Nevertheless, he had been in Clinton Correctional Facility hearing the N-word being used by COs toward Black inmates including himself. and friends, among others - he would tell you that he took those five hot bullets and smiled. If you ask Pac on “Hit Em Up” - the scathing diss track directed at The Notorious B.I.G. Alongside that black mark on his reputation, the night before the judge announced the verdict to the world, back in November 1994, 2Pac was shot outside of Quad Studios in Manhattan. Shakur was serving a sentence of up to four years for sexual assault, a crime that he maintained he did not commit. In October 1995, Death Row Records boss Suge Knight paid the $1.4 million bail that was on the head of rap superstar Tupac Amaru Shakur, whose name had increasingly been in the papers for both his talent and troubles.

Also, subscribe and listen to our new podcast series, Rootsland, which explores the story of two friends who take a musical and spiritual journey from the suburbs of Long Island to the streets of Kingston, Jamaica. To celebrate both the record’s 25th anniversary and Black History Month, Jayson Buford takes a look back at the album’s indelible legacy. The double-album, the last record released while 2Pac was still alive, would go on to change the rap game forever. All Eyez was the artist’s first album to chart in the UK, and while it only reached No.32 there, it became a platinum seller, as 2Pac’s aura was only heightened by his untimely demise.Editor’s Note: 2Pac’s All Eyez on Me originally dropped on February 13th, 1996. The album’s best international showing was a Top 5 peak in Sweden, and it also became a Top 20 entry in Australia, Holland, Germany and elsewhere. Most important, All Eyez on Me marks 2Pac’s new allegiance with the West Coast’s powerhouse rap dynasty, Death Row Records.” It comes barely a year after he was shot. “This two-disc set comes just four months after he was released on bail pending appeal on his conviction for sexual assault. “The title of 2PAC’s fourth album, All Eyez on Me, is not just a reflection of his usual arrogance and paranoia - people are watching 2Pac,” wrote Laura Jamison in Rolling Stone.

Listen to the best of 2Pac on Apple Music and Spotify. Aside from the multi-million selling success of the album, two of its five singles, “How Do U Want It” and “California Love,” became No.1 hits on the Billboard Hot 100. All Eyez On Me included numerous tracks that emphasised how 2Pac was, by then, among the elite of artists making 1990s hip-hop into the pop music of its day.

2pac all eyez on me