By Jonathan Landrum Jr. (AP Entertainment Reporter)
LOS ANGELES (AP) – An investigation into the unsolved murder of Tupac Shakur has been reopened. It took nearly 30 years, but a new development came when Nevada authorities issued a search warrant in connection with the Rapster shooting this week, he confirmed Tuesday.
Here’s what you need to know about the most infamous shooting in hip-hop history.
The Las Vegas Police Department issued a search warrant in connection with the murder of Shakur, who was shot on September 7, 1996.
The warrant was executed Monday in the nearby city of Henderson. It is unknown what they were looking for or where.
A police spokesperson, citing an ongoing investigation, said no further details could be provided on the latest developments in the case, including whether a suspect has been identified.
The 25-year-old rapper is believed to have driven about 10 cars to a nightclub in a black BMW driven by Death Row Records founder Marion “Suge” Knight after watching Mike Tyson KO Bruce Seldan in a championship fight at the MGM Grand.
After the battle, Shakur, Knight and their companions got into a brawl at the hotel.
A white Cadillac with four men pulled up alongside a stopped BMW at a red light while driving on the Las Vegas Strip. Police said one person opened fire and shots rained down the passenger side of Knight’s car. Shakur, who was in the passenger seat, was shot four times and at least twice in the chest. Mr. Knight was smeared with shrapnel or shrapnel from the car.
Shakur was rushed to hospital but died six days later.
Shakur is one of hip-hop’s most prolific figures, also known by the stage names 2Pac and Makaveli. His professional music career lasted only five years, but worldwide he sold over 75 million records. This includes the Diamond certified album ‘All Eyez on Me’ which included hits such as ‘California Love (Remix)’ and ‘I Ain”. ‘t Mad at Cha’ and ‘How Do U Want It’.
Shakur has released five No. 1 albums, including 1995’s ‘Me Against the World’ and 1996’s ‘All Eyes On Me’, plus three posthumous releases: 1996’s ‘The Don Kilminati: The 7 Day Theory’ and 2001’s ‘Until the End’. of Time” and 2004’s “Royal to the Game”.
The six-time Grammy-nominated artist was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2017 by Snoop Dogg.
As an up-and-coming actor, Shakur starred in several popular films, including John Singleton’s Poetic Justice co-starring Janet Jackson and Ernest Dickerson’s Juice. He also had prominent roles in ‘Gang Related’ and ‘Above the Rim’.
In April, a five-part FX documentary series titled “Dear Mama: The Story of Afeni and Tupac Shakur” delved into the rapper’s mother, Afeni Shakur’s past as female leader of the Black Panther Party, while also exploring her journey as female leader of Tupac. She was a political visionary and went on to become one of the greatest rap artists of all time.
Last month, Shakur was awarded a posthumous star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
“He ignored the distinction between art and activism,” said radio personality Big Boy, who hosted the ceremony.
Shakur is remembered in museum exhibits such as “Tupac Shakur.” In 2021, she performed “Wake Me When I’m Free” and in 2015, she performed “All Eyes On Me” at the Grammy Museum. A whole street in Auckland will soon be renamed after him.
Shakur’s death occurred in the midst of a feud with rap rival Notorious BIG, and was shot six months later. At the time, both rappers were in the midst of the infamous East Coast/West Coast rivalry that largely defined his mid-1990s hip-hop scene.
The feud erupted in 1994 when Shakur was shot again and badly injured during a robbery in a hotel lobby in Midtown Manhattan. Shakur was shot several times and lost $40,000.
Shakur has publicly accused BIG and Sean “Diddy” Combs of having prior knowledge of the shooting, which they both vehemently deny. The shooting sparked a feud between the hip-hop community and fans that severely divided them.
New York-born Shakur represented the West Coast after signing with Los Angeles-based Death Row Records. He had frequent verbal jabs with East Coast New Yorkers BIG and Combs, who represented New York City-based Bad Boy Records.
The diss track was delivered, apparently, to bring home their ferocious points. Shakur took aim at BIG with the aggressive single “Hit ‘Em Up”, but BIG hit back with “Who Shot Ya?”, a record that was taken as a mockery. However, BIG insisted the song was not directed at Shakur.
Shakur was born on June 16, 1971 in New York City. He then moved to Baltimore and attended the Baltimore School of the Arts, where he began writing rap. He eventually made his way to Marine City, California, near San Francisco to continue his writing and recording.
As a member of the Grammy-nominated group Digital Underground, Shakur appeared on the track ‘Same Song’ from 1991’s ‘This Is an EP Release’ and the album ‘Sons of the P’.
That same year, Shakur gained personal recognition with the album 2Pacalypse Now, spawning the hit singles “Trapped” and “Brenda’s Got a Baby”.
The album included references to the murder of a police officer, and gained notoriety after a lawyer claimed the album infuriated a man charged with killing a Texas state police officer. Then-Vice President Dan Quayle targeted 2Pacalypse Now in a 1992 battle with Hollywood over traditional values.
In 1993, Shakur followed up with her second album, “I Get Around”, “Keep Ya Head Up”, and “Papa’s Song”, for which she was nominated for an American Music Award for Best New Rap/Hip-Hop Artist.
The following year, he appeared with hip-hop group Thug Life on the ‘Above the Rim’ soundtrack and the group’s album ‘Volume 1’. In Reiner’s photo for the album, he has his face between his two outstretched middle fingers.
Over the years, Shakur occasionally broke the law. He spent several months in a New York prison on sexual abuse charges.
While in prison, Shakur suggested he was reconsidering his lifestyle. He had support from black leaders, including the Reverends Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton, who counseled him while he was incarcerated.
“Thug life is over for me. “I expressed it too much. I was Thug Life.”
Shakur spoke candidly about his tumultuous life on 1995’s Me Against the World. The album sold in the millions and included songs eerily titled “If I Die 2 Night” and “Death Around the Corner”.
“It’s not easy being me. . . . Do I go to jail or do I stay free?”
The Las Vegas shootings come at a time when Shakur’s fourth solo album, All Eyes On Me, has sold nearly five million copies and remains on the charts.
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Associated Press reporter Travis Lawler reports from Nashville.
https://www.mcall.com/2023/07/19/after-nearly-30-years-theres-movement-in-the-case-of-tupac-shakurs-killing-heres-what-we-know/ Nearly 30 years later, there is movement in the murder of Tupac Shakur.Here’s What We Know – Wake Up Call