[Interview]

2Pac: People think I just got out of jail and was like, just because I got shit in the East Coast was like "fuck the East Coast," ya know? Half the rappers from the East Coast was there when I got shot. Nobody knew a thing. That's just like you coming to the hood, the police ask "what happened?" and everybody's like "I don't know." You know they lying. And all I was doing was like "give me my proper etiquette." If Biggie was out here on the West Coast, he was in the studio with me, we homeboys, and he got shot. No, I wouldn't tell him who did it, but even then, I wouldn't go ride on n***as, but you'd wanna know who did it. Then I'd be like "look man, these n***as from Rocksteady. This is where they wanna talk to you and when. That's how I'd do it. Just like when the n***as from the '60s wanted to get a stretch. I went in there and personally talked to 'em. I do it by the rules of etiquette. So I got shot, I'm like yo, what happened? Come see me and Champ. Biggie all in the answerin' machine like "Pac, whoo, whoo, whoo," but I don't see you. My homeboy stretch is going to Biggie's concerts. N***as is like abandoning me. But then on the air and like on TV they like "Yeah Pac... keep the struggle on," like yo, I'm starting into like Slick Rick. N***as just gonna act like I'ma just be in jail and they gonna give me shout outs. They tryna take my position. And if you watch, that's what Biggie did. Listen to his- I- I was there n***a, I trained the n***a. He used to be under me like my lieutenant. I used to come to New York, I used to do shows and let the n***a come on before I did "Keep Ya Head Up." Because nobody knew the n***a in New York. And I used to tell the n***a "yo, if you wanna make yo money, you gotta rap for the bitches, do not rap for the n***as." I told the n***a "don't rap for the n***as. Rap for the bitches." The bitches will buy your records and the n***as want what the bitches want. So all of a sudden, he changed from-- listen to "Party and Bullshit." Listen to his style. He changed from that to "Big Papa," because of me. I came out with my album Me Against the World, the second one. The first one, I changed everything 'cause Ready to Die came out and it sounded like my album. All my album was about, ya know, dealing with death. Then he came out with Ready to Die and I had to switch it. That's why it was less East Coast rap, East Coast beats, because Biggie had just took my shit.

Sway: You could listen to it and that was a success 'cause he took like West Coast sound and...

2Pac: I told him that. I told him that. I trained him. It was supposed to be Thug Life. All while he was coming up, I used to let him come onstage with me, he was screaming "Thug Life." N***as puppy cheating me, whoo, whoo. All of a sudden, blew up and he wasn't saying "Thug Life." So I started getting mad, and I was seeing n***as playing, he was hugging me. "Pac, yo thank you, you was the only n***a that whoo, whoo, whoo." And he told me about a week before I got shot, he knew the n***a that shot me. "Pac, don't hang around this n***a, I'll be walking in with this n***a" that ended up shooting me. BecauseI knew the n***a too because he was my co-defendant. I was like what you mean? Like I'll talk to you about it later and we didn't talk. Next time I saw him was at the studio where I got shot. So I knew he knew what happened. I was like "Biggie, what happened?" He kept sending me messages like a bitch, you know, like I'ma come see. No n***a, what happened? While I'm in jail, strangers is telling me, "Yo, you don't know? Biggie's homeboy shot you." 'Cause they bragging. They telling they n***as in jail. "Yo, we just got Pac. Whoo, whoo whoo." And my cousin was in jail in New York 'cause I got family out there. He sittin' right there when the n***as gettin' in the car like "Yo, my homeboys just shot that n***a Tupac." So that's how I knew who shot me, what happened, and everything. They mad because I know what happened. That's why they all- You know, it's Biggie with them in there riding. That's why I know what I'm doing. I'm destroying him. I fucked his wife. I'm fucking him in the game. I'm destroying him. He lives by the rules of the game. He lives off of my feet endings. I'm showing them how they totally disregard the rules of the game, and he's everything put a mafia n***a.

Sway: You're reinventing him

2Pac: Right. If anyone's a mafia n***a, me. I fucked your bitch, I took five shots. I went your crew. I mean, I just what!? I went to New York. They don't do shows out here. I did Saturday Night Live. Y'all forgot!? Live in New York, where everydoby knew I was gonna be there on stage, no problems. Went to the clubs, everything. In the middle of my West Side ride, you know what I mean? I'm real about it. I don't hate New York. But if y'all don't understand it, fuck it, you're getting rolled over too. Because I year y'all. I was in jail and I heard what you was saying on the radio. You know how we got the Wake Up Show? They got their own shows. They got their little shows with Red Alert and this n***a and that n***a and what's his name, um... Flex. I swear to God dog, they used to the diss the West Coast. They had these commercials where they was like "hey dog. What's up dog?" I used to be in New York, in jail, on my radio like "oh shit." You know how you would feel if you heard your homeboy and he just clowns you? And I was like "oh man." And all my homeboys like "yo, Puffy just did a show out here." And I thought, I was like "we gave them love, we gave them this, we gave them that." He was talking all this unity shit and when they go home. Q-Tip, they made all these underground tapes dissing us.

Sway: Q-Tip?

2Pac: Yes! Q-tip! So then when n***as ride back, then they wanna talk about the culture, be hip hop-ish again. But that's not fair! How you gonna be both and that's what they all do. They all play bad asses... They just diss me on the air. They're not personally dissing the West Coast. They like "The East Side is the best side." I seen them. All them n***as was talkin' about they respect me and love me. See, I hate that! Because I be dead serious! So now Chino XL is talkin' 'bout me. He got a rhyme. You know how you always got these little metaphors. He said "you'll get fucked like 2Pac did in jail." Now I'm tellin' y'all, beat this n***a's ass. And everybody's gonna be talkin' about how wrong I am and how I haven't changed, but what am I supposed to do when a n***a disrepecting my manhood like that? See what I mean? It's like I can't get out the game. Just like Scarface and that kidf rom Carlito's Way, I wanna be legit. I've got restaurants coming up with Alanis Morissette. Me, Snoop, Suge, and Alanis Morissette are gonna open up a restaurant.

Sway: Alanis is nice.

2Pac: I'm doing a soundtrack. My first soundtrack. I'm doing Music Supervisor for this movie I'm doing now. I've got Alanis on there, Michelle... whatever her name is. All these Alternative stars. All this shit coming up. But what's gonna reign supreme in '96 and '97 is the writing I'm doing. And it's not even like I feel like I'm doing it for hip hop. All I'm tryna do is get the impostors out. I remember Biggie sleeping on my couch. I remember begging bitches to fuck. You feel me? So Big Papa don't mean nothing to me. He know it. That's why he can't fight me. That's why he can't battle me. You know what I mean? I can make songs exactly about him and he can't talk about me because he knows. I'm the one that used to buy him champagne. All that shitty talking? That was me buying him that. He talking about my lifestyle on his album, because when he was doing his album he was broke. N***a! I was having money. The shit he talkin' 'bout was my life! Thug life, that's what he talking about. All that Junior MAFIA, them n***as was all young motherfuckers that used to hang around, that I used to give money to, to get on a train to go home at night. Lil' Caesar and all of them. So now they rapping against me. You can imagine how I fucking feel. When I got arrested in New York, I got arrested for Biggie. Them guns in my room was Biggie's because them cowards left the room when they heard the police was downstairs and everybody left their guns in my room. So i got four guns in my room. Serial number scratched out and I did not, since I took that case. So you can imagine how I feel when I'm in jail for that case. And he out there living the mafia lifestyle, giving me no money, giving me no respect, giving me no tribute, rolling with my road dog who was there when I got shot. I mean come on man, I'm not paranoid. I'm not paranoid. Y'all n***as know what time it is. What it is is that the East Coast drug dealers got them n***as under extortion. I came in and fucked up everything 'cause I dissed them n***as in the Daily News, when the wrong n***a tried to rob me, which is all he wanted to do. I knew what they told me. They were sending me messages through my closest roll dogs saying "why did you fight them? They were just coming to take your shit." But I won't let nobody take my shit. And I was strapped that day. I had two double GLOCKs on me. And when I pulled for my shit, that's when I got shot. And the reaosn I knew my home boy set me up was because my homeboys knew I was strapped. The dudes came straight for me. My homeboys be hiding, because they knew I was strapped. All they had to do was grab the n***a, and I could've bust. But they got guns so these n***as be coming for me, and these n***as just sitting there. And they said "get" and them n***as dropped to the floor. I knew it was a setup. Nobody come downstairs 'til after the shots.

Sway: And then now after you shot and you went up, did they look at you like you were a ghost?

2Pac: No, when I walked up standing, I seen it in their eyes. I could never describe this look 'til you get shot and you see yourself. N***as looking at me like this... I walked out the elevator. I didn't know I was shot in my head or nothing. I felt like I was acting in a movie. What they really trying to say is this n***a is wrong. I got shot five times, came upstairs, did not know I had got shot five times. I thought I only got shot once.

Sway: God, dude, it sound like you got a lot on your chest.
2Pac: That's why I'm giving it to you straight raw because you gotta go back and tell 'em the shit that we ain't recorded. I'm givin' you that, ya know, not to give 'em any specifics, but you know that when someone call you and go "yo, why the dude...," you know they don't trust me, you talk to me, ya know "blam, blam, blam," yeah, ya'll know. You know what I mean? Just like they n***as on their radio stations know. Because what I was mad at is that we didn't have a radio station like that. Me and Snoop got an OK from 92.3 to start Westside Radio. But I don't want to do it unless it's right. What I really just wanted... I was proving a point again. I want our radio stations to be true to us, and we'll be true to y'all. Tell us, n***a, if you want that type of love, you better give us some commercials every week. We want new shit like they do in the East Coast.

(East Coast, East Coast, East Coast, East Coast, East Coast, East Coast, East Coast...)