2pac was arguably the best rapper in the history of hip-hop. He was a pioneer and one of gangster rap’s most innovative artists. He broke onto to the hip-hop scene with his debut 2pacalypse Now, which went gold, in 1991. He showed off his ability as an actor shortly thereafter with his critically-acclaimed performance in Juice. His follow-up effort, Strictly 4 My N.I.G.G.A.Z., went platinum and spawned multiple top 10 R&B hits that also climbed the pop charts. In 1993 he was heralded for his performance as a gangster in the motion picture Above the Rim.

2pac’s legend grew through his violent persona and run-ins with the law as his reputation as an outlaw helped fuel his career. He was arrested for several crimes in the mid-90’s and was sentenced to 15 days in prison for attacking director Allen Hughes while filming the movie Menace II Society. In 1994 the rapper was found guilty of sexual assault charges and was sentenced to more than four years in prison. The day after the verdict was announced, 2pac was shot in the lobby of a New York City recording studio. 2pac survived and claimed that rival Bad Boy Records artists Notorious B.I.G. and Sean "Puffy" Combs were involved in the shooting, igniting what would become an infamous rift between east coast and west coast rappers.

His 1995 album Me Against the World was released while he was in prison and debuted at number one. 2pac was now a true hip-hop power and the first artist to have a number one record while incarcerated. He would serve eight months of his sentence, as Suge Knight, president of Death Row Records, posted a $1.4 million dollar bond for the rapper. 2pac joined Death Row upon his release and 1996’s double-disc All Eyez on Me spawned the hit single "California Love," which endures as one of his most popular tracks. The album went quintuple platinum and is considered to be a definitive work in rap music.

2pac was murdered in Las Vegas later that year in a shooting that remains shrouded in mystery. Many theories circulated concerning the rap icon’s death. Some claimed his killing was orchestrated by Knight, who would later be jailed for his involvement in a variety of illegal activities and was with 2pac at the time of the shooting. Others declared Combs and the Notorious B.I.G as the masterminds, as B.I.G. was later murdered in what is thought by some to be retaliation for 2pac’s death. For a time, because his own death was often the subject of his lyrics, some conspiracy theorists believed that the rapper faked his own death in order to remove himself from the rap game. It is still unknown who was responsible for 2pac’s death.

A multitude of 2pac albums have been released posthumously to rave reviews and the rapper has become a legend. His controversial lifestyle and untimely demise shocked the world and served as a tragic representation of a time of turmoil in the rap industry. He remains one of the most influential artists in the history of hip-hop.