Tupac and Biggie: Rap's greatest rivalry remains top unsolved mystery
Las Vegas police recently issued a search warrant in connection with Tupac Shakur's 1996 death
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Nearly 27 years after Tupac Shakur's murder, Las Vegas police recently issued a search warrant in connection with Shakur’s unsolved killing.
Shakur, one of the most prolific rappers in history, was shot multiple times while riding in the passenger seat of a vehicle driven by Death Row Records founder Marion "Suge" Knight. He died six days later on Sept. 13, 1996 at the age of 25.
His death fueled even bigger flames in the infamous East Coast-West Coast rap rivalry of the '90s, which included fellow musician, The Notorious B.I.G. Only six months after Shakur died, Biggie was shot and killed in Los Angeles.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}LAS VEGAS POLICE SEARCH HOME AS PART OF PROBE INTO TUPAC SHAKUR'S 1996 MURDER
Authorities recently served a search warrant related to the unsolved killing of Tupac Shakur, right. His East Coast rival, Notorious B.I.G., was killed six months later. (Getty Images)
Officials searched a home linked to Duane "Keffe D" Davis on Monday in Henderson, Nevada, in connection to Shakur's death. Davis is the uncle of Orlando Anderson, one of Shakur's rivals who authorities have suspected in the rapper's death.
Andersen died in an unrelated gang shooting in Compton, California, two years after Shakur's death, but had denied his involvement in Shakur's killing at the time.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Detectives collected multiple computers, a cellular telephone, "documentary documents," a Vibe magazine that featured Shakur, several .40-caliber bullets, two "tubs containing photographs" and a copy of Davis’ 2019 memoir, "Compton Street Legend," according to The Associated Press.
A case is reportedly being presented to a grand jury in Las Vegas.
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Davis, the self-proclaimed "Compton Kingpin," initially denied any involvement in the legendary rap star's death.
He said in "Unsolved: The Murders of Tupac and the Notorious B.I.G." that his own cancer diagnosis prompted him to come forward with more information about the night Shakur was shot.
Davis, a known South Side Compton Crips gang member, has repeatedly claimed to have been a passenger in the car and that his nephew Anderson was the shooter involved in Shakur's death.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Rapper Tupac Shakur was shot and killed in Las Vegas in September 1996. On Monday, Las Vegas police searched a home in connection with the cold case killing. (Raymond Boyd)
The late Tupac Shakur and Marion "Suge" Knight were pictured in 1996. Knight is currently serving a 28-year prison sentence after pleading no contest to voluntary manslaughter in 2018. (Jeff Kravitz)
Hours before the shooting, Shakur and Anderson were involved in an altercation at the MGM Grand following Mike Tyson's championship fight against Bruce Seldon.
Shakur, who was born in New York and grew up in Baltimore and the city of Oakland, used his music to raise up the city of Los Angeles. He was a member of the Grammy-nominated group Digital Underground, releasing his first solo album, "2Pacalypse Now," in 1991.
The album, with references to police officers being killed, drew notoriety when a lawyer claimed a man accused of killing a Texas trooper had been riled up by the record. Then-Vice President Dan Quayle targeted "2Pacalypse Now″ in his 1992 battle with Hollywood over traditional values.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}He quickly followed with two more commercially successful albums before releasing "All Eyez on Me" in 1996, the first double-length album in rap history.
While working on music, Shakur also found success as an actor, and starred in "Juice," "Poetic Justice" and "Above the Rim."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Tupac Shakur was born in New York and raised in Baltimore and Oakland before claiming Los Angeles as his home. (Raymond Boyd)
From left to right, American rappers Notorious B.I.G., Nate Dogg, Snoop Dogg, and Sean Combs attend the premiere party for "Murder Was the Case," directed by Dr. Dre and Fab Five Freddy in 1995. (Nitro)
Shakur became more deeply engrained in the rap rivalry and was shot five times in the lobby of a New York recording studio. He served eight months in prison on a sexual abuse charge, and following his release, committed to a new lifestyle, signed with Suge Knight and Death Row Records.
"Thug Life to me is dead. If it’s real, let somebody else represent it, because I’m tired of it,″ Shakur told Vibe magazine. "I represented it too much. I was Thug Life.″
His troubled life was front-and-center in the 1995 release "Me Against The World,″ a multimillion-selling album that contained the ominously titled tracks "If I Die 2Nite″ and "Death Around The Corner.″
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"It ain’t easy being me. ... Will I see the penitentiary, or will I stay free?″ Shakur rapped on the album, which produced the Grammy-nominated "Dear Mama″ and standout singles "So Many Tears″ and "Temptations.″
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Shakur was, at first, friends with Biggie when they both hit the rap scene in the early '90s, but the rappers had a falling out after Shakur was shot at a recording studio, thus igniting their feud.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Shakur openly accused B.I.G. and Sean "Diddy" Combs of having prior knowledge of the shooting, which both vehemently denied.
Shakur often traded verbal jabs with New York-natives B.I.G. and Combs, who represented Harlem and the New York City-based Bad Boy Records.
Notorious B.I.G. performed at the International Amphitheatre in Chicago in April 1995. (Raymond Boyd)
Tupac Shakur's sister, Sekyiwa "Set" Shakur, accepted the late rapper's star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on behalf of the family last month. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)
Diss tracks were seemingly delivered to drive home their ferocious points across. Shakur released the aggressive single "Hit ’Em Up," which took aim at B.I.G., who on the other hand returned with "Who Shot Ya?," a record that was received as a taunt. However, B.I.G. claimed the song was not directed toward Shakur.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Biggie, who was born Christopher Wallace in Brooklyn, signed with Bad Boy Records in 1993.
His first album, "Ready to Die," has sold more than 6 million copies. His second album, "Life After Death," has another 11 million on the books.
Biggie was 24 years old when he was shot and killed in a drive-by shooting outside the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles on March 9, 1997.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}His family, including mother Voletta Wallace, widow Faith Evans, and his children, filed a $400 million wrongful death lawsuit against the Los Angeles Police Department alleging corrupt officers were responsible for his death. The suit was dismissed in 2010.
Allegations also surfaced that Suge Knight was responsible for the revenge murder, which echoed a similar drive-by homicide Tupac suffered.
Knight is currently serving a 28-year prison sentence after pleading no contest to voluntary manslaughter for a 2015 hit-and-run death while filming "Straight Outta Compton."
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