- Recorded close to 150 songs during the final year of his life, and often completed three songs per day in the same period. Shakur also wrote lyrics in the studio and often performed his verses in one take. He felt that rappers who could not perform their verses properly on the first take weren't ready to be rappers. R&B music, on the other hand, was worthy of multiple takes for the vocal tracks, he felt.
- He read for the role of Bubba Blue in Forrest Gump (1994), which went to Mykelti Williamson.
- 10 albums have been released after his 1996 death; all have gone platinum.
- Shakur renamed his publishing company to "Joshua's Dream" in honor of a young, terminally ill child whose dying wish was to meet him.
- A huge fan of Tim Roth, Shakur was excited when he found out he was going to be in a movie with Roth. However, Roth didn't like the idea of a rapper being in the movie with him, as he didn't know he was an actor before he became a rapper. Roth's attitude changed, when they tested together and the two were very good friends until Shakur's death.
- His favorite singer was Prince.
- More of his music has been released since his death than was while he was alive.
- Jim Carrey was his favorite actor.
- He is the first rap/hip-hop artist in history to have a wax model of himself set to be placed in Madame Tussaud's in Las Vegas, Nevada.
- His godmother Assata Shakur, was found guilty of the 1973 murder of a New Jersey state trooper. She broke out of prison and fled to Cuba. In 2013, she was added to the FBI's list of Most Wanted Terrorists.
- As a young man, he also studied ballet and dance
- In the song "Life Goes On" from the album "All Eyez on Me" (1996), he rhymes about his own funeral.
- According to Guinness Book of Records 2004, he is the highest selling rap/hip-hop artist selling over 67 million copies worldwide.
- Gunned down on a Friday the 13th.
- As a young man, Tupac also studied dance, including ballet.
- Tupac is listed as the most successful gangsta MC in the Guinness Book of World Records.
- Was originally cast in Menace II Society (1993) but was fired after a physical altercation with director Allen Hughes.
- Shakur considered singer Don McClean (best known as the singer/songwriter of the 1972 hit "American Pie") and Kate Bush as two influences in his life. Shakur also saw McClean's hit "Vincent" (a tale of painter Vincent Van Gogh) as one particular inspiration. In addition, Shakur cited African-American poet Maya Angelou and William Shakespeare as being equally important to him.
- Wrote a song, but was gunned down before he could finish it. Rap artist Eminem finished the song with his own lyrics and released it shortly afterwards.
- He was offered a record contract at the age of 13. However, his mother refused to let him sign anything at such a young age. She felt he had a lot to learn about the world before joining the music industry.
- Renamed Tupac Amaru Shakur in 1972 by his mother after Tupac Amaru, an Inca who was sentenced to death by the Spaniards. Tupac Amaru, in the Inca language, means "shining serpent".
- Tupac was gunned down with less than $100,000 in the bank.
- Was planning to record with the Wu-Tang Clan near the end of his life, as he revealed his admiration for their sound and lyrics.
- In November 1994, he was robbed and shot five times by a pair of muggers in the lobby of a New York recording studio. Tupac survived the attack, and afterwards frequently boasted of his durability in his lyrics.
- His career triumphs -- a number one album and pop single -- both happened on the 13th: Rap's first double album, "All Eyez on Me" (certified by the RIAA as of December 2006 at 9 million copies sold) hit store shelves on February 13, 1996. His only number one pop single "How Do U Want It?", reached the apex of the Hot 100 on July 13, 1996. Sadly, it was on September 13 (a Friday) that Shakur succumbed to injuries sustained in a Las Vegas shooting.
- Appeared in the music video "Whatta Man" (1993) by the hip hop trio Salt-N-Pepa.
- First music artist to have a #1 LP while being in prison.
- "The Don Killuminati: The 7 Day Theory" was recorded and mixed in a mere seven days in August 1996. It was released November 5, 1996 and debuted at number one on both the pop album and R&B/Hip-Hop album charts, with 663,000 albums sold in its first week. It is certified at seven million albums sold in the United States and 28 million albums worldwide, making it both Tupac's best-selling album.
- Moved out of his mother's house when he was age 17.
- His first album, "2Pacalypse Now" was released on November 12, 1991 and was certified gold. It contains 13 songs and reached number 13 on the R&B/Hip-Hop albums.
- A lifelong fan of Star Wars, when Shakur found out in 1996 that George Lucas was creating a prequel trilogy, he lobbied hard to read for the role which would eventually become Mace Windu. Unfortunately, Shakur was gunned down in Las Vegas, Nevada before being able to read for the role, and Samuel L. Jackson was cast in the role.
- Used the name Makaveli, which is an altered spelling of Machiavelli, about whom he read while in prison.
- His 1996 song "Ghetto Gospel" was released in 2005, with some vocals by Elton John, and went to #1 in the UK, despite the fact he had been dead for eight years.
- His 1996 song "Me and My Girlfriend" (from the rapper's posthumously released album "Don Killuminati") chronicles Shakur's relationship with his pistol, which he frequently carried for protection. The "finger fucking" Shakur refers to in the song is actually a euphemism for pulling the trigger. The song was covered in 2003 by Beyoncé and Jay-Z with a slightly altered chorus; it reached the top ten of the American pop charts.
- He also performed under the stage name Makaveli. His song "Dear Mama" was added to the Library of Congress in 2010.
- His song "Hit 'Em Up", which Shakur considered a "classic battle record" is scathing attack on one-time friend The Notorious B.I.G., Bad Boy Records, and Sean 'Diddy' Combs. In addition, Shakur claimed that he slept with Faith Evans (Notorious BIG's wife) in the song's lyrics.
- Recorded much of his vocals of the album "All Eyez on Me" with a Neumann U87 microphone. In addition, entire album was recorded on analog tape. This was considered somewhat archaic by 1995 recording standards, as much of the recording industry had transitioned to digital recording. (However, it should be noted that Dr. Dre, who produced two songs for the album still uses analog tape to record his music, as of late 2006).
- Cited Prince as an inspiration and sampled his music on the album "All Eyez on Me". Shakur mentioned in an MTV interview that "he [Prince] loves women like I love women.".
- Shakur was gunned down in Las Vegas, Nevada on September 7, 1996 at approximately 11:15pm, at the corner of Flamingo and Koval streets.
- Posthumously inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame (2017).
- His number one single, "California Love" was certified at sales of two million copies in 1998.
- Gang member Orlando Anderson, often cited as Tupac's killer, was later murdered himself during an altercation at a car wash in Los Angeles, on May 29, 1998. It should be noted that Anderson was never charged in the slaying.
- His albums have sold 38 million copies in the United States alone.
- In a 2005 Rolling Stones Magazine Vote, Tupac was named #6 of the '100 immortal artists of all time' behind the likes of Elvis Presley and John Lennon.
- Was good friends with fellow hip-hop MC M.C. Hammer, who also was from Oakland, California, USA.
- He had the words "thug life" tattooed across his abdomen.
- He completed the 27 song "All Eyez on Me", considered by many to be his magnum opus, in only two weeks. Often cited as rap's first double album, "All Eyez" sessions began just hours after Shakur was released from prison. Released on February 13, 1996, the album debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 album chart.
- Was the original choice for Joseph "Jody" Summers in Baby Boy (2001), which went to Tyrese Gibson.
- Was going to play the role of Malik Williams in Higher Learning (1995), which went to Omar Epps.
- Ranked #3 on VH1's 50 Greatest Hip Hop Artists.
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