News of April 3, 1997
Summit in Chicago: Rappers Pledge Peace at Farrakhan's Invitation
Following the murders of Tupac and Biggie, Louis Farrakhan invited rappers to Chicago. On April 3, 1997, they pledged to forgive old insults.
At the invitation of Louis Farrakhan, the leader of the Nation of Islam, rappers met in Chicago for a peace summit on April 3, 1997. The occasion was the murders of Tupac Shakur in September and The Notorious B.I.G. in March. The participants promised to forgive one another for professional and personal grievances that may have been behind the two acts.
An Album and a Tour
Among the guests were Snoop Doggy Dogg, C Low, and Doug E. Fresh. Farrakhan announced that several rappers would record an album together and go on tour. The tour was scheduled to end on October 16, the second anniversary of the Million Man March in Washington.
It was not the first meeting of this kind: just nine days after Tupac’s death, the Nation of Islam had invited people to a “Day of Atonement” in Harlem.