stepped too...Because if it&#39;s a Biggie/Zpac thing..why is Mobb Deep
enetring the arena..? Chino..who I like alot, alsospoke.. In one of hisrhymes
he spoke about getting bent over in jail like2Pac.. There was a rumor going
around that said he got pumped in jail..Again why jump in?..So Pac called
them out on record.. Now at this juncture in the game one of two things will
happen..either this dissing onwax will continue..or fools will sit down and
talk and work it all out..ortheyll do like Luke and Dre did make dis
records so they all make money.. I will admit..Pac went a bit too far by
talking about Biggie&#39;s wife..But as a straight up dis record which we have
always had in hip hop..I found the song funny... I think at this point in
time.. the wars will cease..... and soon these records will retire and be
viewed the way we look at Me Shan and KRS-One...old battle records.. And
if folks recall there was an awful lot of tension between BDP and the Juice
Crew back then..
Davey D M1,, n~n3&#39;onMA&#39;r10192I UONTAINEDhttp://www.daveyd.com HEREIN 15DATE92 W B _ egybaaz §§%§Quwuug  sqon 18 1996 Qusou, <3 °92 92s&#39;2_1.92 l os;49 AM
sI

&#39;, Q
Zpac Pages Newzletter Edition 2 Volume 1 Page 2 of 2
What are your comments, do you think Zpac is justi
ed in making this
track? And for all of y&#39;all that have heard this track Hit Em Up", What
do you think? Is it on point?
This Page is Webmastered by Gurjeet Litt yu108654@,yorku.ca
QC! I8 1996 08:49 AM

. ~v to
Eazy-E "The Hip-Hop Thugster" Page 1 of 2
Sunrise Z 963 &#39; 
Sunset 1995 ____
This page is dedicated in the memoYy&#39;<¬Ei&#39;ie "Eazy-E" Wright  R.I.P! !
I IIII I I * I~ I I I I I I I II I II I I I<;I&#39; __i 1" II_I_I_*: i II I
Eric "Eazy-E" Wright got the whole U.S.A plus the rest of the world to wake up when itcame to the blacks situration in the American comunity in the middle of the 80&#39;s. Under T
his alias, Eazy-E, he started a record comapny, -Ruthless Records-, with help of money that
he had collected as a small thief and drug-dealer, and created the gangsta-rap, a part of hip
hop that had millions of head lines world wide. 31 years old, he died, only 2 months after that
he fund out that he had AIDS.
He was born in Compton in a middle-class family in 1963, he lost his grip in the teenages and
became a criminal, the life as a small gangsta didn&#39;t have the plans for the future that Eazy-E
were dreaming i-of,-_~so-after "cemtéatea the schoo-l,~ he started in the music buisnes.
Together wiih__I_&#39;c"e-Cube, Dr.Dre, MC Ren and D_J Yella, he 1986 puttcd together one of the
most controversialrap~group ever, N.W.A  Niggaz With Attitudes!. When their "Boyz n the
Hood" started to conquer the lists in USA, they putted Compton and Los Angeles on the
rap-map. With fat bases and heavy funk, Boyz n&#39; the Hood soon became the national-song of
hip hop. Everybody that were living in the so called projects" suddenly had something that
was their, a song with lyrics that showed the hard reallity that got -the "white America" to
tripp.
That was just the begining. With N.W.A, Ruhtless Records got a dream start and 1989 the
album Straight outta Compton, that was a real classic were out. The fans selebrated. With
soungs like Fuck the Police and Gangsta, Gangsta made the FBI and the LAPD to shake
teeth and the politicans started to show interests in hip hop but not in a positive way. The
gangsta rap also splitted into two camps betwen those who thought N.W.Ajust descrined
things as they were and those who thought that hip-hop had a responsibilty to take and no
encurige and glorify that violence that was about to strangle the Latin Americans and the
black people.
In the middle of that Eazy saw how his life work was failing apart. Ice-Cube left first, then to
be followed by Dr.Dre that started Deth_I§g!y_Records together with Suge Knight, with
artists like Snoop Doggy Doggp Tha Dogg Poundtatttong others. It was hard for Eazy-E
when Dr. Dre left Ruthless Recdrdsr--Dr:"Dre were the inventor of the West Coast sound and
Eazy, that actually didn&#39;t do so much on the records suddenly became a second-part-
gure on
the rap-stage. Plus that the old members sue each other, and if that wasn&#39;t enough, they came
out with solo albums were they didn&#39;t back for anything just to diss eachother, Eazy-E eaven
publicat pictures of Dr. Dre in eye-liner and lipstick on his second solo album, It&#39;s on
 Dr.Dre! 187 um Killa 1993. Eaven dogh it wasn&#39;t easy, Eazy-E continiude on his way,
hard-headed he stuck to his visions and his gangsta mentality. His records wasn&#39;t sellin&#39; as
Au. nt&#39;t~c:-it/mrtoit CON&#39;1AJ1l&#39;EDOct 18 1996 HEREIN 1&#39;3 UKCLASSIF gag - Qt! 03349 AMmTE 3°929292ot&#39;2.L ° "1 &#39;<>.92~.> anew i.§£§??.

.2 er iv
Eazy-E "The Hip-Hop Thugster" Page 2 of 2
good anymore, but 1994, he got into contact with the group Bone Thugs n&#39; Harmony" from
Cleveland. Eazy-E had nose for talents, and Ruhthless once again had a group that could sell
millions of records.
Just then, fate stroke with all it&#39;s power. Eazy-E&#39;s self buring lifestyle demanded it&#39;s tribute. A
cold showed up to be a inamation of the lungs, may seems like a piece of cake, but not in
this case. AIDS the doctors con
rmed and two months later he was dead. Aer ll 523 days
on the earth, Eric Wright died the 26th Mars 1995, in a hospital bed, with only his family at
his side. The gangsta pionee Eazy-E didn&#39;t became no victim of a bullet, it was AIDS, a much
bigger threat to the humanity than the gangstas.
R.I.Pi PERSONS HAS SHOWED THAT YOU ARN&#39;T FOROGTEN!
This page might be good, but it ain&#39;t the official, so check Out The Real One Out!
Some Lyrics ,
Just Tah Let Ya know  Str8 off tha streetz of muthaphul-akin Compton! Wut would U do
 Str8 off tha streetz of muthaphukkin&#39; Compton! Exxtra special thankz  Its on  Dr.Dre!
l87um killa! 4 tha E  video verision!  Yella - One moe nigga to go!
Phat Link l .
Egy-E Homepage
Ea_zy-E Memorial Page
Ruthless Records Official Site
Of
cial Eazy-E Homepage
Bone Thugs n&#39; Harmony
Dead Celebrities _
Dead Celebrities Eazy-E pagg
Another Eazy-E page
Kxayzids Homepage
Send your comments [email protected]
[ Other Users | E]
This service is provided by Concept Systemdesign AB
The material on this page are the responsibility of its author, not Concept Systemdesign AB.
Oct 18 1996  ;49 AM

Q!
DEAD CELEBRITIES: EAZY-E  ERIC WRIGHT! Page 1 of 1
We-E _ Eric Wright!
1963-1995 .
Eric Wright was bom in Compton, California to a middle-class family in 1963. As a teenager,
Eric had trouble with the law, but he found that life as a small-time gangsta didn&#39;t give himmuch hope for the Eric 
nis::i school and in 1986 became Eazy-E as he teamed with
Ice-Cube, Dr. Dre,.MC Remand J Yel orming one of the most controversial rap groups
in history, N. WA. ND?!/.:»t;&#39;put gang on the map with their hit album Boyz n the Hood,
and gave Los Angeles/Compton rap credibility in the rap scene.
Eazy-E&#39;s Ruthless Records, started with money he collected as a small-time thief and drug
dealer, found its 
rst hit with Boyz n the Hood, but that was just the beginning. Straight
Outta Compton was Ruthless Records next release, and it proved as big a hit as Boyz and just
as controversial. Songs like Fuck the Police and Gangsta, Gangsta rubbed police and
politicians the wrong way and gave rap a bad name in non-rap circles. This only proved a
challenge to Eazy, who thought that hip-hop had a responsibility to shed light on the violence
that Latin and African Americans were living with every day.
At this time, N. W./1. started to fall apart. Ice-Cube was the 
rst to leave, planning a
solo-career, and Dr. Dre wasn&#39;t far behind. Dre went on to start Death Row Records, and the
animosity between Eazys Ruthless Records and D_re&#39;s Death Row had begun. Lawsuits
between N. W.A.&#39;s members and public battles between the now estranged rappers made more
headlines then the artists themselves. Eazy-E&#39;s second solo album It&#39;s on  Dr. Dre! ]87um
Killa, released in 1993, was a direct attack on Dr. Dre and the public lost interest as the
original vision of Eazys work was lost.
Eazy got back on track when, in 1994, Ruthless Records signed Cleveland rapyartists Bone
Thugs n Harmony. As Eazy was climbing back onto his feet, he was diagnosed with the
AIDS virus. Two months later, on March 26, 1995, Eric Wright, better known as Eazy-E, was
dead.
Eazy-E biography edited from the Eazy-E: The Hip-Hop Thugster page.
With special thanks to Nils Hagmark
Dead Celebrities logo, design and layout © 1996, Christopher M. Bowley.
**~ &#39;1» l<%é&#39;5*¬i¬¢92f¢§@w~92<*
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Oct 18 1996 08:49 AM

0, ..o
2pac Pages Newzletter Edition 2 Volume 1 Page 1 of 3
Fresh Out Of Jail
Street Heat representatives met up with Tupac Shakur in Las Vegas during November
1995. Pac and tha Dogg Pound performed after the Holy
eld-Bowe 
ght at Club 662.
Everybody was there...incIuding ,Rappin&#39; 4-Tay, Tha Alkaholiks, Pepa, and the posse down
with Pac and tha Dogg Pound. On the day of the show we caught up with Pac and kicked it
for awhile. &#39;
We were in the back of the club in owner Suge Knight&#39;s of
ce. Suge, you may know, is the
owner of Death Row Records. Suge and Death Row now handle Pac&#39;s career and Pac spent
the month of November in the studio runnin through the 
nal touches of his double album.
So, Pac, a lot of people want to know, since Death Row Records put up your bail money,
is that why you left Interscope? &#39;
"It didn&#39;t have nothing to do with the money," said Pac. "It had nothing to do with the bail. I
was already, um, I hollered at Suge before the bail situation when I was still an imnate in the
correctional facility and I was looking at like serving three years, I called Suge and said, yo, I
want to be with the Row. I want you to manage me because I&#39;m in jail--and no one is
handling my bizniz while I&#39;m injail, nobody&#39;s putting it down like I want to put it down. I
knew he&#39;s a man that would put things down. I trust him, his word, you know, um. I really
couldn&#39;t trust nobody in bizniz no more, so I c ose him you know?" ALL INFORMATION CONTAINED°929292°921§- <%ou»9292u=92l rrannnr rs oneness
f>&#39;~g-HQ °9292<92ko55Ci °&#39;° °92 is "2_u,92
Wasn&#39;t it during the time that Interscope was rumored to be leaving Warners and all
that?
"Yeah, that was another factor," replied Tupac. "Because I was like, &#39;Dang, they don&#39;t care
about us. I mean, it&#39;s not Interscope&#39;s fault, but they really don&#39;t owe us anything and at any
minute we could be you know, alone without a contract aer you put all your heart on the
line, your music on the line, you went out there and gave all your talent up and all of a
sudden, it&#39;s not good enough any more and they&#39;ll kick you off. So I was like, by going to
Death Row, it&#39;s like two superpowers joining up. You know, it would be similar to the US
and England teamin up against anybody, youknow what I mean? So I felt it was likejoining
two super powers. And if rap music was going to have to 
ght for its right to be uncensored,
then this was the team for me to get on, to wage that battle."
Did jail change your perspective on the world?
"Yeah...Doing eleven months of maximum security penitentiary time for a crime you didn&#39;t
Oct l8 I996 08:49 AM

2pac Pages Newzletter Edition 2 Volume 1 Page 2 of 3
commit would definitely make you a little bitter," said Tupac. "But I&#39;m trying not to be bitter.
I&#39;m trying to let that be my ambition. Now Im very ambitious. This year will mark a new
ground for Tupae where I&#39;m relentless. There&#39;s no boundaries. I&#39;m not looking at no stop
signs. I&#39;m going full speed ahead. I&#39;m planning on touching everything with my name on it,
and there&#39;s a lot of stuff with my name on it, so I&#39;m out there. S0 I got with the Row, that&#39;s
move number one, I wrote a movie, that&#39;s move number two. Did the double album -- 1at&#39;s
never been done before -- that&#39;s move number three. Got the divorce, that&#39;s move number
four. And now it&#39;s just about standing by my grind, stay up on my music, stay out of trouble."
Tupac has often said that the media have misrepresented him. What is the real Tupac
Shakur like?
"I-Ie&#39;s a human being with all sides," replied Pac. "Multi~faceted, ups and downs. Goods and
bads. Mistakes. Everything, you know. All they want to show is one side, which is distorted.
That&#39;s a distorted view. S0 what I said was true. If they would show the good things and the
bad things, I would have no complaints, and it would even make them look better. When you
&#39; just show me doing all this bad stuff, then people gonna just start thinking like wait a minute,
this dude can&#39;t be doing all this bad stuff. I mean, come on. They don&#39;t show nothing else. S0
it&#39;s really helpin&#39; me, cause it&#39;s making it look one-sided and untrue. But the thing that bothers
me is that it&#39;s just not across the board. They do this to rappers or yotmg black males -- inner
city people. You know, they do that to us but they don&#39;t do that for everybody else. But that
bothers me, but I&#39;m not gonna harp on everything that&#39;s unfair, cause life is unfair. Nobody
said it&#39;s gonna be easy or fair. I&#39;m not even gonna trip off it. I&#39;m just gonna push forward.
When I stop, I stop. When the wheels fall off, the wheels fall off. But until then I&#39;m gonna put
the foot to the metal."
Tupac has already starred in a number of movies including "Above the Rim" and
"Poetic Justice." So we asked what his future acting projects are.
"I just wrote a movie called "Live To Tell." We talking about doing a movie now, me and
Snoop, that Pooh is working on, and everything else is before me. I haven&#39;t even started
looking into that, but it&#39;s going down. "
Tupac talked about his upcoming double album, the 
rst by a hip-hop star.
"The last album was one side of Tupac," he said. "And it&#39;s the other side, you know what I
mean? I did what I had to do with "Me Against the World" as far as lettin&#39; people know that
rappers think and we feel and we care. I did that. Now it&#39;s time for me to just get into the
music. This album is more like about unrestricted. I&#39;m not rying to tell a message. I&#39;m just
getting a lot of frustrations out from being injail for eleven months. Andjust speaking my
mind, talking about things that I see and just groovin&#39;, having fun. They like more upbeat
tracks than this. My last album was kinda sad and down. This one is like way high. There&#39;s
Oct 18 1996 08:49 AMt
<
t
I
P
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_ P sq P P 1
Zpac Pages Newzletter Edition 2 Volume I Page 3 of 3
only two slow songs on there."
Street Heat gives props George Pryce and Greg Howard of Death Row Records for getting us
with Tupac.
Street Heat Homepage
This Page is Webmastered by Gurjeet Litt [email protected]
Oct 18 1996 08;49 AM

- >.-
v
1
I
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0 ONE CAN saw THAT TUPAC
Shakur hasn&#39;t experienced

rsthand the gangsta life he
raps about. Two years ago,
while awaiting the verdict and his
eventual imprisonment on rape
charges. he was beaten, robbed and
shot 
ve times outside a Manhattan
recording studio. Shaker. now 25. sur-
vived the attackand even bragged
about it on his latest album. this year&#39;s
All Eye: an Me  "
ve shots and they
still couldn&#39;t kill me"!. Last week in
Las Vegas. after he attended a Mike
Tyson 
ght. danger came calling again.
At 11:15 pm. on Sept. 7. Shakur and
Marion Suge"  pronounced Shoog!
Knight, the head of Shakur&#39;s DeathThough Shaluir renounced the 1hu¢li!e" In 1995. violence caught up with the rlooer
and producer linlghl  above left. in Las Vegas last hnttlryl near the Vega! Strip  right!.
Row Records label, stopped for a light
near the Strip while riding in Knight&#39;s
black BMW 750. A late-model white
Cadillac pulled up alongside them. and
someone unleashed a hail oi bullets
into the passenger side of Knight&#39;s car
before speeding away.
The 31-year-old record executive
suffered only minor injuries. but
Shakur was severely wounded in his
chest. pelvis and hands. He was taken
to Las Vegass University Medical
Center, where doctors performed
three emergency surgeries to repair
internal injuries and to remove his
right lung. Four days later. Shakur was
still bleeding internally as doctors
searched frantically for the source.t ! ~ 92
ap star Tupac Shakur is gunned down againthis time in Las Vegas
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At midweek he remained in critical
condition. and his prognosis was
guarded. But there was no doubt about
the support the singer, whose All Eye:
has sold more than 5 million copies,
was receiving from other black
celebrities. his family and friends. In
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an image he has to
keep up to sell
records." H78 a
friend lhouf
Shaina": gangsta
pose. But at the
Sept. 4 MTV
Awards, Shaltur
Milli, Iilb $0000
DOES! Doggl MIT!
came to hlmn with
fellow reaper Nos.
Y His not the
bad person every-
one thllh he la,"
says ex-wile
Keisha Mania, who
stood by Shaltur as
he recovered tron:
a 1994 shootinglbolmv. In New rm l
Clul.
addition to his mother. Afeni Shakur, a
founding member of the Black Pan-
thers, the unconscious Shakur was vis-
ited by the Rev. Jesse Jackson, rapper
Hammer and actress Jasmine Guy. who
would say only that Tupac&#39;s family is
grateful for the public&#39;s support." No
one else close to Shakur would com-
ment on the shooting, but one friend,
76 5123195 Peopleartist manager Joan Hyler, stresses
that the singer was not to blame for the
shooting. Just because he&#39;s had prob-
lems in the past, is it fair to condemn
him?" Hyler asks. "He&#39;s extrem y tal-
ented and bright. I just ho n dis-
tance himself from his ." Shakur&#39;s
ex-wife Keisha Mor &#39; , with whom he
remains on g rms, says, He&#39;s an
entertainer ta gangster. As a per-
son. Tu is very misunderstood."
in fa t the shooting itself seems
equally dif
cult to fathom. Las Vegas
police. who say they have no leads.
complained that they were receiving
little cooperation from anyone in
Shakur&#39;s camp, even though there
were about 10 cars full of bodyguards
and friends with Knight. &#39;l"hey&#39;re
telling us they didn&#39;t see anything anddon&#39;t know anything," says Las Vegas
Metropolitan Police Sgt. Kevin Man-
ning. He adds that police have conclud-
ed the shootings are not related to a
shouting match Shakur got into with
an unidenti
ed man during the Tyson

ght. The ashy-dressing, 315-lb.
Knight. who reportedly boasted that
rivals had contracts out on his life, was
still dodging police days after the inci-
dent. Although his company has
amassed a fortune estimated at over
$100 million, the Compton. Calif., na-Y This lrllldylull hmbmr heart,
Ion Satvrdaylgblliuln Fdruaryl.
tive is reputed to have ties to the
Bloods street gang.
For Shakur, who once studied the-
ater at the Baltimore School for the
Arts and drew praise for his sensitivity
and social consciousness, the shooting
comes at a time when he is free on $1.4
million bail  posted by Knight!, while
appealing his rape conviction and mak-
ing a concerted effort to keep two ca-
reers on track. Shakur, who starred in
l992&#39;s]uice and with Janet Jackson in
I993s Hxticjuslirc, recently returned
to making movies. His latest, Gridlock,
a dark comedy costarring Pulp Fic!|&#39;on&#39;s
Tim Roth, is due out in February. And
just the week before he was shot.
Shakur wrapped Gang Related. in which
he plays a corrupt cop. He was a greatspirit on the set, positive and uplifting,"
says Gang producer Brad Krevoy.
Considering what you heard about
him, that was all in his past."
What effect the shooting might
have on Shakur&#39;s future as a per-
former remains to be seen. The ques-
tion last week was. Would he survive?
While he continues to battle for his
life, those close to the rapper remain
hopeful as they keep up their vigil.
My prayers are with him," says ex-
wife Morris. "Hes a survivor, and lknow he will pull through."
1 c.92|.92&#39;|X B tlitilt
- |t.92m;r s|t.92||.sronu in Las Vegas.
rm!  ;l&#39;.92.92r.Fl-&#39; in Los A ngeles and
llllll0l92&#39;lI sr92l:||i&#39;n92 in Maw York Cilyup nlnle inducer Brad llrevoyol Shaltur

By Bnice Haring
USA TODAY
A record from slain rapper Illpac
Shaltur, The Don Kilitmtimti  The
7-Day Theory, B out today, but re-
cord executlves. managers and art-
ism,say the ganpta rap style be
helped popularue IS no longer the
force that it once was
The major players in the teud that
has divided the gngsta rap world
formostotthapm yearMa|-ion
"Suge" Knight. head oi Shakurs re
cord company. Death Row. and Bad
Boy Entertainment head Sean
 Combs -- were already ex-
panding their artsilc scope belore
Sbakur died oi gunshot wounds Sepi-
I3. seeking new horizons beyond
gritty tales or urban mayhem
But an industry that has already
made millions from page rap isnt
exactly racing away from the style.
with huge sale still expected from
the 2Pae album and an upcoming
one from Snoop Doggy Dog
l think the record company that
2Pac&#39;s on isprobably eating itup be-
cause now he&#39;s probably even selling
more recorth. says rocker lairrle
B. of Manhole, a former rapper lor
Eazy-E&#39;s Rutnles Recortht "lt&#39;s a
sad thing to say. But its like when 1
Kurt Cobain died."
Knight has said little about Death
Row&#39;s future in the wake of tlte Shakur
slaying. A Death Row spokesman declined
requests tor interviews. as did Death
Row&#39;s distributors, MCA Music Entertain-
ment and lnterscope Records.
Heavy D, the rapper tumed head of Up-
town Entertainment also says there won&#39;t
be a wbolaale nah away from the genre.
"At the end oi the day, lrom a mains
standpoint, it&#39;s all about money."
Sales oi gangta rap albulm have de-
clined trom their early &#39;90s peak  a
trend mirrored by the overall llat sal in
the music industry. Still. 2Pac&#39;sAll Eye: on
Me. which topped the Billboard 200 earlier
this year. was still No. 20 alter 36 weeks.Knight. who was with Sbakur when he
was shot. is currently under arrst tor pa-
role violations The 3i-year-old has been
accused in a tederal racketeering suit oi
visiting Ruthiem Records with baseball
bats to settle a busln dispute.But Death Row {huge its lltst tongyond gangsta rap summer with
artist Danny Boy. who quickly dropped all
the charts. and soon plans to release an al-
bum by pop rapper Hammer. Such sate
material may become more common-sllace in the future, some executives pre-&#39;¢t. .
Steve Rlfklnd. prsident of-Loud Re
cords, a label whose acts include Wu~&#39;lang»  C . o
T upacs death: A gangsta omen?
the rap l Clan. $885; waochword d distrib-
utori. most ly traded.
They will censor ttle more 
from album artwork to whatever
they say lyrically just to avoid pres-
sure from the outside, he says.
But ultimately. the ue is no-
likely ever to vanish completely.
I honatty wish that it would$0!-or tn? been-. that is."vy says  m hoping maybe
people will think twice about the
types of lyric: that they&#39;re choosing
to use now. But to any it&#39;s going to
change, especially overnight. l
wouldbhalttzltlo say no." I LL Ch ty. mnmger or
Cool J and head otviolator Records.
admits corporate doors may be elm-
lng, ll only to newcomers.
"lthinkltwillmakeltharderlt
you&#39;re the new-up-and-coming gang-
sta rap label and you&#39;re "Vim to
break in the door right now, you&#39;re
going to meet resistance."
Rusell Simmons. whose Del Jam
Reconb is one of raps leading la-
bels. says no one should expect
much change because of Shakur.
Jlml Hendrix died oi an 0.D. Did
the rock n roll world forget its pre
occupation with dnig? Simmora
asks. Real lite inspire art. it re-ny. his death wil have on the tunua oi tfartgsntrati lleets the reality that  people! live.mw or that they lnternallze;siTliey
spitittnckoutthroughtheirrn cor
painting or plays or poetry."
Chuck D oi Public Enemy says ll any
change comes post-Shakur. record compa-nies  particularly black music divisions
- needtotakegreaterinterstindireco
ing young artists, much as the National
Basketball Amociation otters its rookie
counseling
You could say whatever you want to
sayinnsongbutwhenitcoma downto
whetherornotyougetthrown outotaho
tel, tight backstage, or get arrmed in other
states, that needs to be checked." he says.
became what it does is it sheds a bad light
and a shadow on the an iorm."
Bad B0ys Combs denies feuding with Death Row 92
J
d J4. _.._.Sean "hilly" Combs wants
, to clear the air between his
Bad Boy Entertainment.
loaders oi the East Coast
school oi rap. and the Wat
Coast&#39;s Dmth Row Records
I think people have a mis-
conception that 
rst ol all we
were in a teud," he says "l don&#39;t think you can be in a
teud with somebody if there&#39;s
not two people arguing l
mean, I&#39;ve never had a prob-lem with Tupac or a problem
with Suge Knight 0| problem
with Death Row, a problem
with anybody in the industry.
lo matter.r that
The only thing I&#39;ve heard
s the records that you&#39;ve
heard. I&#39;ve never been ap-
proached on any other level
besides that. So it was more
hype than anythins"
Combs is branching out in
a big way. I-le has just signeda lucrative joint venture with
Arista Records; hes opening
his own rstaurant in Manhat-
tan, Justin&#39;s, devoted to soul
and Caribbean food; and his
debut album as an artist is
due out in January. with con-
tributiom from most of his
Bad Boy roster.
Reecting on his tortuous,
Combs agrees that some
gangta rap - particularly
that made by initiators ot theorlglnal stylists  IS posing
from the scene.
"I think there are dlderent
types of hard-core rap or
ganpm rap." he says. There
are the thing that are real.
attectlng people&#39;s livs. and
then people that are inst say-
ing anything that sounds
hard-core or sounds dark and
disnml  l think some oi
those thing may be on their
way out."
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O Data  L1! 0 Photograph D Vehicle Data D C nty Wants O Wants &#39;
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Date of Birth  or approximate age!:
Vehicle License Number and State: Z__ _ i __
Sex: @MaIe O Female
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,  Nov 5 1996
u  - L05 ANG &#39;Per DOJ. a reason for the request and a 
le number are mandatory. E8

I3 O,
E110 ~ EVENT NAME SEARCH " JDS EVENT# ~_w
NAME! SHAKUR / TUPAC / _m_______ / __ SEX M RACE M DOB~YR _m
CRIME CODE __@_ DATE RANGE __--  ___"__ REPT DIST m_ REPT DEPT __
REQUEST FOR EXACT MATCH Y
ORR# -____
NOTE= ENTER Y FUR EXACT MATCH ~ LAST NAME / FIRST NAME / SEX REQUIRED
EI10~PARTIAL EVENT NAME INQUIRY  JDS
CRITERIAI LAST SHAKUR FIRST TUPAC MIDDLE SUF
SEXM RACE DUB YR STAT CODE DEPT/RD
DATES FROM:BEAT!
RD
20239
20882
20989
20643EVENT#030213756
030809429
030928694
0406185i9
6 17:05 NU MSGSPDT
100
100

Q" -Q
EI10 - EVENT NAME SEARCH  JDS EVENT# ___m_~__
NAME! SHAKUR / TUP
C / qm__MM_w_ / In
CRIME CODE __-_ DATE RANGE _I___"  w_m__ REPT DIST
REQUEST FUR EXACT MATCH Y
DPR% __wm
NOTE: ENTER Y FOR EXACT MQTCH w LAST NAME / FIRST
SHQKUR
SHAKUR
SHHKUR
SHAKUR
SHAKUR
SHHKUR
JD5000
OUTPUTTUPAC mwwt
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NO MORE INFORMATION HVA
MSG 045. PAGE 02 OF 031121695
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EI10 ~ EVENT NHME SEARCH - JDS EVENT# ¢m,_mm__
NAME! SHAKUR / TUPHC / ____m,___ / __" SEX H RACE _ DBYR mm
CRIME CODE _,", DATE RANGE ____um " ____ REPT DIST "_,_ REPT DEPT ,,
REQUEST FUR EXACT MATCH Y
OPR# _m_,
NOTE: ENTER Y FUR EXACT MATCH ~ LAST NQME / FIRST NAME / SEX REQUIRED
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OUTPUT MSG 045, PQGE 03 OF 03. FROM JD1@ ii/05/96 17=0é NU MEGS WAITING
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FREEDOM OF INFORMATION
AND
PRIVACY ACTS
SUBJECT W Tgpac Shakur, R,
FILE NUMBER 2§6A-LA-201807 ,
SECTION NUMBER ,2
FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION

" ./1
1
U.S. Department of Justice
 Q!  Federal Bureau of lnvesngauon
1 R=P&#39;¥~ P&#39;=a§= Rf; [1 1 1 O 0 0 Wil shi re Blvd .File No.  AAED Los Ange le s , CA 9 0 0 24
DA; "°" - *2!°929292°92&#39;L&#39;Z. q  _  9[5nuary 3, 1997<=92<>92-9292.92-I4 <=g;._u, °925ouq=Q&#39;|m:i we°92b w-92 to-92 III ET AL
TUPAC SHAKUR - VICTIM  DECEASED!;
ERIC WRIGHT, AKA EAZY-E - VICTIM  DECEASED!;
ACT OF TERRORISM
DOMESTIC TERRORISM - DEATH THREATS
OFFICE OF ORIGIN: LOS ANGELES
All informants mentioned herein have provided reliable I
information in the past. _
Date Investigative Summary Prepared: January 3, 1997.
On October 17, 1996, a preliminary inquiry  PI! was b7C
initiated at Los Angeles Field Office to corroborate source "information that|_h FFJ a known organized crime Ifigure, along wit a group of unfaenti ied individuals are
utilizing death threats in the furtherance of extortion attempts
targeted towards two former prominent rap musicians from the Los
Angeles area and other victims yet unidentified_
b2
b7D
and oEhers yet un1dent1t1ed&#39;ha D73
arious rap music stars via death threats. The scheme involves
G and other subjects making telephonic death threats to the
rap star. Subjects then intercede b contacting the victim andoffering protection for a "fee1:::::£ireported that ERIC WRIGHT,
also known as EAZYE, who owned RUTHLESS RECORDS, Woodland Hills,
California was a victim of this extortion scheme prior to dyingfrom AIDS.t:::::]had also reportedly targeted TUPAC SHAKUR prior
to his recent murder in Las Veqas, Nevada.
II ~
~-"44/"&#39; -.4/-~ ¢1<:>/rz»7- 3?;

Following ERIC WRIGHTs death ued for 50% ownershi oq@
RUTHLESS RECORDS. Z wouldbe able to provide gurther details regarding tut that she
was not available for interview until mid-January, 1997.
On March 27, 1995, G filed a civil lawsuit against
RONALD SWEENEY, Entertainment Attorney for the WRIGHT estate.
This lawsuit is titled.&#39;COMPTOWN RECORDS INC, et al V. LAW
OFFICES RONALD SWEENEY, et al", civil case number BC 124555 was
filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, Los Angeles, California b7C
pertains to roperty rights of RUTHLESS RECORDS. During thelawsuiméoffered as evidence two letters purportedly signed
by ERIC WRIGHT, granting: part ownership of RUTHLESSEfffiiif. The letters were deemed forged by an expert witness.
advised the results of this lawsuit were classified
con 1 ential" and require a subpoena, which is pending.
&#39;l  filed a lawsuit against Q in b-~»
earl 199 a e in ade tele honic death t rea s to Y 9 9 a P
her and her family after ERIC WRIGHT died. These records have
not yet been reviewed at Los Angeles.
b7C
Los Angeles Field Office is currently compiling the
court transcripts and related documents mentioned in the abover . . . .
I 5 Investigators are awaitin the results of several 9
records checks and anticipate several interviews of witnesses and
victims in this matter. In addition investigators continue toreview FBI files as they relate to: including the copyright
matter.
Investigation continuing at Los Angeles. b7c

T ~.! .. K 
Hos Augelcs diimes
My  COMPAY TOWN
THE B|Z_ / CHUCK PHILIPS and ALAN ABRAHAMSON  
Rapper Leaves Tangled  tr
Financial, Legal Legacy
Slain rap star Tupac Shakur sold more
than $60 million worth of albums this year
alone, making him one of the top-selling
domestic artists. Yet, at the time of his
death, the rapper owed his record companyThe dispute illustrates how recording
artists contracts are skewed in favor of
record companies. Even if Shakur had
recorded additional albums, he would likely
have remained in debt for years to come,
$4.9 million, Shakurs attorney says.
Shakuz-s mother-who last week won a
court battle forcing Death Row Records
and two other companies to stop selling
unauthorized Tupac merchandisebe-
lieves Death Row shortchanged her son out
of loyalty payments and has hired an
auditor to conduct an independent ac-
counting of the rap label&#39;s books.
The allegations stem from an unusual
handwritten three-page contract drafted
and signed while Shakur was in prison in
1995. _
1. mmomtmon o0N&#39;rAIN&#39;ED"9 rcnasssources said.
Tupac wasone of the most successful
artists in the music business and yet
somehow, on the day he di . he had
absolutely nothing to show or it," said
New York attorney Ri &#39; &#39;
who along with Atem is co-admin-
istrator of the ps s te."We believe
that Death Row wi eld royalty pay-
ments from Tupac d tailed to deliver
many of the adv promised under his
contract."
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O O
THE BIZ: Rapper Shakurs Tangled Legacy
Continued from ht
A reprcscnmlive for Death Bow
denied that the <loU&#39;lP3&#39;W has mis-
handled Shakm-&#39;s account. blaming
the .rapper&#39;a debts on his own
extravagant spending habits.
in the year preceding his slay-
ing. Death Row had advanced
Shakur large sinus oi cash to buy
several cars, tor hlmseli and a
house {or his mother-funds that
the rapper was required to pay
back. Death Row sources said.
Shakur also charged to the oom-
pany lease-payments ior three
residences as well as a slew of
lavish bills, including a $300,000
tab at the Peninsula Hotel and
hundreds of thousands of dollars in
invoices for jewelry, furniture. se-
curity and limo service, sources
said.
In addition, Shakur ran up more
than $2 million in advances tor
recording and video costs-which,
according to standard industry
practice, must be recouped by the
record company before his account
can turn a pro
t, Death Row
sources said.
Nevertheless, when Shalrui-&#39;8
mother threatened in October to
sue Death Row and bar the release
oi her son&#39;s posthumous "Makav cit
The Don Killuminati album,
Death Rnws distributor Intersoope
Records worked out a deal to pay
an immediate $3-million nonre-
fundable advance to Shakui-s es-_,  . _ _ _~
Topaz: was one of the most successful artists in the
~ music liusiness-and yet somehow, on the day he
dlod, he had absolutely nothing to show for it. .&#39; . .
We bollovo that Death Row withheld royalty payments
from Tupac and failed to deliver many of the advances
- _ promised under his contract.
RNHARD FISQHBEIN
Attorney and co-administrator of the rap star&#39;s estate
tate, Fischbein said
The papers were drawn up at s
Nov. 1 meet&#39;mg between Shakur&#39;s
mother, Fischbein, lnterscope co-
founder J lmmy Iovine and a group
of attorneys. Death Row owner
Marion Suge" Knight was in&#39; &#39; at
the time on a probation viol tion
and could not attend the m ting.
Death Row attorney &#39;
was also not present.
During the meeting. ln rscope&#39;s
attorneys also pledged an addi-
tional $2 million in advances to be
paid before April and helped nego-
tiate an upgrade in the royalty rate
 from 12% to 18%! Paid to her son
tor past releases.
Fischbein insists that Interscope
attorneys forgave about 50% ot the
$4.9-million debt-a point with
which Death Row adamantly dis-WW-lt was Jimmy lovine who tool:
the lead in getting the ball rolling
to straighten this mess out." Fisch-
bein said. Nothing would have
happened if it wasn&#39;t for him.
Death Row never even came to the
table to havea discussion."
Shakur&#39;s mother has also cast
doubt on the validity oi the record-
ing contract that Death Row struck
with her son on Sept. 16, 1995.
Unlike a standard recording
agreement, typically thick and
laced with dozens ct complicated
terms and conditions, Shakurs
pact with Death Row is hand-writ»
ten and just three pages long.
Shah ur signed the agreement,
Fischbein suggests. because he
was unhappy and had been incar-
cerated for months on a sex abusecharge before Knight showed "P
with a promise tobsil him out ,
"This contract is not like any
other agreement I&#39;ve ever seen in
my lite," Flschbein said. "it&#39;s noth-
ing but toilet paper.
The agreement, which grants
Deathitowtherlgbttoreleaseas
many as tour albums. spells out ii
series of advance payments prom-
ised to Shakur-many <1! which
Plschbeiri alleges the rapper never
received
Fischbein also complains that
Shakur did not have proper repre-
sentation when he signed the
agreement According to Fisch-
bein, the rappet_l>P¢i!&#39;$ to have
been represented by Kenner. W110
also was the attorney for Knight
and Death Row at the time.
Fiachbein accuses oi Kenner of
having a conict of interest when he
drafted the contract and gave advice
to Shalmr about signing it. Ken-
ner-who was fired by Shakur
about three eeks before the rapper
died- ariyconfiictoi interest.
insisting t Shakur was repre-
sented the time by attorney
l letree could not
be for comment Monday.
It&#39;s unclear whether Shakurs-
mot would seek to have the
written contract disavowed.
But Wchbein said Death Row has
yet to provide the necessary books
that would allow the estate to
conduct an independent audit -,-.
Kr
&#39; l. 1_-~

1
BIZ=
. Continued from D1.
A representative for Death Row
denied thatthe company has&#39;mis-
handled Shakm-&#39;s account, blaming
the &#39;_:_&#39;apper&#39;s &#39; debts on his own
extravagant spending habits.
In the year preceding his slay-
ing, Death Row had advanced
Shakur large sums of cash to buy
several cars for himself and a
house for his motheriunds that
the rapper was required to pay
back, Death Row sources said.
Shakur also charged to the com-
pany lease-payments for three
residences as well as a slew of
lavish bills. including a $300,000
tab at the Peninsula Hotel and
hundreds of thousands of doilarsin
invoices for jewelry, furniture, se_-
curity and limo service, sourcessaid. &#39;
ln addition, Shakur ran up more
than "$2 million in advances for
recording and video costs-which,
according to standard industry
practice. must be recouped by the
record company before his account
can~_turn_4 a_ profit, Death Row
sources said
1/ Nevertheless, when Shakur&#39;s
mother threatened in October to
sue Death Row and bar the release
of her son&#39;s posthumous lllakavelh
The Don Killuminati" album.
Death Row&#39;s distributor Inter-scope
Records worked out a7deal to pay
an immediate $3-million nonre-
fundablef? advance to Shakurs es-tQ, rQ.. s
Ant.--~-.=--|- - ?.&#39;= - -~.-&#39; &#39; -  "1:-1 2."-r""&#39;
. &#39; _ .- -q, ~---.1.»-.--i&#39;£r£:.am -_
. . __.Vv ,3 _ f _ V__"____&#39;§
-  -. .Z&#39;t .:  ~  1 . -= -,.~u |&#39;l 1"-*-&#39;2-..i._
. Taped was one of _themos&#39;t succe§§iuL§_i;jtlsfts§ln.-_thi§A music buslness
and yet somehdw;__oii&#39;-theiday he a
dled,&#39;he had _ah_&#39;solutely .nothln_&#39;g_to&#39; show&#39;for;;ltj.} 3*? f
We believe thafbeatli Row withheld royalty payments
from-Tupac and failed to deliver many oi the advances
" . P promised under his contract. &#39;   - . I _ &#39;-.. _- --P - _
.~  RICHARD nscnasm _ *_ ~ "
V Altomey and co-administrator of the rap star&#39;s estate 2 -"-my life. Fischbein said.&#39;lts noth-
 =,, I
tate,liischbeinsaidi &#39;. &#39; &#39; if
The papers were drawn up at a
Nov. 1&#39; meeting between Shalturs
mother, Pischhein, Interscope co-
founder Jimmy lovine anda group
of attorneys. Death =Row - owner
Marion "Surge" Knight was in jail at
the time on a probation violation
and could not attend the ameeting.
Death Row attorney David Kenner
was also not present. -  . _-
During the meeting, Interscope&#39;s
attorneys also pledged an addi-
tional $2 mlllioh in advances to be
paid before pril and helped nego-tiate alnaupéade in the royalty rate
 from&#39; 12% to 18%! paid to her son
forpastreleases. 1-: . .". . &#39;
Fischbein insists that Interscope
attorneys forgave about&#39;50% of the
$4.9-million debt-a point with
which Death Row-adamantly dis-
t3gT¬Q5- &#39; U ~ ~.- &#39;
It was Jimmy lovine who took
the lead in getting-the ball rolling
to straighten this mess out," Fisch-
bein said. "Nothing would have
happened if it wasn&#39;t &#39;for ~h1m.
Death Row nevereven came to the
table tc have a discussion? . . "&#39;
Shakurs_ mother has also cast
dohht on the validity of_i:hereodrd-
ing contract that Death Bow struck
with her son on Sept._&#39;l6. 1995. -
_Unlike ; a._.standard - recording
agreement, typically thick and
laced hviui dozefu$&#39;o£ciiu&#39;1p1icated
ternis and conditi&#39;ons.&#39;.Sh&#39;aktirs
pact with Death Row is hand-writ,
ten and -just ~   long.
Shakur signed the agreement,
Fischhein -suggests, ;l_>ec&#39;ause_ he
Wis. smart #1-_92<U1§4. less". ices-cerated for months _on&#39;-a sex .ahuse&#39; &#39;u-_..~- .i-&#39;.-0 I. -1- - . .
7 "charge before Knigh_t showed-up1-_&#39;""with a&#39;pron_1ise to bail him"o_ui.=-_- -fi ""1"l&#39;his.&#39;contract"ls not.like any
-_other__agreement I&#39;ve ever__seer_&#39;r in
ing but toiletpaper! ~ "  ;
The agreement, which _ grants
-Death Row the right to release as
many as four albums, spells out a
series of advance payments prohi-
ised to -Shalgur-many of which
&#39;-Fischhein alleges the rapper never
received. -
Fischbein also "complains that
Shakur did not have proper repre-
sentation when he signed the
agreement. According to Fisch-
bein, the rapper-_ appears to have
been represented by Ke_nner, who
also was the attorney for Knight
and Death Row at the time. &#39;
 Fischbein accuses of Kenner of
having a conict of interest when he
drafted the contract and gave advice
to Shakur about it. Ken-
her-_-who was fired by Shakur
about tin-ee weeks bdfore the rapper
died-denied any conict, of iniermt,
insisting that Shakur was repre-
sented at the time by attorney
Charles Ogletree. Ogletree could not
:hereachediorconunentMonday._ _
&#39;. It&#39;s unclear whether Shakur&#39;s
mother would seek to have the
handwritten contract disavowed.
But Fisehbein said Death Row has
_yet to provide the necessary books
that would allow the estate to
- dohduct an independent audit.|
l
I
l
1

rv-850  Rev. s-a-at i6 Q2 Pi
i92
i  Mount C
pplng In Space Below! V ____  . _ ".1 e. , ~   J .V .  _&#39;l&#39;l-IE BIZ /Cl-lUCl_ PHILlPSandALAN ABRAHAMSON §§},,,;m U "W4
;Ra          ngled pper Leaves Ta
1 1 I   1 t
&#39; Slain rap star &#39;lupac Shakur sold more
than $60 million worth of
-alone. making him one of the top-selling
domestic artists. Yet, at the time of his
- death. the rapper owed his record company}
$4.9 millipn,Shakurs attorneylsays. &#39;  &#39;f&#39;
Shaktu-&#39;s -mother--who last week wona
court battle forcing Death Row Records
and two-other companies to stop selling
unauthorized Tupac merchandise-be-
lleves Death Row shortchanged her son out
of royalty payments and has hired an
auditor to conduct -an independent_ ac-,
counting of the rap label&#39;s hooks.
The allegations stem from an unusual
handwritten three-page contract drafted
and signed while Shakur was in prison in
1995.
ALL E&#39;Ii7¥.&#39;.&#39;:F=II*--i&#39;..~"=&#39;_&#39;-"-f_&#39;   &#39;Legacy ¢~»;¢@~@sClassmcahon;
Submitting Oi
ce:
~.3I
.,&#39;u_"The d_isputeill_ustrabes how recording
art1&#39;sts4_contracts areskewed in favor of
record, companies. Even if Shakur had
recorded additional albums, he would likely
have remained in debt for years to come,
soiii-ms said. ~ &#39;
Tupac was one of the most successful
artists in the music businessand yet
somehow, on the day he died. he had
absolutely nothing to show for it, said
New York attorney Richard Fischbein,
who along with Afeni Shakur is eo-admin-
istrator of the rap star&#39;s estate. We believe
that Death Row withheld royalty pay-
ments from Tupac and failed to deliver
rnany of the advances promised under his
contract."
&#39; I Plcasesee&#39;1&#39;HE BlZ,D7 Indicate page, name oi
newspaper, city and slale.!|_OS
PAGE 1;! L05 ANGELES, CA
L08 ANGELESiWWW
Indexing:
E
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queens
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FBI/DOJ
.3604-1.4! &#39;> ~/ X3/J 7 -- iii. -

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FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION
Precedence: ROUTINE Date: 02/12/1997
To: FBI Headquarters Attn: NSD, CT Branch, DTS, DTOU
From: Los Angeles
NSD6
Approved Bw I:Izv
ALL rr71&#39;-cw-.-*_@.&#39;rI"t~:-I "  - 5"-Drafted BY:   £9   b7 C FCase ID #&#39; 66ALA201807   92 I &#39;
Tim-=  ET AL °l=9292u92-92 <92929 I911 TUPAC SHAKUR-VICTIM  DECEASED!; Iqu
qERIC WRIGHT, AKA EAZYEVICTIM  DECEASED!; qI!929292,92_,[_a
AOT-DT-DEATH THREATS
00; LOS ANGELES
ARMED AND DANGEROUS
Synopsis: Status of investigation and request for extension of
PI.
Preliminary Inquiry Initiated: 10/17/1996, extended to expire
O2/16/1997 .
Enclosures: One original and five copies of a Letterhead
Memorandum, dated O2/05/1997.
Enclosed for the Bureau are one original and five
copies of a Letterhead Memorandum, dated 02/05/1997, whichcontains the current status of captioned matter. by
b7C
Several leads rema&#39; outstandin at Los An eles
regarding captioned matter. b7D
w 1C may assist in
identifying ssociates. T e civil case file has not been
located at the Superior Court, Los Angeles. In addition, theLAFO copyright matter which was closed in 1995 has not been D
located for review purposes. Searches are on for both case
filesC
/17/1997, Case Agent met with Detective
LOS ANGELES POLICE DE &#39; &#39;strative ViceUnit, who as an informant who knows k-- -&#39; 9 m:
The informant has to meet with Case Agentin the next two weeks concerning
fffff pg@é#_;#-QQQU7-/
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SEARCHED __W
INDEXED ___
. stamuzzn i
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To: FBI Headquarters From: Los Angeles
Re: 266ALA20l807 ~
It is anticipated that investigation during the next
thirty days will resolve the issue of whether the extortionateb7cactivity being conducted by thers is to provide &#39;
financial backing for their r aniza lOI1 or is only for personal
financial gain.
It is requested that this Preliminary Investigation be
extended another thirty days as a result of outstanding leads.
ARMED AND DANGEROUS
O
2

U.S. Department of Justice
Fedenn Bureau oflnves
ga
on:""%:&#39;"&#39;*-1
In Reply, Please Refer to ]_]_QQ[! Wilshire Blvd _
File No. ALL mmc____,Am_,,92., CATWAHIED Los Angeles, CA 900245- l£a.i92»&#39;a. L1-JL. u&#39;..&#39;
"c mu§,*b1§mE3Qm§§:Lm§@ms3 |@J February 12, 1997
&#39;-Net->L¢?% ET AL
TUPAC SHAKUR - VICTIM  DECEASED!; b"_7Q
ERIC WRIGHT, AKA EAZYE  VICTIM  DECEASED!;
ACT OF TERRORISM
DOMESTIC TERRORISM  DEATH THREATS
OFFICE OF ORIGIN: LOS ANGELES b&#39;}7C
All informants mentioned herein have provided reliable
information in the past.
Date Investigative Summary Prepared: February 5, 1997.
On October 17, 1996, a preliminary inquiry  PI! was
initiated at Los Angeles Field Office to corroborate source
information thaq Ia known organized crime
figure, along wit a group o uni enti ied individuals are
utilizing death threats in the furtherance of extortion attempts
targeted towards two former prominent rap musicians from the Los
Angeles area and other victims yet unidentified.
and others yet unidentified have been extorting money rom
various rap music stars via death threats. The scheme involves b2Qand other subjects making telephonic death threats to the b"/B
rap s ar Subjects then intercede by contacting the victim and b7coffering protection for a fee
 g;;;Eeported that ERIC WRIGHT,
also known as EAZYE, who owned R SS RECORDS, Woodland Hills,
California, was a victim of this extortion scheme prior to dyingfrom AIDS. ?had also reportedly targeted TUPAC SHAKUR prior
to his recen murder in Las Vegas, Nevada.
I0"/C
1b7Ci

&#39;~ P»
Following ERIC WRIGHTs death, ued for 50% ownership of b7¢
RUTHLESS RECORDS. oula
be able to provide further details regarding ut that she
was not available for interview until midJanuary, 1997.
On March 2&#39;7, 199S,Zfiled a civil lawsuit against
RONALD SWEENEY, Entertainment Attorney for the WRIGHT estate.
This lawsuit is titled COMPTOWN RECORDS INC, et al V. LAW
OFFICES RONALD SWEENEY, et al", civil case number BC 124555 was
filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, Los Angeles, California a>75
pertains erty rights of RUTHLESS RECORDS. During thelawsuit, ffered a  ce two letters purportedly signedby ERIC WRIGHT, granting art ownership of RUTHLESS
ert witness. RECORDS. The letters were eemed forged by an exp[;:::;;ladvised the results of this lawsuit were classified
con i ential and require a subpoena, which is pending.
filed a lawsuit againstp in 1379
early 199 a eging t a made telephonic death t reats to
her and her family afte IGHT died. These records have
not yet been reviewed at Los Angeles as they have reportedly been
misfiled at the Superior Court, Los Angeles.
|:1
b7
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Los Angeles Fiefa Office is currently compiling the
court transcripts and related documents mentioned &#39;
court cases for review rior to the interview of
1 ing e resu ts of several b7
recor s checks.
InvesE1gaEion conE1nuing at Los Angeles.&#39;1
92.!
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b7C
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F

FREEDOM OF INFORMATION
AND
PRIVACY ACTS
SUBJECT Tupacz Shakur
FILE NUMBER 266A-LA;201807
SECTION NUMBER 4 S
FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATIONf
I
I

FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION
Precedence: ROUTINE Date: 04/15/1997
To: FBIHQ Attn: NSD, CT Branch,
DTS, DTOU
/26$/Angeles
From: Los Angeles
NSD6
ALL INFORMAIICN COH&#39;IAINED
HEREIN IS UNCLASSIFIED
mu
NED Q ° oL929292u
°929292qi2 q lqwgq92L>92-92bu_L, mean:Approved By:
Case ID #: 266A-LA201807  Pending!
Title: I l
ET-KL;
TUPAC SHAKURVICTIM  DECEASED!;
EAZY-EVICTIM  DECEASED!;
AOT-DT-DEATH THREATS;
0O: LOS ANGELES
ARMED AND DANGEROUS
Synopsis: Request Field SSA authorization to open a Full Field
Investigation.
Details: Reference Los Angeles EC, dated 04/03/1997 which b7lcontaing criminal historg1and criminal associates of 
On 10/17/1996, a Preliminary Inquiry  PI! was
initiated at Los 1 &#39; &#39; corroborate source
&#39; &#39; known a &#39; i information that! Ia org nized cr mefigure, along wi a group of unfaen 1 ied individuals are b7g
utilizing death threats in the furtherance of extortionate
activity targeted towards two former prominent rap musicians from
the Los Angeles area and other victims yet unidentified.
- I
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$1§=°»1%E%
APR 2 Z I997{Bl-LOS! lEs___1 W i _I
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To: FBIHQ From: Los Angeles
Re: 266A-LA-201807, April 15, 1997
: and others yet unidentified have been extorting money
from various ra music stars via death threats. The schemeinvolves ther subjects making telephonic death threijjéto the rap star. Subjects then intercede by contacting the &#39; 
victim and offering protection for a "fee". ERIC WRIGHT, also
known as EAZY-E, who owned RUTHLESS RECORDS, Woodland Hills,
California was a victim of this extortion scheme prior to dyingfrom AIDS.  o reportedly targeted TUPAC SHAKUR prior
to SI-IAKUR&#39;s recent murder in Las Vegas, Nevada.
b7C
F 73
|:| &#39;
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_ On March 27, 1995, : filed a civil lawsuit against
RONALD SWEENEY, Entertainment Attorney for the WRIGHT estate.
This lawsuit is titled COMPTOWN RECORDS INC, et al-vs. LAW
OFFICES RONALD SWEENEY, et al", Civil case number BC 124555. b"iC
This case was filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, Los Angeles,
California and pertains to property rights of RUTHLESS RECORDS.
During the lawsuit, Eoffered as evidence tw letterspurportedly signed by ERIC WRIGHT, granting 
part ownership
of RUTHLE RE RDS. The letters were deemed forged by an expertwitness.  advised the case was settled out of court and
the results of were classified confidential by the judge.
I !1a &#39; ed a lawsuit against b7cE in early 1996 a eging t at ade telephonic death
threats to her and her family after ERIC WRIGHT died.
l&#39;:&#39;_|
|:|
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92

J
 
1
To: FBIHQ From: Los Angeles "Re: 266ALA-201807, April 15, 1997 I
l:| W &#39;
b7C 
b"/C
|:|
E: 1b7 :3 A
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On 04/11/1997, investigators were prov  a _&#39;
civil court complaint, dated 0_3-&#39;/11/1996, entitled f
an individual, WATERSIDE _CAN&#39;IINA INC a California orpora ion, bin;
MISSION BAY RESTAURANT and C15 INC., a California Co oration
Plaintiffs vs &#39;=&#39;
ind1viHua1s;&#39;F.M.L. REKLTY,§
C.; PHASE A
ONE D VE P192QENT,___I C. , California corporations, BELM  PARK 2ASSOgATES, a limited p &#39; Does 1 through 50,
inc sive, Defendants. is believed to be the
The civil complaint alleges that on Friday,
0&#39;7/28/1995, at approximatel l_Q:O0 p.m., several individuals
forcibly entered a business&#39; &#39; &#39; ere identified as
and two unidentified subjects referred to as ,_uwsma #1. and UNSUB #2. UNSUB #1 is believed to be: WC who claimed to represent  . Durin theinci ent, UNSUB #1 brand ed weapon at é UNSUB#2 stated he represented and RUT CORDS.After physical and psychologica intimidation, onsideredthe threat to his patrons and left the business e occupied. The
complaint further alleges that :had committed and caused to
be committed the same acts against RUTHLESS RECORDS. Followingthe takeover ofgnightclub on 07/28/1995, reportedlyasked: Don you know who I am? I&#39;m with e f.

To: FBIHQ From: Los Angeles
Re: 266A-LA201807, April 15, 1997
DYCIt has since been learned thatg:::::Ldropped the
lawsuit against: and the other defen ants ased on fear and
intimidation. -
FBI records checks of the defendants ingcivib-VIC
lawsuit reveal the following:
I FOIMS references!in Ehe toilowing files: bq
HQ 192-1866
LA 192B290
NK 1OOA57409
NK 174A¢276o-1
NY 183G-3546  RICO!
l / FOIME references; iin
the following 1 ee:
b7C
NY 281A192451  OC/DI!
NY 281A20l963
I FOIMS references 
nin the following case: b&#39;°
SA 245C34965Hl  OCDE!
which FOIMS references in the following case: Hobbs Act - Commercial Institutions!
 Hobbs Act - Commercial Institutions!
 Domestic Security - JDL related case!
 JDL related case!
LA 179B-914  ECT!
FOIMS refe .
LA 2a1A-1o2e32 001! bqg
:|J.92
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To: FBIHQ From: Los AngelesRe: 266ALA-201807, April 15, 1.997 Lqc &#39;
H i
1
in FOIMS, unknown if identical. I &#39;_" "" 1
Further checks regarding the above individuals will be I
necessary to fully identify them. ,
Investigators are currently compiling the court
transcripts and related documents mentioned in the above court
cases for review and analysis for lead potential. Investigators bin:are awaiting the results of several records checks to include b7D
Based on the extortionate activity presented herein,
and other criminal activity yet unidentified, it is recommended
that a Full Field Investigation be initiated in this matter.
There appears to be a reasonable indication thatsas been
conducting extortionate/criminal activity for some time and will 5
continue to do so as long as he is successful and not held _p ,
criminally liable. Los Angeles sources believe :to be b"c
acting in concert with or on behalf of the JDL and its 5
associates.
It is anticipated a Full Field Investigation will ;
identify whether the extortionate activity is being perpetrated
on behalf MS et al, for personal gain and/or on behalf of l
the JDL. -
ARMED mm mmcsnous 1°76
O0
1
- ,_....._...__.ii_.  ____._____~.__di_.____.___i_J

 l2f3l/199$!
l " FEDERAL BUREAU OF lNVESTlGAT|ON
Precedence: ROUTINE Date: 04/21/1997
T0: Los Angeles ,
b7C
From: Los Angeles
NSD-6
Approved By:
Drafted By: mpbh
Case ID #= , 66A-LA-201807
LA as-sea sue A&#39;!7§/
Title: I IET AL
TUPAC SHAKUR - VICTIM  DECEASED!
EAZYE - VICTIM  DECEASED!
AOT - or - DEATH THREATS
oo= LOS ANGELES
ARMED AND DANGEROUS
Synopsis: Request for authorization of mail cover.
Full Field Investigation Instituted: 04/15/1997.
Details: On October 17, 1996, a preliminary inquiry  PI! was
initiated at Los &#39; &#39; corroborate sourceinformation that  1 known organized crime
figure, along with a group of unidentified individuals are
utilizing death threats in the furtherance of extortion attempts
targeted towards two former prominent rap musicians from the Los
Angeles area and other victims yet unidentified.
an 0 ers ye uni n ie av
rom vari us ra music stars via death threats. The schemeinvolves nd other subjects making telephonic death threats
to the rap star. Subjects then intercede b contacting thevictim and offering protection for a fee. breported that
ERIC WRIGHT, also known as EAZY-E, who owned RUTHLESS RECORDS,
Woodland&#39;Hills, California, was a victim of this extortion scheme
prior to dying from AIDS. :had also reportedly targeted
TUPAC SHAKUR prior to his recent murder in Las Vegas, Nevada.
~»¢:-¢4&#39;i:/?@7&#39;1¥o7 Ann! *"Wm-- munAynnm§§{g§§§§%%§é&£uQ£££J smnmm mm.
<=m392<iz&#39;*&#39; &#39; mused-1 M10 1991°92atL920Jn!-9 °92929l ,gQ_ ~ ,_ v I°="»*M92 °9292w9292 -1
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-- -------- -&#39;- -
RUTHLESS RECORDS. The civil lawsuit is titled "COMPTOWN RECORDS
INC et al V. LAW OFFICES RONALD SWEENEY, et al, civil case
number BC 124555 and was filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, Los
Angeles, California. During the lawsuit,:offered as
evidence two letters purportedly signed by ERIC WRIGHT, granting
part ownership of RUTHLESS RECORDS. The letters weredeemed forged by art eierj witness. G could produce no
pending.original letters. advised the results of this lawsuit
were classified con i ential" and require a subpoena, which is
ddition, _ led a lawsuit K-"C
against in early 1996 a leging t at made telephonic
death threats to her and her family after ERIC WRIGHT died.
On 04/11/1997, investigators were provided a co of acivil court complaint, dated 03/11/1996, entitled
an individual, WATERSIDE CANTINA, INC., a California Corporation,
MISSION BAX RESTAURANT and CLUB &#39; &#39; &#39; W
Plaintiffs, vs. bC
individuals; R.M.L. REALTY, INC.; PHASE
ONE DEVELOPMENT, INC., California corporations, BELMONT PARK
ASSOCIATES, a limited partnership, and Does 1 through 50, .
inclusive Defendants.
The civil complaint alleges that on Friday, 07/28/1995
at approximately 10 O0 p m , forcibly entered
a business owned and o erated These individuals
brandishe a concea e wea on SUB #2 stated he
represented ORDS After physical
and psychologica intimi ation,::onsidered the threat to
his patrons and left the business he occupied The complaint
further alleges  :l committed and caused to be
committed the same acts against RUTHLESS RECORDS Following thewere identified  b
and two unidentified subjects ref r UB #1, and UNSUB#2. UNSUB #1 is believed to be  ho claimed torepresent <  Durin e inci ent, SUB #1
2b7C
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The focus of the requested mail cover includes the
following individuals:
It is requested the mail cover include first and second
class mail and last for a period of thirty days commencing on the
date the request is received by the District Postal Inspector in
Charge, located in Pasadena, California.
To the best of my knowledge, the name and address of an
attorney who represents the mail cover subject is unknown. If,
during the period of the mail cover, the name and address of an
attorney retained by the mail cover subject becomes known to the
case agent, such information will be promptly furnished.
Mail cover subject is allegedly in violation of the
following U.S. laws: -
1! Title 18, U.S. Code, Section 1951
Punishable by fine or imprisonment not more than twenty
years or both; and
2! Title 21, U.S. Code, Section 841 and 846.
?unishable depending on quantity and type of narcotics.
No subject of this mail cover is presently under
indictment or formally charged with any violation of criminal
law. Should any subject be indicted or formally charged during
the period of the mail cover, the postal inspector will be
3b7Cla
1
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1
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W .&#39; .
&#39; promptly»advised Bo the mail cover may be immediately canceled.
It is understood the results of the mail cover, PS Form
2009, are the property of the U.S. Postal Service and its use is
limited to law enforcement agencies. The results can be retained
in the case agen
s office as an investigative tool for a period
of 60 days and then returned to the following address:
|____i__.| W
Postal Inspector
ISOSG
Mail Cover Section
P.O. BOX 9000
South San Francisco, CA 94083-900
It is recommended that a mail cover request be
authorized to enhance captioned investigation.
Investigation continuing at Los Angeles.
4
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.92

FREEDOM OF INFORMATION
AND
PRIVACY ACTS
SUBJECT Tupac Shakm; I W
FILE NUMBER 266A-LA-201807
SECTION NUMBER _ 6 I
FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION

FD-350  RSV. 6-8-81! "I
_¢/J IIlo5...._O
92 92
Quad.qQSo¢$Title:_____:_.a_-1
 Indicate page, name of
newspaper. clty and state.!
_ _ _ 7 Il51oun_i Cllpplngrln Space Below} _ 92 41 _, Q~
23:38; LP,  vfLi.5
Character:
or
Classi
cation:
Submitting Ol
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euuq°t
slésiii. lndexin

p
Man Named as Suspect in Death
of Shakur Sues the Rappers Estate
I Courts: Orlando Anderson
says he was assaulted by the star
and others in a Las Vegas hotel.
hours before fatal shooting.
By CHUCK PHILIPS
TIMES HAFF WRITER
 A reputed Los Angeles gang member
once named by-police as a suspecl..in the
murder oi Tupac Shakur has filed a lawsuit
against the slain rap star&#39;s estate-a -year
and a day after Shakur was gunned down.
Orlando Anderson&#39;s lawsuit contends
that he was assaulted by the rapper and
several Death Row Records employees in
the lobby of the MGM Grand Hotel in Las
Vegas just hours _before Shakur Was
gunned down. No arrests have been made.It is unusual for gang disputes to end up
in civil lawsuits, but Anderson&#39;s action is
particularly surprising because it could
subject him to renewed scrutiny in connec-
tion with Shakur&#39;s death.
Shakur, one of the brightest stars in rap
and a budding actor, was fatally wounded
just off the Las Vegas Strip by gunfire
wbileriding in a car driven by Death Row
founder Marion Suge" Knight. Ever since,
there has been widespread speculation
about the relationship between the killing
and the MGM altercation.
The. suit, filed late Monday in Los
Angeles Superior Court. also names Death
Row and Knight as defendants, and alleges
that Anderson suffered physical injuries
and severe emotional and mental distress.
Representatives for Shakur&#39;s estate and
Death Row declined comment Tuesday.
Please see SI-IAFKUB, B3 it i t _i[lo &#39;l+ As-clues .I 

fev t t _
," kw. fr,
Rapper Tupac Shakur was gunned down
in Las Vegas ln September 1996.
,_______,,__ .. ......_.....i.-.-.._. -.., ... ... _ . .. _. ._- . ._ - - .. . - i. ..- ..__...-.. . . ....... . ..<_ - - --~
Pei/no.1s , , ..a5mmetseraasmm ta<~<»W* &#39;80 ~ l
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FD-350  Rev. so-s1! ,.. O
. ..~ &#39; _ . J
 Mount Clipping in Spacer Below! Indicate page, name of
newspaper, city and state.!
I
Y
l&#39;Conlin_uedtrom&#39;B1_&#39;___92- Renee L. Campbell, who _repre.--
sents"Anderson,. aclinowledgéd
that her client was: told last__fall
that he was a suspécttin Sh_akur&#39;s
killing; but -denied I-hat J16 -had
anything to do, with the shooting. -
-it is-clear -that if-there is any
victim, &#39;my client"is the victim,"_Campbellsai_d.-1 *---5&#39;   7_ &#39;
. Kni ht /was sent -to prison in . g i
February" for a probation. violation
stemming from. his ,ro_le. in&#39;.the
assaullt on Anderson, which was
captured on_ a&#39; hotel -surveillance
videotape. At a hearing last fall,
Anderson testified that Knight "did
not participate in the beating but
tried to help stopthe attack.
When asked"-whether Anderson.
who ls listed in policei
les as a
n_iember_of the Southside Crips gang
iii Compton, had peijured himself on
the-stand in November, Campbell
said her client testi
ed the way -he
didoutoffear for his safety." _»
On the evening of Sept: 7. 1996.= ,-.-/"&#39;_&#39;&#39;_-"_&#39;._&#39; " V "&#39;-" &#39; - ;_ ,_  1-&#39;}&#39;§siig92ir;siia_Knigh£ had gone to the
Mike Tyson-Bruce Seldon heavy-
-;._we_ignt,rig1it_{ai;,im; MGM. On the
..&#39;_L
&#39;92
l
5
-way out, Shakuni Knight and sev-
;_er_a&#39;i_&#39;I&#39;!e*&#39;ath1 Row employees _i<icked.
punched ja"nd .struck&#39; Anderson_ in
the lobby, the lawsuit states. &#39; -
 About three hours later; Shakur
and Knight were sitting in Knight&#39;s
759 ZBMW at a&#39;red light when
gunfire erupted froina white late-
model_-Cadillacii-carrying four
me_n}-th_a&#39;t had -pu_l_led&#39; up_ in &#39; the
next f lane. Shakur - died .si;<,_ dayslate,i1inaLas&#39;Vegas hospital.-  -
Y - Before Shakur died detectives in
Las Vegas -and Compton were in-
undated with ii flurry of tips from
informants contending that Ander-
son-.a Lakewood resident who
goes by such &#39;gang_r&#39;nonikers as
L-ando" and Lane-was respon-
sible for Pthe rapper&#39;s shooting,
according to -a .Compton_ police
affidavit prepared Sept 26 to ob-
tainsearch warrants for a pending
s=nsrai¢ i _ .&#39; &#39; . .
_ According to the affidavit, _the
ruckusin the MGM lobby was the
result of gang rivalry betweenDate:
Edition:
Death R_0w-af
liated -members of
the Mob-Piru Bloods and the
Southside Crips,-of which" Ander-
son and severslofhis»-relatives are
al1eg&#39;edly.m&#39;embei_&#39;§. .Anderso_n wasattacked, &#39; {me Taffidiivit &#39; said,_- be-.
cause he_had allegedly stolen a
gold chain from one o&#39;f;the Qeath
ROW emi>l0yees".d!1rinx H sans.
souffle-af month eai-lier&#39;at a Lake-W°°dlt92.ill-   I  r  .
Accordingto the affidavit," An-
derson w&#39;a.s&#39;seen several daysafter
the shooting wjthla-Gl6ck&#39; .40-,caii-
bar handgun-&#39;_-_"t_.he same kind of
weapon used in theihomicide-and
his cousin was seen driving a white
late-model Cadillac-into an auto
shop in Compton. That same Week,
Las Vegas detectives examined a
box of .40-caliber rounds confis-
cated by -Compton police from a
residence where Anderson&#39;s cousin
was living. They also con
scated
weapons from a Compton residence
of_Anderson&#39;s uncle,_-Dwayne Keith
_Kee_fee D? Davis, who sources
said is listed, in police files as a
member of the Southside Crips.
During an Oct" 2 gang raid
    ,. _
 I l &#39;  &#39; - . ..-J i ~
New York rap star known as --red by shootings after &#39;S_hak- .
leath, Anderson iwas-"taken
:ustody -on an outstanding
nt stemming from _a slaying
npton unrelated to_Shakur&#39;s""A Las Yegas detective who
ipated in the raid told An&#39;der-
hat he was a suspect -in
|rs shooting. according to -
sonfs former attorney,
lerson&#39;.was released_&#39;Oct. 4
bosAnge1_es prosecutors de-
to file charges against" him
a Compton slaying; In Febru- ;
gas _ Vegas police told; The_-
i-that Anderson was&#39;~stlll
lered a i_n Sh.akur&#39;s"_ i
ng._ Biitthe investigation re- ~  _ , I--zit
e allegations against: my cli-Notorious B.LG. who was gunned &#39;
,,down March 9 outside of the Peter-
sen Automotive Museum in the
Mid-Wilshire district. .
y. in May.-Los Angeies&#39;investiga-
tors seized Davis Chevyvlmpala
from his girlfriend&#39;s house in
Compton. The two-door sedan
matched the dcscri tion of the car. . .. . . P -
used_inV{allace&#39;s&#39;shooting. . .-
-Police have not returned the
vehicle. 
ources say investigators
interviewed Davis-in Junebut told
him that he is not awsuspect in
Wallace&#39;s murder. No arrests have
beet_1madeinthe.c_ase1. &#39;- &#39; _
&#39;.  investigator&#39;s have been focusing
on~tbe idea that Wallace&#39;s shooting
.:§tenimed &#39;.&#39;from,a pcmonal dispute
with _aCon|pton gang member-
possibly the result of an un id
1,,-the affidavit are totally _. .fse;;urity;j_bilI,-soimces. said; Police
Ede&#39;§l§?,Campbell one   ,
he saythey bald no subsequent
rt with Anderson;-"But: fthe -
it inonths later durii1g&#39;~the 
igation or the killing .of Shak-
iislcal rival. Christopher Wai-
&#39;.r....-.w"
$.41of ms uncle, Davis. resiirféded -r&#39;éco&#39;rd7j.comj5any "chairman, Sean
ff,l§%921f.f>"I&#39; Combs!. ooen_-..émployedinémljeré of the Southside_Cifips as
security-_-an -allegation Combs
[adamant denies ._ ly... :,~&#39;-.,.-.
jDu&#39;rlng {an _ini.erv,iew&#39;7in June
., with;-police;&#39;iI!avis_ told.&#39;investig;a-
_ _-~-D.--.~ -, -- -...__ -..-.<l- .; -, ..that Wallace-.and his, j ~-I
tors that he met Wallace neagly
two "years before the" rapper was
-slain. sources said. The two were
introduced by a mutual friend after&#39;aconcertinAnahéiml " &#39; 1; &#39;
The friend,_a&#39;drug déa]er_fi-pm
Harlem, broughtllhvls to Wallaeefs
-hotel alter theshow and&#39;tol<_! the
rapper that he couldpijovide protec-
tion in Los Angel_es_ lor_Wal1aces
entourage. should lie ever need it,
sources said. Wallaoe&#39;tu;ned_down
the.offer,_e:iplaining that his record
company had already  body-guards,sour_c_essaid. -&#39; &#39; .3;
Davis told poiioedhat he also"
attended the 1inii;¢h1aosi¢ industry
party-at the__Petersen Miisemn_and
spoke  with =Walla&#39;ce" and .s&#39;ev&#39;eral
members of his entot&#39;irag_e less than
an hour before the rapper was shot,
some-= said  "*1   - &#39;-Jo.
.~:Da_vis_ could_not b_é.;r_eachedA|for
comment "Attorney Faal &#39;de_nied
the-sug&#39;gestiori;that  had a &#39; -z
iig to do -4wi_th&#39;_.Wal1ac8&#39;§j - Law enf&#39;1&#39;-cement &#39;sources_say£-&#39;-
vestlgators have not uncovered y-
evidence uia&#39;mvdusae&#39;§muiaei"q>&#39;nne&#39;c:tcd._to ss;ro"s1rysg.vF;&#39;=*FBI/D04i
3

FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGQION
FOIPA
DELETED PAGE INFORMATION SHEET
Serial Description " COVER SHEET 02/05/1998
Total Deleted Page s! " 1
Page 3 " b7C, b7D

FREEDOM OF INFORMATION
AND
PRIVACY ACTS
SUBJECT, Tupac Shakur_ _ _ _ _
FILE NUMBER_ 266A-LA-ZQI 80j
SECTION N UMBERI _7S _
FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION

FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATIONuuunwn
Precedence: ROUTINE Date: 02/O5/1998
To: Los Angeles ~t/ Attn: s
From: Los Angeles t//F b7C
NSD6
Contac C 2
umnon commnmnA O d B .  UNQLASSIFIEDPPr ve Y . $§,;m92;g_92;E,__g:I_;§D.r§5&Ll.O§¬£ES|Pl&#39;3
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Title: N I ETAL;
AOT  DT  DEATH THREATS
OO: LOS ANGELES
Synopsis: Requesting approval to interviewl I
a reporter for THE NEW YORKER MAGAZINE.
Details: For-your information, on October 17, 1996, a b7C
preliminary inquiry  PI! was initiated at Los An eles FieldOffice to corroborate source information thata known organized crime figure, along with a group of
uni en ified individuals were utilizing death threats in the
furtherance of extortion attempts targeting two former prominent
rap musicians from the Los Angeles area and other victims yet
unidentified. v
an
others yet unidentified have been extorting money from various
rap music stars via death threats. The scheme involves: and
the other subjects making telephonic death threats to the rap
star. Subjects then intercede by contacting the victim and
offering protection for a Afeez. Source reported ERIC WRIGHT,
also known as EAZY-E and then owner of RUTHLESS RECORDS in
Woodland Hills, California, was a victim of this extortion
scheme, prior to dying from AIDS. :had also reportedly
targeted TUPAC SHAKUR before his recent murder in Las Vegas,
Nevada.
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To: Los Angeles From: Los Angeles
Re: 266A-LA201807, 02/05/1998
LEAD  S!:
Set Lead 1:
LOS ANGELES
AT AT LOS ANGELES
Los Ang &#39; ffice is requesting permission tointerview reporter rom TI-IE NEW YORKER MAGAZINE,
telephone number 12 536-5400 or 840-3800 via telephone or by
sending a lead to New York Field Office and have that office
conduct same regarding the above mentioned information. .Research
revealed[:::::hrote an article on TUPAC SHAKUR for THE NEW
YORKER MAGAZINE in the July 7, 1997, issue.
b7C
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&#39; 4-6
THE TAKEDOWN OF TUPAC
Tupar Sbakur was one of gangsta rap: biggest stars. But be got caugbt in a collision qfrultures
when inner-city gangs met up with the multibillion-d0l1ar&#39;rec0rd industry.
eotrmntnoAIL,£E3,§?lF°n, m;%&#39;§°,,N$8 egcownle oaucrtmu  &#39;9292 &#39;~9292925 §9292Tug ml .
pac Shakur was shot and
killed in Las Vegas last an,
he was riding in the passenger seat of a
B.M.W. 750 sedan driven by Marion
 Suge! Knight, the head of Death Row
Records. Death Row, the leading pur-
veyor of West Coast gangsta rap, is a
musicbusiness phenomenon. The com-
pany earned seventy-
ve million dollars
in revenues last year. The 
rst album
Tupac made for Death Row, All Eyez
on Me, which was released in early
1996, sold over five million units. Tupac
had made three earlier albums, but they
had never reached the stratosphere of
quintuple platinum." Still, the days pre-
ceding his murder were anything but
halcyon for him. It had become increas-
ingly clear that there was a steep penalty
to pay for having thrown in with Suge
Knight.
Even for the roughedged music in-
dustry, which has historically been prone
to excess and to connections with crimi-
nal elements, Death Rowwas a remark-
able place. It was nothing for Knight to
hand over a stack of hundred-dollar
bills to Tupac for a weekends expenses.
Knight&#39;s o
iee in Lbs Angeles was dec-
orated in red, thecolor of the Bloods,
one of the city&#39;s principal gangs. A guard
holding a metal detector stood at the
front door of the Death Row studio. I
have not been to one other studio to this
day where you have to be searched be-
fore you get in, a veteran of the L.A.
music businesswho worked with Tupac
told me. They have a checklist of peo-
ple who can go in with guns. So you
have to 
gure, These guys have guns,
and it&#39;s a long run to the front door, and
there&#39;s security at the 
&#39;ont door thatI
were gangsters just out of the peniten-
tiary. They would look at you, staring
right through you. No words would
have to be said."
Intimidation was Suge Knight&#39;s stock-
in-trade. It is said that he forced a black
music executive at a rival company to
strip in the men&#39;s room and then made
him walk naked through his company&#39;s
oflices. A mammoth, three-hundred-
and-
fteen-pound man, Knight has a
substantial criminal record, replete with
violent acts. Even when he was on his
best behavior&#39;-say, dealing with a white
executive at one of the major enter-
tainment companies-menace hung
heavy in the air. One man told me about
a negotiation he had in the apparent
safety of his own of
ce. Knight was at-
tended by a bodyguard, and when they
reached a difficult point in the deal, the
bodyguard osrentatiously leaned for-
ward and let his gun, which was wom
in a holster under his jacket, slip into

ill view.
For a time, the aura of violence served
Knight well. It granted him enormous li-
cense in small things  like keeping other
executives waiting for hours, without a
murmur ofobjection! and in larger ones.
Music and video producers who claimed
that Death Row owed them money were
too frightened to demand it, or to sue.
The potential for violence was also a pow-
er
rl disincentive to anyone who might
have considered talking to law-enforcement
authorities about questionable practices.
Moreover, it did not keep him 
&#39;om do-
ing business with two of the entertain-
ment industrfs corporate giants. Death
Row has been Funded since its inception
by its disnibutor, lnrerscope, which for
years was partially owned by T1me92_lVar-After Tupasfs murder, however, things
began to unravel for Knight. In the
summer of 1992, he had pulled a gun on
two rappers, George and Stanley Lyn-
wood, for using a phone at the studio.
After beating one of them with the gun,
he ordered them both down on their
knees, threatened to kill them, and
forced them to take oil" their pants. He
was convicted on assault charges and put
on probation. But four years later, just
before Tupac was killed, Knight took
part in the beating ofa man in Las Ve-
gas, and this put him in violation of his
probation. In February of this year he
began serving a nine-year sentence and
is now in San Luis Obispo state prison.
In addition, hundreds of millions of dol-
lars&#39; worth of suits have now been 
led
against Death Row  the largest being
that of Tupac&#39;s estate, charging that he
was defiauded of over 
fty million dol-
lars, and seeking damages of a hundred
and 
fty million!. And there may be
more to come. A team of agencies, in-
cluding the F.B.l., the D.E.A., and the
l.R.S., are investigating allegations of
money laundering, links to street gangs,
drug trafficking, and organized crime at
Death Row.
"I think, Tupac, you brought down
one of the most evil empires of my time,"
one of his friends, who grew up in the
music business, says. He did not intend
to romanricize Tupac; this friend, like
many others, acknowledges that Tupae
was famously split between what he him-
selfrefenedtoashis good"andhis evil
sides, and that it was his darker side that
seemed to have gained dominion during
much of his tenure at Death Row,
Nonetheless, these friends insist, that
was not the rea1Tupac. The real,1
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ner cities. And the real Tupac was trying
to leave Death Row when he was killed.
UWAMY or not, Tupac Shal<urs name
has become synonymous with violent
ra.p lyrics and thug life"  a phrase Tupac had
tattooed across his midr-i
&#39;!. While he was
alive, he was censured by politicians and, like
otherrappers,waskept 
&#39;om
some concert arenas because promoters
could not insure the evens  the threat
of mayhem from fans. At the same time,
however, he was suspected by many in his
core ghetto audience of not being cold-
blooded enough to measure up to his sta-
tus as the archetypal gangsta rapper.
These conicting views of Tupac re-
ect, to a degree, racial and social chasms.
Rap 
rns insist that performers be audien-
tic representatives of ghetto life: that they
live the life they rap about, that life con-
form ro art, so to speak. Raps critics, on
the other hand, are terri
ed that life will
conform to art, that the behavior~the
drug dealing and the violencedescribed
by rappers will seep into the mainstream
culture. The majority of ardent fans and
consumers of rap are, in fact, middle-class
white youths.  Seventy per cent of those
who buy rap records are white.! It is the
fear of a violent, marginalized culture&#39;s
inuence on susceptible young people
that fuels much of the political debate,
and this fear is exacerbated by the wide-
spread adoption of hip-hop style.
Controversy, of course, has never hurt
salm. To the contrary. Tupac understoodthis
very well, as did the recordcornpany omen-
tives who stood to pro
t from his
talents, and his notoriety. The more
trouble Tupac got into with the law,
the more credibility he gained on
the street--and the more viable a
rap star he became. The huge -
commercial success of gangsta rap
created a peculiarly volatile nexus
between the worlds of inner-city
gangs and the mult;ibi.l.l.ion-dollar
record industry. Tupac sometimes
said that he thought of his songs as
parables, and now it is his own life&#39;his
joumey into those two worlds, and his
immolation at the point at which they
convergedthat seems almost allegoriml.
THE world of Sugc Knight and South
Central LosAng92&#39;.les is atafarre-
move from the one in which Tupac
Shakur grew up, though each, in its own
way, romanticized violence. Afeni Sha-__/kur, Tupac&#39;s mother, was a member of
the Black Panther Party. Early in 1971,
while she was pregnant with Tupac, she
was on trial for conspiring to blow up
several New York department stores. She
and her codefendantsthe Panther 21
were acquitted just a month before Tu-
pac was bom. He was named for the last
Inca chief to be tortured, btutalized, and
murdered by Spanish conquistadores . . .
a warrior, Afeni says. His surname,
Shalrur, is a kind ofclan name taken by
a loose group of black nationalists in
New York.
The phrase "Black Power had been
like a lullaby when l was a kid, Tupac
recalled in a deposition he gave in 1995
 in a civil suit in which it was charged
that some of Tupac&#39;s lyrics had inu-
enced a young man who murdered a
Texas state trooper!. He remembered
that when he was a teen-ager, living in
Baltimore, we didn&#39;t have any lights. l
used to sit outside by the street lights and
read the autobiography of Malcolm X.
And it made it so real to me, thatl did.n&#39;t
have any lights at home and I was sitting
outside on the benches reading this
book. And it changed me, it moved me.
And then of course my mother had
books by people like . . . Patrice Lu-
tnurnba and Stokely Carmichael, Seize
the Time by Bobby Scale and &#39;Soledad
Brother by George Jackson. And she
would tell these stories of things that she
did or she saw or she was involved with
and it made me feel a part of something.
She always raised me to think that I was
the Black Prince of the revolution.
 Tupac had indeed become a
Black Prince by the time he was
killed, but not along the lines
laid out by the political activists
of the sixties. Afeni and her
friends were involved in what
they perceived as revolutionary
activity for the good of their
community. Tupac and his fel-
/<, low gangsta rappers sported
diamond-encrusted gold jewelry, drove
Rolls-Royce Corniches, and vied with
one another in displays of gargantuan
excess. Nevertheless, Tupac did not for-
get who his fbrebears were. "In my fam-
ily every black male with the last name
of Shakur that ever passed the age of 
f-
teen has either been killed or put in jail,
Tupac said in his deposition. There are
no Shakurs, black male Shalcurs, out
right now, free, breathing, withoutbullet holes in them or cuffs on his
hands. None."
The leaders of the black nationalist
movement to which the other Shalmrs
belonged had been virtually eliminated,
largely through the efforts of the F.B.l.
In 1988, Tupac&#39;s stepfather, Dr. Mutulu
Shakur, who had received a degree in
acupuncture in Canada and used his
skills to develop drug-abuse~treatrnent
programs, was sentenced to sixty years in
prison for conspiring to commit armed
robbery and murder. The crimes he was
accused of included the attempted rob-
bery of a Brinks armored car in 1981, in
which two police oicers and a guard
were killed  and for which the Weatlier
Underground leader Kathy Boudin was
also convicted!. Mutulu was also found
guilty of conspiring to break Tupac&#39;s
aunt, Assata Shakur  Joanne Chesi-
rnard!, our of prison. She had been con-
victed in 1977 of murdering a New Jet-
sey state trooper, but escaped two years
later and ed to Cuba. Tupac&#39;s godfa-
ther, Elmer  Geronimo! Pratt, is a for-
mer Black Panther Parry leader who was
convicted oflcilling a schoolteacher dur-
ing a robbery in Santa Monica in 1968.
He was imprisoned for twenty-seven
years. His conviction was reversed a few
weeks ago on the ground that the gov-
ernment suppressed evidence favorable
to him at his trial  most signi
cantly that
the principal witness against him was a
paid police informant!.
It was a haunting lineage, and Tupac
would frequently invoke the names of
Mutulu, Geronimo, and other political
prisoners in his lyrics. It was like their
words with my voice," he said. I just
continued where they left off. I tried to
add spark to it, I tried to be the new
breed, the new generation. I tried to
make them proud of me." But, at the
same time, he did not want to be them.
Their revolution, and in most cases their
lives, too, were ashes. &#39;
IN the Panther 21 trial, Tupac&#39;s mother
defended herself with a withering
cross-examination of a key prosecution
witness, who turned out to be an under-
cover government agent, a
er her acquit-
tal, this unschooled but intellectually
power-
ll woman was lion-ized
circles, invited to speak at Harv:iii_lj&#39;and
Yale, and subsidized in an apartriiiiiit on
New York&#39;s Riverside Drive. Tupab and
his sister Sekyiwa, who was bom in
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celebrities on the radical-
chic circuit. Then every-
thing changed, the political
tide changed over, Tupacsaid in his deposition. "VVewent on welfare, we lived in
the ghettos of the Bronx, *&#39;
Harlem, Manhattan." He  49
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burn that Vice-President Dan Qtayk
said had no place in our society."Black Panther Party." Karen Lee. one
of his publicists. told me. and at times
he wanted to be." Lee said that he was
tirtious that his mother&#39;s former com-
rades made no move to try to rescue her
and her children when she became ad-
dicted to drugs. Indeed. when he was liv-
ing in Marin Cityiicstirure. with no
place to stay  his mother and he had
lbught bitterly. and he accused her of ly-
ing to him about her drug use!-it was
mainly street people who tried to help
him. Man Man  Charles Fuller!. a friend
who would later become his road man-
ager. provided him with a bed. and kept
him from becoming a Full-edged drug
dealer.
His tbttunes began to brighten slightly
in 1990 when he got -.1 job with the rap
group Digital Underground. as a road
manager and dancer. But his real break
came the following year. when he was
picked up by Interscope-.1 small oom-
pany that had just been founded by
the record producer jimmy Iovine and
the entertainment magnate Ted Field
 an heir to the Marshall Field fortune!
as a joint venture with Time Wamer.
Tom Whalley. who signed Tupac at
lntetscope. had brought in a demo
tape Tupac had made. and Ted Fieldgave it to his teen-age daughter. She
tOlrl her Father how much she liloed it.
92/Vhalley recalls being struck as much by
Tupac&#39;s looks and by his presence as
by his talent. He remembers saying to
his assistant, Have yo-.1 ever seen eyes
like that?"
lnterscopc had positioned itself as
something of a maverick in the music
business, producing mostly altemative
rock and gangsta rap. which drew on
the culture of the gangs of South Cen-
tral Los Angeles for its material. Rap
was originally an East Coast phenom-
enon. an element of the hip-hop cul-
tore of the nineteen-seventies, which
also included graiti and break danc-
ing. Although hip-hop music broke
into the mainstream in 1979 with the
international hit Rappers Delight,"
it was not until the late eighties, with
the emergence of gangsta rap, that it
showed signs of becoming hugely com-
mercial-especially when it gained a
wide audience of white youths. much
as blues. jazz, and early rock and roll
had. In 1991. Interaeope released Tupac&#39;s
first album. lpacalypse Now," which
was replete with militant lyrics de-
picting violence between young black
men and the police. This was the al-Ix the deposition Tupac gave in 1995,when he was asked to interpret sev-
eral of the songs on 2pacalypse Now,
he e92plained that it was his practice no
introduce a central character through
whom he could develop a narrative, bk
cause he believed that before you can
understand what I mean. you have to
know howl lived or how the people I&#39;m
talking to live. . . . You don&#39;t have to
agree with me, but just to understand
what I&#39;m talking about. Compassion, to
show compassion. He also said that he
was not advocating violence against the
police but was simply telling stories that
described reality For young black men-
and cautionary stories at that. in which
violence against the police often leads
to death or imprisonment. On one crack
he says. They claim that l&#39;m violent
just cuz I re
rse to be silent. The song
on the album that proved to be the
most popular was entitled "Brenda&#39;s Got
a Baby." Tupac said that he had writ-
oen the song after reading a newspapu
story about a twelve-year-old girl who
became impregnated by her cousin and
threw her newbom baby down an in-

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cinerutor. Asked by his lawyer whether
he considered the song a political state-
ment. Tupac said, Yes. . . . When this
song came out, no male rappers at all
anywhere were talking about problems
that females were having, number one.
Number two, it talked about sexual
abuse. it talked about child molestation,
it talked about families taking advan-
rage of families, it talked about the
eiscts of poverty, it talked about how
one person&#39;s problems mo a&#39;ect a whole
community of people. It talked about
how the innocent are the ones that get
hurt. It talked about drugs, the abuse. 92
could reconcile the conicting senti-
ments. he says, I wrote this when I
was seventeen. . . . It&#39;s about a charac-
ter. somewhat like myself, who just
got into the tap business, went from hav-
ing no girls to now there&#39;s girls all the
time and he&#39;s just getting so much sex-
ual attention and he&#39;s, in his mind, a dy-
namo. He&#39;s Rudolph Valentino and
Frank Sinatra, he&#39;s everybody. . . . He
inn get anybody he wanted. . . . Im an
actorandlwasapoet. So l feltlilte . . .1
have to tell the multifaceted nature of
a human being. . . . A man can be sex-
ist and compassionate to women at&#39;-92
did notjoin either gang. He was at bot-
tom an observer and chronicler, pro-
l"0nndl_92" utilitarian in his approach to
experience and, some thought, people
as well. .-ind South Central L.A.-
which is almost like -.92 foreign country
within a city. so singular and baroque are
the gang customs. culture. and laws that
govern it-was the richest territory hed
ever seen. &#39;
He could be with this poet, this
pimp. this thug-he could suck every-
thing from each of them and that would
be part or him," said Han Man, the
t&#39;riend who moved with him from

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close to Tupsc since he was a small boy,
was apopleetic. "I said, What have you
done?" Tyehimba recalled We tallned
about it, and it became clear that he did
ittomakesurehenever
>rgotthedis-
possessed. never forgot whue he came3
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Hisbehaviorwasnot rigbehewason
the edge. But theyjust 
guredhewas
Tupac the Rapper.

5+ l !   meuevvomteniuwzisér
Dr. Shakur . . .were violated by the
cowrcrrao program.  GOINTELPRO
was initiated by the F.B.I. to neutralize
blackactivist leaders as well as certain
tightwing extremists.! Recently, in a de-
velopment not unlike that in the case of
Geronimo Pratt, Mutulu was granted
permission to 
le a motion for a new trial
on the ground that evidence was discov-
ered indicating that the government
withheld information that would have
been favorable to his defense.
In the spring of 1994, about six months
after Tupac shot the police officers in At-
lanta, Mutulu was moved from the peni-
tentiary in Lewisburg, Pennqivania, to the
super-maximum-security federal prison
in Marion, Illinois, and from there to the
country&#39;s most maximum-security insti-
tution, in Florence, Colorado. In a memo-
randum written in February, 1994, the
warden of Lewisburg argued that Mutulu
needed "the controls of Marion," in part
because of his outside contacts and in-
uence over the younger black element."
Mutulu is convinced that Tupac be-
came a lightning rod after he shot the
policemen in Atlanta. These disen
&#39;an-
chisedthe young blacks who are poor
and hopelesshave no leader, Mutulu
said Their heroes are cultural and sports
heroes. No one-not Iesse Jackson, not
Ben Chavis, not Louis Farrakhan-has
as much in
uenoe with this segment as
rappers. So when Tupac stands up to a
white cop, shoots it out, wins the battle,
gets cut free, and continues to say the
things he&#39;s been saying-the decision to
destroy his credibility is clear.
 N II-IETHER by happenstance or not,about two weeks after the At-
lanta shooting something occurred that
could not have been better de-
signed ro remove Tupac from
circulation-and that would
ultimately lead to his undoing.
VVhile in New York for the
lming of the movie Above &#39;- V
the Rim, Tupac had been socializing
with a Haitian-bom music promoter,
Jacques Agnant. Tupac was playing the
part of a gangster named Birdie i.n the
movie, and he told friends that spending
tirnewithAgnantl1elpedhirninl1ispor-
trayal of Birdiemueh as  outwith
the gangs in South Central providedhim
with material for his lyrics. He said that
he was studying]aoques~that]aoques was
Birdie, Watani Tyehirnba recalls. ButTyehimba was alarmed bythe relationships
and warned Tupac to keep his distance.
I told Tupac the 
rst time l met him,
Charles Fuller told Tupac, everyone told
him he should stay away from Iaoques.
Tupac ignored the warnings. jaoques
had all this gold and diamond jewelry,
Man Man says. He had money. He had
a nice H.M.W. He could get you in any
club. Pac was just starting to be known
then, and he couldn&#39;t get in all the clubs.
Iacques spent about four or 
ve thousand
dollars on Tupac in the beginning-he
just overwhelmed him. According to
someone eisewho knew Agmnt, Madonna
 with whom Tupac would become close!
was one of Agnants celebrity friends.
On November 14, 1993,Iaoques Agnant
and Tupac went to Neil&#39;s, the downtown
New York club. A friend of Agna.nt&#39;s,
identi
ed only as "Tim," introduced Tu-
pac to a nineteen-year-old woman named
Ayanna Jackson. She expressed her inter-
est in him; they danced together; and she
performed oral sex in a corner of the dance
floor. They went to his hotel, where they
had intercourse. The next day, she called
and left many messages on his voice mail,
saying, among other things, how much
she&#39;d enjoyed his prowess. Four days
later, on November 18th, she returned to
his hotel suite. There, she found Tupac,
Man Man, Agnant, and an unidenti
ed
friend of Agnanfs. They all watched
television in the living room, and then
she and Tupac went into the bedroom;
later, the three other men entered the
room. What ensued is disputed; Jackson
claims that she was forced to perform
oral sex on Tupac while Agnant partly
undressed her and grabbed her 
&#39;om be-
hind, and that they then made her per-
form oral sex on Agnant&#39;s friend while
Tupac held her.  Man Man,
1%
., =2 -" . entered and did not witnessshe acknowledged, did not touch
her.! Tupac claimed that he leii:
the room when the other men
- whatever happened. In any
case, Jackson testified that she left the
suite in tears and that Ag-nant told her to
calm down, saying that he would hate
to see what happened to Mike [Tyson]
happen to Tupac: that is, awoman charg-
ing himwith sexual assault, which is what
Jackson promptly did. She summoned the
hotel&#39;s security oicers, who called the
police. Tupac, Man Man, and Agnant
were arrested.  A,gna.nt&#39;s friend left.!
Indictments were handed down on sex-
-?/ &#39;abuse, sodomy, and also weapons charges
 two guns were found in the hotel room!,
and Agnant&#39;s lawyer, Paul Brenner, who
had represented the Patrolmen&#39;s Benevo-
lent Association for many years, moved
that his client&#39;s case be severed from his
two codefendants&#39;, on the ground that
only Tupac and Man Man had been
charged with the weapons offenses, and
that therefore the indictment was im-
properly joined. The prosecutor did not
oppose the motionsomething that
Tupac&#39;s lawyers say is highly unusual-
and the judge granted it.
Itwas apparently after Agnanfs case was
severed that Tupac became convinced
that Agnant was a govemment informer
and had set him up. &#39;Tupacs suspicions
were, inevitably, shaped by the experi-
ence of his extended family; Jacques
didnt smell right to me, says Watani
Tyehimba, who considers himself par-
ticularly attuned to the presence of under-
cover agents because of his long history
with the Panthers and what he learned
from COINTELPRO tiles obtained through
the Freedom of Information Act.
One night in November, 1994, during
thc trial of Tupac and Man Man, Tupac
was at a club with the actor Mickey Rourke
and a friend of Rourke&#39;s, A.]. Benza, a
reporter for the Daily News. Tupac told
Benza that he believed that Agnant had
set him up. A couple of days later Benza
wrote an account of the conversation, re-
calling that Tupac had told him that
Mike Tyson had called him up from
prison to wam him that Agnanrwas bad
news." On the night of November 30th,
while thejurywas deliberating, Tupac went
to a Times Square music studio to rap for
an artist, Little Shawn, who, according to
Man Man, had ties to Agnant. WhenTu-
pac and his entourage entered the lobby
of the studio, three black men followed
them, drew guns, and ordered them to lie
down. Tupac reached for his own gun,
which he usually wore in his waistband,
cocked. The men then shot Tupac 
ve
times, grabbed his gold jewelry, and ed
Convinced that the shooting had also
been a setup, and that the shootus would
return to 
nish the job, Tupac checked
himself out of the hospital a few hours
after surgery, and moved secretly to the
house of the actressjasmine Guy to, re-
cuperate. When he retumedto the court-
foom, bandaged and in a wheelchai.r,_he
was acquitted of the three sodomy counts
and the weapons charges but, in am;a_p-.
nu

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parent compromise verdict, convicted of
two counts of sexual abusespeci
rally,
forcibly touching Ayanna Jackson&#39;s but-
tocks. Bail was set at dtree million dol-
lars, and&#39;I&#39;upacturnedhimse1fi.nandwas
incarcerated. On February 7, 1995, he
was sentenced to a term of not less than
one and a half to not more than four and
a half years in prison.
A few months after Tupac was sen-
tenced, Jacques Agnant&#39;s indictment was
dismissed, and he pleaded guilty to two
misdemeanors. When I asked Melissa
Mourges, the assistant district attorney
who had tried the case against Tupac,
why Agnant had been dealt with in such
a favorable way, she said that Ayanna
Jackson was reluctant to go through the
case again. Jackson had, however, brought
a civil suit against Tupac following the_-I-as
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"Sam it oevyfacussed. 
gave me, I&#39;m not innocent in terms of the
way I was acting. . . . I&#39;m just as guilty for
not doing nothing as I am for doing
things. He accepted blame for not hav-
ing intervened on behalf of Ayanna_Iack
son. "I knowl feel ashamed-because I
wanted to be accepted and because I
didn&#39;t want no harm done to me, I d.idnt
say nothing."
In April of199S&#39;, while he was still in
prison, he married Keisha Morris, whom
he&#39;d been dating for about six months
before he was put in Erninently re-
sponsible and levelheaded, she was go-
ing to school and holding down a job;
she didn&#39;t smoke marijuana; and she
didn&#39;t immediately have sex with him.
Morris told me that on their 
rst dare
they saw a movie, and then Tupac pre-
vailed on her to stay in his hotel room.
When she insisted on going to bed 
rlly
dressed, he protested only that "you could
take ofF your sneakers. In the deposition
he gave in the civil case brought against
him by the family of the young man who
had murdered the Texas state trooper,
,Tupac described his new wife: _Shes
twenty-two, she&#39;s a Scorpio, she. .&#39;.just
graduated from Iohn ]ay College with a
degree in criminal science, and she&#39;s
rakenayearoi she&#39;sgoingtogotolzwschool . . . she&#39;s nice, she&#39;s quiet, she&#39;s a
square, she&#39;s a good girl. She&#39;s my 
rst
and only girl
iend I ever had in my en-
tire life and now she&#39;s my wife."
Tupac and Morris talked about mov-
ing to Arizona, and what they would
name their kids. He started to organiu
his 
nances, and attempted to settle the
numerous lawsuits pending against him
across the country. But in the forbidding,
almost feudal backdrop of the Clinton
Correctional Facility, his efforts seemed
increasingly irrelevant. I-Iis lawyers were

ling appeals in his case, and under those
circumstances he could have been al-
lowed to post bail, but the district attor-
ney&#39;s o
ice was 
ghting his right to do so,
and the proceedings dragged on, month
after month. What he had spoken of ini-
tially when he was at Rikers Island as
prison&#39;s gift"of respite and introspec-
tion-now had been overshadowed by
the nightmare of incarceration.
Dannemora was a hellhole-he had
a one-to-four-year sentence, and they
put him in a maximum-security prison!"
one of his lawyers, Stewart  says.
Levy recalls that while he
Tupae one day, "Tupac had*ai-ectal
search when he came inoo the visit-
ing area. Thenwe spentsixhours there
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n-|e~ewtomten..u.Y7.|9&#39;9&#39;1
in 
ill view ofthe guards. Then
the guards started saying Tu-
pacl Tupacl&#39; in this falsetto
voice, putting up their 
ngers
with these plastic gloves, waving
them-&#39;It&#39;s time! It&#39;s time!
Why a second rectal search,
when he&#39;d been sitting there in
plain view with his lawyer, why,
except to humiliate him?" Yaas-
myn Fula, who had knovm him
since he was a baby, and who
visited him often in prison, re-
calls, It was a terrible experi-
ence for himto be captive, in
a horri
c situation, with guards
threatening to kill him, inmates
threatening to kill him. . . . He
said, l have never had people
demean me and disgrace me as
they have in this "
Other factors weighing on
Tupac contributed to his anxi-
ety about being in prison. He
was the breadwinner for a large
extended family--his mother,
his sister, her baby, his aunt
and her family, and more. Iris
Crews, one of his attomeys in
the sex-abuse case-who had been leery
of representing Tupac but became be-
guiled and devoted  Had he been this
foulmourhed, woman-hating kid, 1
wouldn&#39;t have done it!tecalled that
one day as he sat in court with a bunch
of young children climbing all over
him during a recess he had remarked to
her, If I don&#39;t work, these kids dont
eat. He&#39;d been deprived of his child-
hood, and then, at twenty, he had twenty
people to support, she said. Beyond
that, he had enormous legal fees for cases
all over the country. After nearly six
months in prison, despite the money be-
ing advanced by Interscope, Tupac&#39;s
funds were depleted.
:DEA&#39;1&#39;I-I ROW RECORDS offered to
solve all Tupac&#39;s 
nancial prob-
lems. Death Row had been smrted by
Suge Knight and the rap producer
Dr. Dre in 1992. Knight was a former
University of Nevada football star who
had grown up in Compton in South
Central LA. In the late eighties, he had
worked as a bodyguard in the burgeon-
ing LA. rap scene, eventually develop-
ihg a friendship with Dre, who was then
a member of the group N.W.A. Knight
persuaded Dre that he was getting
. . . . l -.-av~ . - ~  -Q - , ,. - : .a ..-»:.-~&#39;»~.~-»5=&#39;-1;-T-"-s.-t.  .» -

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&#39;4  l-1:, ,-_ J2.,» .&#39; I; &#39;5cheated by his record company and that
he should leave. Knight is alleged to
have threatened Dre&#39;s producer with
baseball bats and pipes in order to break
his contract.
The release of Dre&#39;s album The
Chronic" shortly after Death Row was
founded helped establish the company as
a major force. By the summer of 1995, it
was one of the top reoord companies in
the rapmusic world. Suge and Dre re-
ally were a magical combination, a black
entertainment executive who was then at
one of the big music companies told me.
They were trusted on the streets. Vi/bite
or black executives, no matter what their
winking, were not going to be trusted.
Ve&#39;re square to them. And Knight was
formidable manager. He never really
remed to sleep. He had an instinct with
eople about what he thought their mar-
etability could be. He could motivate
lre to 
nish what he started. And he
idn&#39;t take no for an answer. Dre had cs-
rntially all the ideas, and Suge the man-
gcment muscle to get it done." 
Death Row owed its start to Inter-
;ope. jimmy lovine and Ted Field had
ecided to fund Death Row and distrib-
re its products in 1992, when other
ampanies had shied away. One execu-
ve at a major studio who had turned
awn the prospective Death Row ven-
zre told me that he and his colleagues
:lt that "life is too short" to assume the
sk that they believed an association
ith Knight might pose. Timmy is com-
~rtable with gangsters, he can deal with
tern, it doesnt bother him, the execu-
ve said. He&#39;s a street guy himself."
winethe son of a Brooklyn long-
--1oreman, who, many say, aspired to be
the next David Geffen-wa11ted to make
his mark fast, and he was impatient with
the progress of his new business at 
rst.
So he gambled, and reaped the payoff:
gangsta rap turned out to be a gold mine.
But the disadvantage of being in-
volved with Death Row was continuing
reproaches from social critics and in-
censed shareholders. Time Warner had
succumbed to pressure of that nature
when it disengaged itself 
&#39;om Ice-T in
1993. By early 1995, however, the pro-

tability of gangsta rap seemed to be sp-
ping the scales of greed and fear. VVhen
Time Warner was dismissing raising its
stake in Interscope from twenty-
ve per
cent to 

y per cent, they sought assur-
ances that the relationship with DeathRow would continue. Then, in the late
spring of1995,&#39;I&#39;une Wamer again came
under attack for its involvement in gang-
sta rap, this time by the joined forces
of Wiiam Bennett and C. DeLores
Tucker, the chairwoman of the National
Political Congress of Black Women.
Tucker, pointing to Tupac, Snoop Dogy
Dogg, and Dr. Dre  the latter two at
Death Row!, all of whom had problems
with the law, declared that Interscope is
a company Time Warner needs to get
out of business with immediately."
Tupac was too promising an artist for
lnterscopc to consider jettisoning-, but
there was a compromise solution that
might make it appear that Interscope was
insulated fiom him, and the solution ap-
parently made sense to everyone in-
volved-except Tupac.
Suge Knight had wanted Tupac at
Death Row for some time, although he
had not been a Tupac supporter at 
rst.
He was not into the Tupac-artist thing,
a producer who knows Suge says. But
then came his thug notoriety-being
called a rapist, getting in brawls. . . .
With his problems, he became more at-
tractive to Suge." Knight had been malt-
ing overtures to Tupac with lnterscope&#39;s
blessing. A music executive who worked
with Inrerscope recalls Iovine saying to
Knight, Take this kid, take him please.
He&#39;s out of control. You can control him.
Take him." Watani Tyehimba remembers
a meeting in 1993 attended by Tupac,
Knight, Iovine, and himself, at which
lovine, saying it made sense for Tupac to
workwith Dr. Dre, argued strongly that
he should sign with Death Row. Tye-
himba was surprised, but lovine ex-
plained that Interscope and Death Row
had a unique relationship-suggesting
that Dcath Row&#39;s gain of Tupac would
not mean Interscope&#39;s signi
cant loss.
The exact nature of that unique re-
lationship" may be of more than aca-
demic interest to federal authorities in-
I X V 4
A 92 92
-§_,...-__.-
55&#39;"  -§_-Z -%92_- was VARNERANDDEATH  &#39; .  v - s1
vestigating possible criminal activities at
Death Row. Suge Knight has always
been at pains to portray himself as an in-
dependent operator. For example, he
boasted that Death Row, u.nl.ike other
small companis, owns its masters  the
original recordings of the albums!. Since
the long-term value of rap recordings is
only spcmlative at this point, the own-
ership of the masters is a matter of ego
more than economis, a music exemtive
explained to me, and in the case of
Death Row itwas important for the im-
age to say they were black-owned. But
in fact Death Rows masters are heavily
mortgaged, and have been used as secu-
rity againsr loans and advances from
Intezsoope. Indeed, Death Row has been

nancially dependent on lntersoope from
the beginning.
VVhile Knight clearly had a great deal
of autonomy, he and Iovine worked to-
gether closely. It was Jimmy and Suge,
Iimrny and Suge," someone who knew
them both well told me. since no one
wanted to tell Knight anything that "set
his 
ise, he said, it was Iovine who dealt
with Knight. The relationship was very
handson. Promotions and marketing for
Death Row were handled by an lnte_r-
scope employee. If a production company
was making a video for Death Row, its
contract might well be with lnterscope.
The closeness between the two com-
panies was underscored by their physical
proximity. Until last year they were lo-
cated just across the hall from each other
in a.n oliioe building in Westwood.
ON a business owchart, it may have
meant just shifting Tupac from
one box to another, but for Tupac to go-
from Interscope to Death Row, only a
hallway apart, was to enter a di
crent,
and far more sinister, world. It was
widely believed that one of the major in-
vestors in Death Row was a drug dealer
named Michael  Harry-O! Harris, who
was sewing time for attempted murder
as well as drug convictions. He was said
to have provided the seed money for
Death Row. Knight and Han-is&#39;s law-
yer, David Kenner, who had also be-&#39;4
come the lawyer for Death Row, were
supposed to be guarding Harris&#39;s inter-
ests. There were even tumors that
oompanywas being used no launder
money on a continuing basis. More&#39;<:i92&#39;ie|F§;
it was said that there were conuactsldliiill
on Knight, and that Harris was uxihappiyii1-
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with Knight&#39;s business practices. How
many of these stories had reached lovine
is not clear. He did, of course, know of
Knight&#39;s criminal record and propensity
for brutality when he 
rst made the deal
with Death Row, and as time went on
he became aware of the continuing cli-
mate of violence that enveloped the oom-
pany. A lawsuit against Death Row and
Intersoope was 
led on behalf of a man
stomped to death at a Death Row party
in early 1995.
As for Michael Harriss bankrolling of
Death Row, Iovine told federal investi-
gators that he had heard a rumor about
it in 1994 or 1995, but it was not until
December, 1995, when Harris threat-
ened to sue the company, claiming that
he owned half of it, that Iovine took time
rumor seriously. If this was true, then
lovine was strangely insulated, for in L.A.
music circles I-latriss role was widely gos-
siped about. Indeed, in the summer of
1995, months before Harris wrote to Io-
vine about his intentions to sue, the head
of the Time Warner music division, Mi-
chael Fuchs, made an overture to arrange
a prison meeting with Harris. He was
trying to decide whether the company
should yield to the political pressure
about gangsta rap and sell its interest in
lnterscope, and he believed that it might
well be Harris, not Knight, who could
speak with -authority to Time Warner
about the future direction of Death Row.
The meeting never took place, because
Time Warner executives and the board of
directors quickly decided that the com-
pany should shed its troublesome invest-
ment by selling its 
fty-per-cent stake
back to lnterscope. lnterscope was able
to exploit that rebuff by turning around
and selling the 
fty-per-cent stake to
MCA Music Entertainment Group  now
known as Universal!, for a profit of roughly
a hundred million dollars.
Temnmo as Knight&#39;s oifers were
 Death Row was the premier rap
label, putting out one multi-platinum
record after another!, Tupae had consis-
tently declined to leave Interscope. But
in the summer of 1995, when it seemed
as though his incarceration might con-
tinue inde
nitelyfor years even, ifhe
was not allowed to post bail-he was
more desperate than_he&#39;d ever been. It
was in this bleak moment that
and, apparently, Iovine as wellsaw the
opportunity to arrange things the wayn o  ~ &#39;
they wanted to. It had become not only
attractive but vital to Death Row that
Tupac join the label One of the com-
pan!/s biggest stars, Snoop Doggy Dogg,
was facinga murder trial. and itwas n1-
mored on the street that Dr. Dre was
leaving.  Dre would indeed leave by early
1996.! Death Row could not afford to
lose both artists. And Knight surely knew
that Tupac would be more popular than
ever alter his prison term, more real
to his audience than he had been before.
Even though lnterscope advanced
Tupac six hundred thousand dollars dur-
ing the nine months he was in prison, he
was broke and frustrated. To Tyehimba,
there seemed to be an unmistakable
synchrony at work. Interscope would not
or could not provide enough funds for
Tupac. And as Knight became a more
and more importunate suitor, Intersoope
was squeezing us to get us to go to
Death Row," Tyehimba says. Knight-
accompanied by Death Row&#39;s lawyer,
David Kenner, who had come to play a
major role in the company, far exceed-
ing speci
c legal taslcsmade repeated
trips to Dannetnora to visit Tupac.
Knight promised to solve Tupac&#39;s most
intractable problems. According to several
people close to Tupac, Knight claimed
that Kenner could cure the legal
and win permission to post bail. Knight

irther promised that he would put up
some portion of the bail and, more im-
portant, make Death Row the corporate
guarantor for the entirety. Knight swore
he would make Tupac a superstar, much
bigger than he&#39;d been with Intersoope.
And he would solve Tupacs 
nancial
worries. He would even buy Afeni a house.
lt was a dazzling hand. VVhat was
probably Knight&#39;s trump card, however,
was the thing that he, and he alone,
could olfer Tupac-the aura of gangster
power. Even though Tupac had claimed
that he had outgrown the gangster pose,
his stay in Danncmora had made him
feel more vulnerable than ever before.
He wanted to get out of jail, and he
needed a label that could back him, a
friend who visited him in prison that
summer says. "The street shit had to be
dealt with, and Suge had power on the
street." Tupac brooded about being shot
in the Times Square  studio and
about what he believed was the setup by
Jacques Agnant. He also suspected
who were there in the studio that night:
Andre Harrell, now the head of Mo-
- ,vrI,..,.
EM! I
town; Bad Boy Entertainment C.E.Q.
Sean  Puffy! Combs; the rapper Chris-
topher Wallace, known both as Biggie
Smalls and as the Notorious B.l.G.; and
others.  They all denied any involve-
ment.! At 
rst, Man Man said, Tupac
did not believe that Biggie, who had
been a good friend of his, and who had
come to visit him when he was recuper-
ating from his wounds, had been in-
volved in any way. B ut when Tupac was
injail he was getting letters from people
 Biggie had something to do with
it, he started thinking about it, it got so
out of hand, it grewand once it got
that big, publicly, you had to go with it.
Watani Tyehimba, Stewart Levy, and
Charles Ogletree all say they argued vig-
orously with Tupac about his decision to
go to Death Row. Tupac told us, The
trouble with all of you is, you&#39;re too
nice, " Levy recalls. Tyehimba told me
that at his last meeting with Tupac at the
prison, Tupac hugged him, wept, and
said, "l know Im selling my soul to the
devil." Kenner drafted a handwritten,
three-page agreement for Tupac to sign.
Within a week, in a stunning coinci-
dence, the New York Court of Appeals
granted him leave to post bail.  The
money was provided by Interscope and
a division of Time Warner, although
Tupac always gave Suge 
ill credit.!
Knight and Kenner arrived in a pri-
vate plane and white stretch limousine to
pick Tupac up. Underscoting the degree
of porousness between Interscope and
Death Row, Tupac was, according to
someone familiar with the negotiation,
given a verbal release from his lnter-
scope contract As for Kenner&#39;s hand-
written document, Ogletree, who would
not see it until much later, says, "It wasn&#39;t
a legal contract. . . . It was absurd that
anyone with an opportunity to reect
would agree to those terms. Itwas only be-
cause he was in prison that he signed it.
Tupac was saying, My freedom is every-
thing. If you can get me my 
eedom, you
can have access to my artistic product. "
IN ways large and small, in both art
and life, Tupac Shalcut instinctively
pushed past customary boundaries, and
when he came out of prison and joined
Death Row that impulse was height-
ened. He would work the longest
 nineteen-hour stretches, despitezlthe
consumption of enormous amounts of
alcohol and marijuana!, he would.;pe-
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y .come the biggest star, he would become
a superpower within the Dmth Row-
dominated world of gangsta rap. Just
nine months earlier, he had said, Thug
life to me is dead." Now he embraced it.
Pac was like a chameleon, Syke says,
echoing a common view among Tupac&#39;s
friends. Whatever he was around, that&#39;s
what he turned into. And when he got
around Death Row, he tried to be that."
While Tupac had uansgtessed many
social limits, he had also drawn to him
people who tried, with varying degrees of
success, to moderate his behavior. But
when he set out for the province of
Death Row, he left behind vi.rtually all
of these putative guardiansam0ng
them, Watani Tyehimba, Karen Lee,
Man Man, even his wife, Keisha.  Their
marriage was later annulled.! Yaasmyn
Fula, who was one of the few old friends
who remained close to Tupac, says that
he was out of his element. lt was a oom-
pletely different soldier mentality. He
was fascinated by it because of the ab-
sence of a male 
gure who coidd say,
&#39;Leave it alone.&#39; "
"He was always looking for a father,"
Watani Tyehimba says, in me some, in
Mutulu some. But what he missed was
one father with the good and the bad,
not a composite. By the time Tupac
met the man who said he was h.is father
 a former Black Panther named Billy
Garland, who materialized at Tupac&#39;shospital bedside in New York a
er Tu-
pacwas shot in the Times Square lobby!,
the encounter failed to satisfy him. It
was in Suge Knight, many thought, es-
pecially when they saw the two to-
gether-the slender, l.ithe youth shad-
owed by the other&#39;s massive bulk, the
one all animation, the other exuding au-
thority-that he found that connection.
Tupac and Knight seemed almost in-
separable in the months a
er Tupac&#39;s re-
lease from prison; they worked together
long hours in the studio, and socialized
when they were through. One of Tu-
pac&#39;s friends remembers watching them
sing a song from the soundtrack of
"Gridlockd": You Aint Never Had a
Friend Like Me."
The combination of Tupac and
Knight seems to have been combustible,
with each activating the most explosive
elements in the other. Someone who has
known Knight well for years points out
that it was after Tupac arrived at Death
Row that its signature excess became
even more pronounced-fancy clothes,
gold and diamond jewelry  especially
heavy medallions, laden with diamonds
and rubies, bearing the Death Row sym-
bol of a hooded 
gure in an electric
chair!, Rolls-Royces  four were pur-
chased to celebrate Snoop Doggy Dogg&#39;s
acquittal on murder charges!, and lots of
women. Before Tupac, a knowledgeable
insider pointed out, Death Row had not
ll-69 it " __ me NEW YORKER. JULY 1, :99"!
had a real star. They had Snoop and
Drrthe!/re entertainers. Snoop could
be sitting quietly over there in a cor-
ner"he gestured to one end of the res-
taurant we were sitting inbut if Tu-
pac were here he would create such a
ruckus. People would be saying, That&#39;s
Tupac! He had star aura. Suge saw that,
and he liked that. All of a sudden, there
were all these pictures of Suge, together
with Tupac, feeding off each other.
DNCE Tupac came out of prison and
joined Death Row, he probably
did more to stoke the ames of a much
publicized feud between East and West
Coast rappers than anyone. For all the
posturing and the displays of bravado
and the aspersions cast on everyone&#39;s in-
tegrity, this was primarily a feud about
money. Rap had originated in the East,
but, starting in the late eighties, the
gangsta rappers from Los Angeles were
more success
il. Then Puffy Combs&#39;s
Bad Boy Records. which was based in
New York, began putting out its own
version of gangsta rapwhich the West
insisted was merely derivative. Watani
Tyehimba told me that much of Tupac&#39;s
anger at Biggie Smalls, Pu
&#39;y&#39;s most suc-
cess
il rapper, was based on professional
jealousy: Tupac was in ja.il, and Biggie&#39;s
single One More Chance" was No. 1 on
the charts. In an interview in The Saurce
in ll/larch, 1996, Tupac claimed he&#39;d been
Sleeping with Bigg-ie&#39;s Wife,
the singer Faith Evans, and
he went so far as to taunt
Biggie about it in a song: I

icked your bitch, you fat
motherfucker."
Some of those close to
Tupac were appalled at the
Faith Evans imbroglio.  She
denies that such an encoun-
ter with Tupac ever took
place.! The trouble withl
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verbal, it was use
il for its mar-
keting possibilities. But it may
also have played into a real, not
hyped, desire for vengeance on
Knight&#39;s part, sinoe he is said to
mansion, in the Hollywood Hills. 5 _
A record promoter from New -
York, Mark Anthony Bell, who i
is an associate ofPu.fly Combs, is
said to have been lured upstairs
to a room Where Knight, Tupac,
and their entourage had been
drinking. Bell was allegedly tied
to a chair, interrogated about
the killing of Suge&#39;s friend, and
hounded for the address of Puify
and Pu
&#39;y&#39;s mother. He is alleged
to have been beaten with broken
champagne bottles, and Knight
is said to have urinated into ajat
and told Bell to drink from it.
Bell received an estimated six~
hundred-thousand-dollar settle-
ment from Death Row, and he declined
to press charges. But a friend of Bell&#39;s
told me that he had reached him in Ja-
maica about a month after the incident,
and Bell had said to him, I&#39;m here tilll
heal. They busted me up bad! People
who were with Tupac the last year of his
life are not surprised that he would be in-
volved in something like this. VVhen
Tupac was with Suge," one friend says,
Suge would get him all stirred up, and_ _ __ -have blamed Puffy for a close  &#39;-=-5?; _____ i _ _~.--* ;_~_..1¢ .._
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In February, Tupac had decided to
start his own production company, called
Euphanasia, and he asked his old friend
Yaasmyn Fula to come to L.A. to run it.
Fula began trying to organize Tupacs
business affairs. We weren&#39;t getting
copies of the 
nancial accountings," she
said. "VVe&#39;d ask for them, and they&#39;dthan Interscope had." But she suggests
that she was not oblivious of the dark
side of Knight and Death Row. She told
me that Tupac had not allowed either
Syke or Tupac&#39;s young cousinsthe
Outlawz, who travelled with him and
whom he supported  and one of whom,=|
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which Kenner has consistently denied,
the conict would be even more patent.
It also might explain how he-a white
crirninaldefense lawyer who in the
eighties handled some of L.A.&#39;s most
high-pro
le drug, racketeering, and
murder cases but had virtually no expe-
rience in entertainment law-oould have
emerged at the top of one of the hottest
black-music record labels.
Kenner&#39;s entree, it now seems plain,
came through Michael Harris. Paul
Palladino, a private investigator who has
worked closely with Kenner for years,
told me that back in 1991 or so David
was representing Michael Harris on his
appeal, and Harris introduced him to
Suge." In his un
led complaint against
Death Row and Interscope, Harris al-
leged that he had had a prison meeting
in September, 1991, with Kenner and
Knight, to dismiss the terms of his in-
vestment in what would beoome Death
Row. Harris and Knightwere to be equal
partners, he alleged, and Kenner was to
set up the corporation and help Knight-/1 -- . .-.¢.. . 7- &#39; - 1 &#39; &#39; &#39;--_
/ /
i n-CAJ
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1995 he was, some thought, the prover-
bial power behind the throne. To many
of Tupacs friends, the relationship be-
tween Knighr and Kenner 
t a familiar
pattem: a black gangster who has access
to the streets works in consort with a
white player who is connected to levers
of power in the world at large. Knight
might wear a ring with the initials
M.O.B.--Member of Bloods"but
in their eyes Kenner was the real thing.
DAVID KENNER began to represent
Tupac as his entertainment law-
A yer and as his lawyer for civil and crimi-
nal oases in Califomia, but Tupac asked
Charles Ogleu-ee to continue to represent
him as well. Ogletree told me that he re-
peatedly wrote letters to Death Row, ask-
ing to see the contract Tupac had signed
with Death Row in prison and to nego-
tiate a formal contract under more con-
sdonable circumstances; but all his efforts,
he said, were met with silence, diver-
sions, and outright misrepresentations."
Ogletree was also handicapped in his~
THENEWVYOR| .ER.JUl.YT.l997
Row has my money, tell them to send
the check. " When the check didn&#39;t
come, Ogletree continued, I would call
Kenner. He would say, It&#39;s in the mail.
Then, when it never arrived, he would
say he was sending it FedEx. Then,
when it didn&#39;t arrive, he would say he&#39;d
wire it." Ogletree added, We should
have been able to close the deal, but it
was never possible. We had to go through
the record company. It was as though he
had no life except that given to him by
Death Row.
By the late spring, Ogleuee says, Tu-
pac was care
illy plotting his escape.
He had Euphanasia, he had the Out-
lawz, he had his movie dealshe was
building something that was all to be
part of one entity. . . . He had a strat-
egy-the idea was to maintain a friendly
relationship with Suge but to separate
his business." The precedent of Dr. Dre&#39;s
departure from Death Row did not
seem especially encouraging. A music-
business executive who was 
iendly with
Dre says that Dre left because he was
uncomfortable with Knights business
practices. Dre abandoned his interest in
the company in retum for a relatively
modest 
nancial settlement, and Inter-
scope facilitated the divorce by giving
him a lucrative new contract. Look at
Dre," Ogletree says. Such a brilliant,
creative musician. He started Death
Row, and in order to get out he had to
give up almost everything... . Now,
what would it take for Tupac, the hot-
test star around, whose success was only
growing? From a legal standpoint,
Ogletree said, it was not so dii
cult, the
contract signed in prison could be chal-
ler1ged.Butyouhavetoli92reafterthat.. . .
It was a question of how to walk away
with your limbs attached and bodily
functions operating.
I remember seeing him just before
his twenty-
fth birthday," Oglettee con-
tinued. He felt it was a glorious day. He
never imagined he&#39;d live to be twenty-
fivebut there was a sadnms in his eyes,
because he still had these chains binding
him. This was not where he wanted to
be. I said, You can beanythjngyou want

97*,
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Belushi. The night it wrapped, Tupac
celebrated by taking one of his law-
yers, Shawn Chapman, to dinner at
the Peninsula Hotel in Beverly Hills. HeAfter the almost nonexistent 
ght-
Tyson knocked Seldon out in less than
two minutes-Knight, Tupac, and their
entourage were on the way out of the68
grazed.  He would later maintain he had
a bullet lodged in his head.! At the hos-
pital, Tupac went into emergency sur-
gery, where doctors removed one shat-

It
lli
l
I
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é
0
3
il
92
1attempt to leave Death Row that led to
his death. Dre had managed to do it, but
only by relinquishing any claim on
Death Row. A music-business veteran
who is close to Dre told me that if
Tupac had left Death Row. . . it would
have been worse than devastatingit&#39;s
an insult. lt&#39;s a public slap in the face. lt
is not tolerable. I&#39;ve made you and
you&#39;re going to leave me? And six
months alter Dre did it? In another cul-
ture," he concluded, people sue you."
In the last few months, Knight has
been buffeted by one damaging revelation
after another. The Los Angeles Time:
reported in October that he had given a
recording contract to the daughter of the
deputy district attorney Lawrence Longo,
who had helped strike his probation deal
in the assault case, and also that David
Kenner had rented a n.i.neteenthousand-
dollar-a-month Malibu Colony house
from the Longo family and that Knight
had stayed in it.  Longo denies any
wrongdoing.! Then, in December, the
Los Angeles Time: reported that Steve
Cantrock, Death Rows accountant and
a principal in the L.A. of
ce of Gelfand,
Rennert 8c Feldman, a division ofCoo
pets 8:. Lybrand, had signed a document
saying that he stole four and a half mil-
lion dollars from Death Row. Cantrock
was said to have told federal invesuga
tors that he had been invited to a San
Fernando Valley house where Knight,
Kenner, and others were gathered, that
he had been forced to his knees and,
fearing for his life, signed the handwrit-
ten confession that Kenner had drafted
on the spot.  Knight says that no force
was involved. Cantroclc denies stealing
the money.! Canuock, who is in hiding,
has since been forced out by his 
rm. He
has also been reported to have been an
intermediary between Knight and al-
leged organized-crime 
gures; federal
investigators have reportedly been exam-
ining possible links between Death Row
and organizedcrime families in New
York and Chicago. VVhen federal grand
jury subpoenas were sent out last Febru-
ary, they focussed not only on Knight&#39;s
role but on Kennel-s as well.
In midApril, Afeni Shalcur 
led a
racketeering suit against Death Row,
Suge Knight, and David Kermer, alleg-
ing that they were engaged in a con-
spiracy to steal from Tupac. The suit in-
cluded a claim against Kenner formalpractice and breach of 
duciary duty,
charging that his purported representa-
tion of Tupac was in hopeless conict
with his own interestsinasmuch as
Kenner, the suit alleges, was both an at-
torney for Death Row and an owner of
it. Several people close to the situation
say that the suit is on the verge of being
settled, and that Interscope has helped
to make that possible.
Since Tupacs death, Interscope has
repeatedly sought to mollify Afeni. In
October, when she found Knight and
Kcnner unresponsive and she was
threatening to block the release of Tu-
pac&#39;s last album unless she got an ac-
counting of the money due to him, it
was jimmy Iovine who met with Afeni
and her lawyer, Richard Fischbein, and
agreed that Interscope would pay her an
immediate three million dollars with
more to come. And it was lnterscope,
not Death Row, that underwrote a me-
morial service for Tupac in Atlanta in
November.
lnterscope has, in a way, been a
model of corporate responsibility. In-
deed, in a strictly corporate sense it has
done more than was required. Tupac
was not o-icially lnterscopes artist, af-
ter all. But Interscope executives may
feel a level of responsibility for hav-
ing pushed Tupac into Suges arms. And
there is also a compelling business ratio-
nale for Interseope to do everything pos-
sible to quell the skirmishing between
Tupac&#39;s estate and Death Row. As one
lawyer close to the situation points out,
ifA.feni didn&#39;t get what she wanted from
Death Row she would surely sue not
only Death Row but lnterscope as well,
on the theory that the companies were
so closely related as to have shared ex-
posure. Being subject to a legal pro-
cess of discovery on this issue could
hardly have been an attractive pros-
pect for lnterscope-particularly in
light of the ongoing criminal probe
of Death Row.
IF Interscopc escapes unscathed in the
federal probe, Suge Knight&#39;s undo-
ing could well prove a boon. Ioint ven-
tures are only as success
rl as the opera-
tors are frugal, an executive close to
lnterscope points out, and at Death
Row the spending was obscene. If
they&#39;can shift the Death Row assets
within Interscope, they&#39;ll come outI . ~. 3-Q.
smelling like rosesand not have the
wild card of Suge and Kenner. A cou-
ple of months ago, it was reported that
Seagtam, the parent of Universal, is eon-
sidering buying, for three hundred and

fty million dollars, the half of Inter-
scope that Universal does not already
own. This would mean a colossal pro
t
for Iovine and Field.
To many blacks in the music busi-
ness, the lack of congruency in this par-
ticular morality tale is bitterly familiar.
Suge Knight has retained Milton
Grimes, who defended Rodney King, to
represent him in the federal investiga-
tion. Grimes argues that Death Row did
not operate in a vacuum._ Their money
came 
&#39;0m Interscope, and from MCA,
and they-Interscope-were hands-
on. So if there are going to be indict-
ments, let them take on the industry-
not just this one black bus iness."
That lnterscope is widely regarded as
the most successful new label since
Geffen Records cannot be attributed
solely to its a
iliation with Death Row.
Interscope has hugely successful rock
groups, including Nine Inch Nails,
Bush, and the Wallowers, and the pop
groups No Doubt and God&#39;s Property.
But it was Death Row that rescued
them from their early doldrums and that
delivered one multi-platinum album af-
ter another. And the legacy of Death
Row to lnterscope is a rich one. Death
Row served an amazing purpose for In-
terscope, an entertainment executive
told me. It helped put them in the
black-music business. Today, no matter
what happens, they /Ba-ue that. People in
that community feel that they gave a
black man power. They gave a black
man autonomy. They gave a black man
money.
Iovine and Field did bet on Suge
Knight and Dre when other companies
would not. They have justified what
they did by alluding to the First Amend-
ment, and to their belief in giving a
chanee to black artists and entrepreneurs
from the street, But Death Row was no
enterprise zone. And anyone who got
near it could have predicted that there
would be a price to pay for its cultiva-
tion of gangsterismin lyrics, in social
conduct, and perhaps in business prac-
tices as well. . 1
Tupac, of course, paid the heaviest
price of all. 0 - - .i
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