Tupac Shakur

KDAY Is Closing? A Eulogy to the Best Station in L.A.

[Editor's note: Weekly scribe Jeff Weiss's column, "Bizarre Ride," normally appears on West Coast Sound every Wednesday. His archives are available here.] "Remember KDAY?" Tupac asked that question on "To Live & Die in LA," but the answer was obvious. Makaveli never even lived in Southern Califor ... More >>

Veteran Producer Sir Jinx is the Missing Link

[Editor's note: Weekly scribe Jeff Weiss's column, "Bizarre Ride," appears on West Coast Sound every Wednesday. His archives are available here.] See also: Edward "Apple" Nelson Is a Legendary L.A. Drummer and 70-Year-Old Yoga Enthusiast Sir Jinx is the missing link. He is a vital nerve. Remove th ... More >>

The Brand New Tupac Wax Statue Is Fucking Uncanny

See also: *Here Are Pictures of Dr. Dre's New $13 Million House *Bruce Hornsby on Tupac: "The original 'Changes' was a lot dirtier, had a lot of the n-word." Like most folks on their 41st birthday, Tupac celebrated with his old friends. Except that Tupac is now a wax statue. On Saturday night at ... More >>

Top Ten Rap Albums For People Who Don't Know Shit About Hip-Hop

Hip-hop is nearly 40, but many still find this slightly-disorienting world of beats, rhymes and oversize personalities a bit daunting. So consider this our hip-hop Cliff's notes; here are the albums you should know about if you don't want to look silly at cocktail parties. We're not saying these a ... More >>

Tupac on the L.A. Riots: "I Hate to Say I Told You So, But I Told You So"

See also: Our coverage of the 15th anniversary of Tupac's death Tupac Shakur was a gangsta rapper of the old mold; he called himself a thug, sure, but he was also quite conscious when it came to social issues, particularly those impacting the black community. The rare video below -- taken one wee ... More >>

Top 20 Sexiest Male Musicians of All Time: #15-11

See also: *Top 20 Sexiest Male Musicians of All Time: #20-16 *Top 20 Worst Bands of All Time: The Complete List 15. Pharrell Though lots of women have brains, beauty and talent, few man do. Yet, as one of the most prolific and successful producers of the past decade, Pharrell Williams is also a cl ... More >>

Tupac's "Dear Mama": Why This Song Sucks

[Editor's note: Why This Song Sucks determines why particular tracks blow using science. It appears on West Coast Sound every Wednesday.] See also: Our Tupac Week coverage from earlier this year. Song: Tupac's "Dear Mama" Background: "Dear Mama" is Tupac's most beloved song. It is considered to ... More >>

Everlast's Top Five Most Influential West Coast Rap Albums

​See also: *Don't Call Him Country. Everlast is Hip-Hop, Dammit. *Top 20 Greatest L.A. Rap Albums Of All Time: The Complete List As a teenager, Everlast was a graf writer. He made a couple tapes with his buddies, and the next thing he knew he was part of Ice-T's Rhyme Syndicate crew. He, Dan ... More >>

Best Posts of the Week

This week Weekly staffers Chris Vogel and Simone Wilson broke revelations from the new book Murder Rap, in which former LAPD detective Greg Kading cites testimony implicating Suge Knight in the death of Biggie Smalls and Diddy in the murder of Tupac. On our sister blog The Informer, Wilson also brou ... More >>

Cop's Book Says Sean Combs, Suge Knight Ordered Tupac and Biggie Killings

Top detective on rap murders says LAPD pulled the plug despite confessions

Five Hip-Hop Snitching Controversies

Yesterday LA Weekly brought you the shocking revelations of former LAPD detective Greg Kading, whose new book Murder Rap fingers Suge Knight for ordering Biggie's killing and Diddy for ordering Tupac's. At the center of the story is Duane Keith "Keffe D" Davis, who told Kading that Diddy offered him ... More >>

VIDEO: Greg Kading's Book Says Sean Combs, Suge Knight Ordered Tupac and Biggie Killings

In the pages of his potentially game-changing self-published book Murder Rap, set for release Oct. 4, former Los Angeles Police Department Detective Greg Kading reveals that LAPD has been sitting on extensive tapes and documents containing confessions from key players behind the alleged assassinatio ... More >>

Tupac and Biggie Murders: An Up-to-Date List of Characters, Given New Evidence From Ex-LAPD Detective Greg Kading

Update: "The 'Keffe D' Tapes: 10 Highlights of Confession From Gangster Who Says Sean Combs Hired Him to Kill Tupac." Of the many theories that have emerged over the last 15 years as to who was behind the drive-by killings of Tupac Shakur and Biggie Smalls, the closest thing we've seen to an invest ... More >>

'Tupac Sex Tape' Hits Internet Same Day as Sean Combs Is Accused of Hiring His Murder

Update: You want the dirt on Tupac? Here's the real dirt on Tupac. "The 'Keffe D' Tapes: 10 Highlights of Confession From Gangster Who Says Sean Combs Hired Him to Kill Tupac." TMZ claims to have viewed a sex tape starring the late L.A. gangsta rapper Tupac Shakur -- an alleged feat in multitasking ... More >>

The 'Keffe D' Tapes: 10 Highlights of Confession From Gangster Who Says Sean Combs Hired Him to Kill Tupac

Orlando "Baby Lane" Anderson (pictured) shot Tupac to death, according to his uncle, Keffe D.​"A barrel-chested black man with a front tooth missing, relaxed yet instinctively cautious, is seated across from four spellbound cops in a glass-walled conference room at 8200 Wilshire Blvd." So beg ... More >>

We Walk Up To Random Angelenos and Ask: "What's Your Favorite Tupac Memory?"

Ben WesthoffThis is not Tupac, and this was not taken in L.A., but darn if it isn't awesome​Editor's Note: This week marked the 15th anniversary of Tupac Shakur's death. To commemorate, West Coast Sound is featuring Tupac stories all week. See also: *Bruce Hornsby on Tupac: "The original 'Ch ... More >>

The Outlawz Speak on Tupac and His Ink, Dispute The Meaning of "Thug Life"

​Editor's Note: Yesterday marked the 15th anniversary of Tupac Shakur's death. To commemorate, West Coast Sound is featuring Tupac stories all week. See also: *Bruce Hornsby on Tupac: "The original 'Changes' was a lot dirtier, had a lot of the n-word." *African Rebel Soldiers and Their Eerie ... More >>

Shock G and Smif-n-Wessun Talk Tupac's Eating Habits: "I Never Seen Him Eat a Vegetable, Not Once In The Five Years I Knew Him"

Tupac, Buckshot, Tek and Steele at the L.A. mansion (we think)​Editor's Note: Today, September 13, 2011, marks the 15th anniversary of Tupac Shakur's death. To commemorate, West Coast Sound is featuring Tupac stories all week. See also: *Bruce Hornsby on Tupac: "The original 'Changes' was a ... More >>

Bruce Hornsby on Tupac: "The original 'Changes' was a lot dirtier, had a lot of the n-word."

Michael WeintrobBruce Hornsby​Editor's Note: Tomorrow, September 13, 2011, marks the 15th anniversary of Tupac Shakur's death. To commemorate, West Coast Sound will feature Tupac stories all week. Bruce Hornsby has been a household name for 25 years. His 1986 album with the Range, The Way It ... More >>

African Rebel Soldiers and Their Eerie Obsession With Tupac Shakur

Haitian 2pac, a leader of an armed Port-au-Prince gang called Chimères, recruited by Haiti's former president Jean-Bertrand Aristide​Editor's Note: Tomorrow, September 13, 2011, marks the 15th anniversary of Tupac Shakur's death. To commemorate, West Coast Sound will feature Tupac stories all ... More >>

Top Five Most Tired Rap Cliches

​Last week we brought you the 60 worst Lil Wayne lines on Tha Carter IV. Those lyrics are bad mainly because Wayne has stopped exerting effort; he clearly used the first thing that came into his head, even if said thing was, "Nothing standing in my way/ Like nothing's my security." But give ... More >>

Los Angeles Times Responds to Chuck Philips' Demand That The Paper Take Back its Retraction of His Tupac Story

Tupac.​The Los Angeles Times has responded to former reporter Chuck Philips' demand that the paper take back its retraction of his controversial story about who shot Tupac Shakur in a 1994 New York studio attack widely believed to have been the opening volley in the East Coast-West Coast rap w ... More >>

Wanna Hear Tupac Throw Shade From the Grave?

You gotta love Tupac​In a just-released diss track called, "Watch Ya Mouth," Tupac proclaims, "Lemme get my preach on!" And he does, even if the congregation has a few weird members. Shooting verbal bullets at Dr. Dre and Nas, sticking conscious rappers De La Soul (huh?) with the line, "E ... More >>

Chuck Philips Demands L.A. Times Apology on Tupac Shakur

Tupac Shakur, Notorious B.I.G. Murders and ex-LA Times Reporter Chuck Philips: A Timeline

Chuck Philips, award-winning LA Times journalist, is out of a job.​Chuck Philips, once a top reporter for the Los Angeles Times, spent over a decade investigating the murders of West Coast rapper Tupac Shakur and his East Coast rival, the Notorious B.I.G. But in 2008, when it was revealed tha ... More >>

Who Shot Tupac? Dexter Isaac, New York Inmate, Says Jimmy Henchman Paid Him $2,500 to Murder Shakur

Tupac Shakur​Update: The NYPD plans to interview Isaac. Meanwhile, Rosemond's lawyer says the confession is a "flat out lie," told in hopes that the prisoner might be able to "work off his sentence." Originally posted June 15 at 1 p.m. A Brooklyn prisoner named Dexter Isaac, currently servin ... More >>

Dexter Issac Confesses to 1994 Tupac Shooting that Sparked East-West Coast Hip-Hop Feud

Tupac leaving the hospital after the 1994 shooting​On November 30th, 1994, Tupac Shakur was shot in Manhattan's Quad Studios. The night sparked the East-West coast feud that left legends Tupac and The Notorious B.I.G. both dead less than three years later. Now, on the eve of Tupac's 40th bir ... More >>

NSFW Photo: Man Caught Smuggling 159 Pounds of Iguana Meat, Covered in Fish, Across Mexican Border

www.jagendorf.comThe one that got away​And here we thought Tupac's alleged shooter was the man of the hour (closely trailed by a way-too-stoked John Edwards). Nope! The anonymous U.S. citizen trying to cross over from Mexico with 167 pounds of Iguana meat in tow on June 7 wins top blogroll hon ... More >>

Hip-Hop: A Cultural Odyssey

Snoop Dogg Wants to Get You Blasted With His New Four Loko-Inspired Drink

Snoop Dogg Wants to Get You Blasted With New Four Loko Style Drink

Born and raised in Compton, Kendrick Lamar Hides a Poet's Soul Behind "Pussy & Patron"

2Pac and Walt Whitman

Two professors anthologize the best rap lyrics

Z-Trip Pays Tribute to Tupac Shakur With Marvin Gaye Mix

Z-Trip Pays Tribute to Tupac Shakur With Marvin Gaye Mix

Across the Universe: Tupac Film Gets Fuqua'ed, LCD Will Record Again, 50 Cent Crazies Up Twitter

Across the Universe: Tupac Film Gets Fuqua'ed, LCD Will Record Again, 50 Cent Crazies Up Twitter

What Does That Say About Eminem?

Tupac's 'All Eyez on Me': The LA Weekly Word Cloud [NSFW]

West Coast Sound has been analyzing classic Los Angeles albums for the past six months by creating word clouds from the lyrics. We've tackled Black Flag's Damaged, the Beach Boys' Pet Sounds, N.W.A's Straight Outta Compton, Guns 'n Roses' Appetite for Destruction and, most recently, just for kicks, ... More >>

Songs For Our City: Tupac Lives and Dies in L.A.

Tupac Shakur Lives and Dies in L.A.

Holler if You'll Drink Me: The 2Pac Energy Drink

Are you frequently fatigued? Do you lack the energy to assault major American film directors over the role of O-Dog? Do you find yourself drinking beverages, one part Alize, one part Cristal, and one part Suge Knight tear drop, while wondering why your particular brand of thug lacks passion? Well, ... More >>

This Week in LA Music: New No Age MP3, Rossdale v. Yow, 2Pac Energy Drink, R.I.P. Jody Reynolds, Street Drum Corps, Flaming Lips, Adios Nic Harcourt

Raven Sings the Blues has an MP3 of the pretty, noisy, pretty/noisy new No Age track. The b-side of their new "Teen Creeps" 7" on Sub Pop is called "Intimate Descriptions, and you can find it here. (via gorillavsbear.) We can't be any clearer than this: GAVIN ROSSDALE HAS BEEN COLLABORATING WITH ... More >>

Has the L.A. Hip-Hop Plague Finally Passed?

Four on the floor

Comments from around the Web: Chuck Philips' debunked Tupac story

Among the hundreds of responses to this week's debunked LA Times story on the murder of Tupac Shakur, and Sean "P. Diddy" Combs' alleged involvement in it, have been a few fascinating and incendiary allegations. What follows are a few of the most intriguing. From an anonymous post to the Velvet ... More >>

Who Shot Tupac At The Quad: The LA Times teaser press release

On the afternoon of Friday, March 14, the LA Times' Stephan Pechdimaldji, senior manager of media relations, tossed out an email to his media list announcing the impending publication of Chuck Philips' now-debunked Who Shot Tupac story. There were a couple of red flags right off the bat. First, I'd ... More >>

Chuck Philips, Tupac Shakur, Sean Combs and The Con

The amazing Page One Los Angeles Times article today, correcting a probably libelous Times Calendar story published on St. Patrick's Day and written by investigative reporter Chuck Philips, is known in the journalism biz as a “skinback.” I don't know exactly where the term “skinback” origina ... More >>

Bishop Lamont-The Next Great West Coast Hope?

I...listened to all that Death Row stuff....and Lords Of The Underground, Busta Rhymes, Redman and Keith Murray, where your takes had to be so clean and ill to get off the phonetics that you were dropping. Your lines had to be crisp. Other cats don’t come from that school. It took me studying R ... More >>

Best Sunken Lair For Techno-Geeks

Singled Out: Everybody has a Mother

Ghosts vs. Boasts

Biggie & Tupac (remix)

Nick Broomfield imitates life imitating art

Ghetto Star

'Monster' Kody Scott and the Culture of Ornament