Runnin'

On October 29, 1993, Tupac and The Notorious B.I.G. stood together in the studio as friends before turning into bitter rivals. Their song Runnin', often called Runnin' from tha Police, is one of the few recordings featuring both artists together. However, two years would pass before its release.

Easy Mo Bee Brings Both Together

In 1993, Easy Mo Bee was working concurrently on Biggie's debut Ready to Die and on Tupac's later Me Against the World. For Runnin', he brought both sides together. The first verse was handled by three members of Dramacydal: Yaki Kadafi, Kastro, and E.D.I. Mean, later part of the Outlawz. Stretch and Biggie shared the second verse, while the third belonged to Tupac. Lil' Vicious sang the chorus.

Shelved Twice, Released Only Amid Conflict

The song was initially slated for Tupac's next solo album, then for Thug Life: Volume 1. Both times it was cut. It was not until 1995 that the track appeared on One Million Strong, a compilation tied to the Million Man March in Washington-at a time when Tupac and Biggie had already fallen out.

British Remixes and Eminem's 2003 Version

In 1998, a British label released remixes (Runnin' '98 Remixes). In 2003, Eminem reworked it into Runnin' (Dying to Live), which keeps only the verses from Tupac and Biggie. Another edition of the original single is shown on Runnin' (v2).

The Mergela Cassette Single

This is a single with two versions; 1994 is often given as the year-the year the song was originally slated to appear, not that of its actual release. On Discogs, a US cassette single on Mergela (70134-4) is documented that, alongside these two versions, also includes Is It a Dream.