News of April 26, 2004
Bang 'Em Smurf Surfaces with Two Unknown Tupac Verses
In 2004, New York rapper Bang 'Em Smurf presented "The Best For My Enemies" with Tupac verses from an unknown source, seeking ties to Suge Knight.
Where the recordings came from, he did not reveal. On April 26, 2004, Bang ‘Em Smurf, head of GF Records, told AllHipHop that he and his protégé Domination had acquired two verses from Tupac. An acquaintance from the old guard had kept them “in the stash” and offered them out of sympathy for Domination. This resulted in the song “The Best For My Enemies”, featured on the mixtape Exposing The False Prophet by DJ Infinite. A video was planned, and the song was also intended for the album.
Clearance as an Open Question
Clearing the rights to the verses was considered difficult. Smurf said he had a plan, but did not want to reveal it so as not to jeopardize any business contacts.
A Deal Involving Death Row
Three weeks later, on May 17, he addressed reports that he had signed with Death Row. That was not the case, he explained: his label Gangsta Flip had entered into a distribution deal via Koch and Death Row, while he remained head of his company. Suge Knight was a business partner of Koch executive Alan Grunblatt and was looking for New Yorkers with street credibility. The connection to Knight was also intended to help officially clear the song with Tupac. The album Good Giveth and God Taketh Away was announced for late summer. More on the label: Death Row Records.