Tupac Amaru Shakur (June 16, 1971 — September 13, 1996), also known by his
stage names
2Pac and
Makaveli, was an
American rapper. In addition to his status as a top-selling recording artist, Shakur was a successful film actor and a prominent social activist. He is recognized in the
Guinness Book of World Records as the highest-selling hip hop artist, with over seventy five million albums sold worldwide, including over fifty million in the United States.
Most of Shakur's songs are about growing up amid violence and hardship in
ghettos, racism, problems in society and conflicts with other rappers. Shakur's work is known for advocating political, economic, social and racial equality, as well as his raw descriptions of violence, drug and alcohol abuse and conflicts with the law.
Shakur was initially a
roadie and
backup dancer for the
alternative hip hop group
Digital Underground.
[Tupac Shakur - hotshotdigital.com] Shakur's debut album,
2Pacalypse Now, gained critical recognition and backlash for its controversial lyrics. Shakur became the target of lawsuits and experienced other legal problems. Later, he was shot five times and robbed in the lobby of a
recording studio in
New York City. Following the event, Shakur grew suspicious that other figures in the rap industry had prior knowledge of the incident and did not warn him; the controversy helped spark the
East Coast-West Coast hip hop rivalry. After serving eleven months of his sentence for sexual abuse, Shakur was released from prison on an appeal financed by
Marion "Suge" Knight, the
CEO of
Death Row Records. In exchange for Suge's assistance, Shakur agreed to release three albums under the Death Row label.