Snoop Dogg on His Time with Tupac

MTV Germany had failed to pull off such an interview for its special MTV Masters: 2Pac, but the US outlet AllHipHop succeeded: Snoop Dogg looked back in detail on his time with Tupac. On September 15, 2006, shortly after the tenth anniversary of Tupac’s death, the site published a German translation of the interview. Here are the key points according to the site’s version.

Freestyles After the Premiere, Advice to Suge Knight

According to Snoop, the two were already friends before Tupac signed with Death Row. They reportedly met at the premiere party for Poetic Justice (1993), where they freestyled through the night.

When Tupac was in prison, Snoop said he told Suge Knight that the label needed him. Knight subsequently visited Tupac in prison; after his release in October 1995, Tupac signed with Death Row. Snoop said he offered him everything he had after that-musically, for instance, his cousin Daz as a producer.

Three to Four Songs a Day, Support in Court

In the studio, according to Snoop, Tupac showed the crew how to use their time. While the others took several days for a single song, he recorded three or four songs in a day. Tupac began organizing the crew and holding it together. Snoop described himself as someone without leadership qualities who only learned them from Tupac.

About their friendship, he said: “So I exposed my whole world to him.” When Snoop was on trial for murder in 1995/96-he was acquitted-Tupac stood by him.

Only Those Who Worked with Him: Objection to Afeni Shakur

Snoop spoke openly about an area of tension with Afeni Shakur: he said he told her Tupac would not have wanted to appear on posthumous songs alongside people he disliked. His music, he argued, should be carried on with people he had actually worked with.

Asked whether Tupac should have taken a different path, Snoop replied that he had lived fast and well, like James Dean; you cannot change fate.

Remix on “Pac’s Life”, Induction Speech in the Hall of Fame

Snoop remained one of the most important voices for Tupac’s legacy. He can be heard on the remix of the title track of Pac’s Life (2006). When Tupac was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2017, his first year of eligibility, Snoop gave the induction speech and called him the greatest rapper of all time.