Any artist out there that wanna be an artist, stay a star, and won’t have to worry about
the executive producer trying to be all in the videos, all on the records, dancing—come
to Death Row!
For many, the first sign of any beef between Bad Boy and death row was at the 1995 Source
Awards. Suge got on stage and clowned Puffy as being one of those executive producers
who were always "all in the videos" and urged artists to come to death row.
This was personally one of my favorite Suge Knight moments. His interview with Wendy Williams
was another. Many put this down to some friendly banter. The New York based Bad Boy Records
was in competition with the California based death row records, but Boy had their breakout
artist in Biggie Smalls.
He was blowing up in the rap game. Afro had rap legends on their team from day one with
NWA founder Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg. He was at the height of his popularity at the time.
However, as the mid-nineties approached.
Deathrow began losing traction in their dominance, as one more chance was blowing up the charts.
Suge was rumored to be quite salty about it. It was one of the first source awards, and
you had the two biggest labels in music coming together under just one stage, so the energy
in it was incredible.
But I just think our performance. Puff Daddy's energy, Puff Daddy's mind. You see Puff Daddy's
energy? his mind, it is phenomenal. You know what I mean? And Deathrow didn't have that
energy like, you know what I mean? So Suge made that comment?
Yo CEOs dancing in the video, like, like, like, like like it sounded like you was mad
that you're not in the videos dancing and you're not producing the videos and you know
what I mean?
He wanted a fresh new name for death row and a signature hit single, too. Suge also shouted
out Tupac, who was serving time in prison at the Clinton Correctional Facility while
he was serving his sentence. He felt let down by his current label, Interscope. His time
with them was coming to an end.
Of course, shouting out, Tupac was showing some love. But today, many believe it was
strategic in nature and a power move. He wanted to send a clear message to Tupac and probably
to Bad Boy that def were about to have the next big artists and reign supreme once more.
Not too long after this, Suge came up with the $1.4 million to bail Tupac out of prison
while he awaited his appeal. Suge bailed them out when no one else came through for him.
He even helped out Tupac's mother.
He bought her a house prior to this. She was homeless, all in one condition that he sign
with death row. But Tupac wanted to sign with death row. He didn't need persuading. He was
very down about his situation and felt that this was a big chance and really his only
chance.
In fact, while he was in prison, he planned how he could reach out to sugar and make his
intentions clear. He even went as far as to marry his girlfriend at the time, Keisha Morris.
He told Keisha that he wanted her to be his wife, not just the girlfriend.
So people would take her seriously when she was handling his business affairs, when she
called the death row studios and introduced herself as Tupac's wife. They thought she
was joking at first. He she looked out for punk while he was stuck in jail.
She made calls on his behalf and even set up meetings for him. one such meeting was
the one he had with sugar. She paid a visit to him while he was in jail. Oh, that person
was. I think we really should interview her.
The only person, I think you really should interview her. A girl named Keisha. She was
Pac's wife. She married him when he was in prison. Keisha Morris? She called my office.
Tupac's wife right, from New York. She called my office and when she called my office everyone
kept laughing and would take a message and wouldn't give it to me.
I said what you laughing about. They said there's this girl named Keisha she says she's
Tupac's wife. You know they got married and she really needs your help. I said look, let
me talk to her cos there might be a chance she's telling the truth, right?
So I get on the phone with her, she said Suge, I'm so glad you took my call. Everybody think
I'm crazy. We're really married I can show you the marriage certificate, I can show you
this. I can show you that. I said you don't have to do all that.
Tell me what you need. I thought she might needed some bread or something. I was gonna
give it to her. She said look. Tupac said the only person who can help him is you. Please
come see him so you can get him out of prison.
I remember the first time I got there. Pac came out. He had patches on his head. You
can tell he was stressing. So he sat down. He was talking he was real happy. He said
look. Thug life is dead. I'm not gonna rap no more.
I felt like slamming my hands on the table. I said, hey look. That's when he came up with
the theme all eyes on me. I said all eyes on you right now.
Get that bulls*it out your head.
00:04:42:00 - 00:04:53:19 Unknown
Because it might be a chance to tell them the truth? I on the final set. I'm so glad
you came on my call. The area, I think I'm crazy. I found out it was turning out. Okay?
Several. We really matter.
00:04:54:01 - 00:05:06:06 Unknown
Our show, even now Typekit extra, is actually that I don't have to ask. Tell me what you
think about humanity and created something out of this. Give it in the film production.
Only for us can have this issue.
00:05:07:00 - 00:05:23:16 Unknown
Please come seeing Premiere Pro getting out of it. And I remember the first time I got
the seeing how it came out. Yeah, absolutely. You know, you could tell you were stressful.
They talked me through a half his grandmother, her life that day.
Before Tupac went to prison. He was shot five times at Quad Studios. He was there to work
with rapper Little Sean. You know the story? I've done 1,000,000 videos on it. Also in
the studio was Biggie, Puffy and Andre Harrell. At first, Tupac suspected stretch and probably
little Sean's manager, Jimmie Henchman.
But while he was in prison and when he got out, he started calling out Biggie and Puffy.
He did an interview with Vibe and an interview while he was locked up, making it clear that
he was suspicious of them.
This had a lot to do with Biggie Song, who shot ya be released while Tupac was in jail.
The song was written and produced way before the studio incident, so it couldn't have been
about Tupac, and Park didn't take too kindly to that.
He felt he was being taunted when he was at his lowest point. Believing the song to be
a clear message to him, and a diss. Was Suge in Tupac's ear at the time.
All of that sh*t that happened afterwards was a ploy, and it was manufactured by Suge
Knight. When you say a ploy, I don't know what a ploy means. It was a game plan, it
was a strategy. So if you think about back then, Tupac got convicted of r*pe, he went
to jail.
00:07:06:20 - 00:07:26:10 Unknown
That's the Kevin Powell did an interview, provide it to the writer, the writer, the
less you guy Adobe and Tupac said thug life is dead. He said I might be killed after this
interview, but I want my truth to be known, right?
Suge Knight goes to get him out of jail? Yeah, When Suge Knight got him out of jail. It's
the first time you heard Biggie and Puff did it. That East Coast West Coast sh*t was manufactured
by Suge. Suge did that sh*t.
Not the shooting, you're saying. No, no, no. I'm telling you just the blaming. Oh, right,
right, right. Right. Of Puff and Big, that was Suge.
He had a big issue with Bad Boy long before Tupac joined Death Row. Suge's homeboy Jake
Robles aka Big Jake was killed in Atlanta. They were at the Club Platinum House celebrating
Jermaine. Dupri's birthday. There was a show and an afterparty Suge's homeboy was shot
during an altercation.
Some reports say it was a member of Puffy's entourage. This was about a month after the
source awards. Puffy was said to be outside in a limo. Someone came and told him what
happened. He ran in to see what was going on. And that's when he got into it with Suge.
This was the catalyst to the death row bad boy beef, which later turned into east versus
West Coast. But really, it was the former. The two labels just happened to be in those
locations.
Even Hammer referred to the East versus West Coast as a fallacy and urged Tupac to name
names and be more specific rather than just, say, an east versus west infant death row.
Artists began to diss bad boy, probably influenced by Suge, naturally being the head of the label,
even when Suge made his rant at the Source Awards... Snoop jumped up on stage and said
something about Bad Boy having no love for death row and kind of making the situation
worse.
The East Coast don't love Dr Dre Snoop Dogg. The East Coast ain't got no love for Dr Dre
and Snoop Dogg and death row? Y'all to love us.
The whole thing created a lot of publicity for both labels and probably led to a whole
lot of record sales, and Tupac became bigger and bigger, and therefore we got their signature
hit in California love, which kind of played into the whole West Side being the best side.
Apparently, it became more and more difficult for Puffy and the whole bad boy crew to visit
California, according to Orlando Anderson's cousin, Keefe D. Puffy went up to him one
day and asked him and his Southside Crips to take care of sugar and Tupac.
Whatever that means, and allegedly they offered to act to security for puffy and bad boy we
owed it to. Park got into a fight with Orlando Anderson at the MGM Grand Casino. After the
Tyson fight, somehow, Orlando was pointed out as the guy who snatched a death row chain
at a previous fight that occurred in a Compton mall.
Puffy AKA. Diddy allegedly put out a cash reward for anyone who could bring him a death
row chain. Apparently, the bounty was worth up to $10,000, according to Mob James, who
ran Sugar Club 662. This is when things really got serious.
Yes, you could say that Tupac died fighting gang members, and it was his association with
gang members that led to his demise, and many believe that he shouldn't have been a part
of it. But if the bounty story is true, it can all be linked back to puffy.
Six months after Tupac's death, Biggie Smalls was gunned down in L.A. Puffy has been criticized
for even going to L.A. so soon after Tupac's death. When emotions would have still been
raw and according to his ex bodyguard, Puffy was aware of threats being made to both his
life and Biggie's.
And many believe that Puffy was, in fact, the real target. But Biggie wasn't forced
to go. And it is believed that he was looking forward to his album coming out and setting
the record straight. He had no beef with anybody and nothing but love for the West Coast.
But sadly, it was too late. If both shook and puffy had not escalated, matters with
both of their artists still be alive today. Of course, Tupac made his own decisions and
nobody forced him to do anything ever. But shook and puffy should have kept the gang
beef out of the music.
Although, to be fair, most of the music was about gang violence. Since it's called gangsta
rap, so maybe that would have been quite difficult.
In a 1995 Vibe interview Puffy said: I'm hurt a little bit spiritually by all the negativity,
by this whole Deathrow Bad Boy ish. I'm hurt that out of all of my accomplishments, I'm
always getting my most fame from negative drama. It's not like the young man he was
in the industry for six years, won the ASCAP songwriter of the year, and every record he
put out went at least gold.
All that gets overshadowed how it got to this point. I really don't know. I'm still trying
to figure it out.
I'm the executive producer that I comment was made about a little bit earlier, but contrary
to what other people may feel. I would like to say that I'm very proud of Dr. Dre of Deathrow
and Suge Knight for all their accomplishments.
Do you think the east versus West Coast beef started out as a publicity stunt, but it just
went too far? Do you think both Suge and puffy could have handled it better and probably
prevented the death of their artists?
Or is it all Suge's fault? After all, we know that Suge gets blamed for everything.
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