Glossary: Tupac's Language, Places, People and Terms

Tattooed acronyms on skin, studios in Times Square, street slang, and code names: Tupac’s cosmos forged a vocabulary of its own. This glossary explains the key terms, labels, and places from A to Z, pointing to the archive’s in-depth pages.

Amaru. Tupac’s middle name traces back to Túpac Amaru II, the Peruvian leader executed in 1781. The word comes from Quechua. His mother’s company is also named Amaru (Names and Aliases, Tupac Amaru, Amaru Entertainment).

Bad Boy. The New York label of Sean “Puffy” Combs featuring The Notorious B.I.G. The dispute between Bad Boy and Death Row shaped the years 1995 and 1996 (Bad Boy Records, East vs. West).

Beef. Slang for a feud, often between rappers. Tupac’s most famous conflict was the feud against Bad Boy (Feuds).

Biter. Scene slang for someone who copies another person’s style. For imitators in Tupac’s case, see Fakers and Soundalikes.

Black Panther Party. The movement in which Tupac’s mother, his stepfather, and his godparents were active. Afeni Shakur was acquitted in 1971 in the trial of the Panther 21 (Black Panther Party and Tupac).

Death Row Records. Suge Knight’s Los Angeles label, to which Tupac was signed starting in October 1995 (Death Row Records, Suge Knight).

Death Row East. The plan for an East Coast branch of Death Row that Tupac touted on MTV in September 1996. The project never came to fruition (MTV Music Awards).

Digital Underground. The Oakland group around Shock G that Tupac joined in 1990 as a roadie and dancer (Digital Underground).

Dis / Diss. Short for “disrespect”: a song that attacks someone. The most famous example is Hit ‘Em Up (Hit ‘Em Up).

Hustle. The pursuit of making money through work and ingenuity. For Tupac, this was both a street and career concept: “I believe God blesses those that hustle” (Quotes with Sources).

Killuminati. The title of The Don Killuminati: The 7 Day Theory (1996), the only album released under the name Makaveli. According to E.D.I. Mean of the Outlawz, the work was originally intended to be titled Killuminati: The 7-Day Theory (Makaveli and Machiavelli, Album).

Makaveli. Tupac’s final stage name, modeled after Niccolò Machiavelli, whose work The Prince he read in prison (Makaveli and Machiavelli).

Marin City. An impoverished community north of San Francisco where the family moved in 1988. Tupac’s career began here (Marin City).

MC New York. Tupac’s first stage name from his time in Baltimore (Names and Aliases).

N.I.G.G.A.Z. Tupac’s acronym “Never Ignorant, Getting Goals Accomplished.” It gave the album Strictly 4 My N.I.G.G.A.Z. (1993) its title (Names and Aliases, Album).

OG. “Original Gangster”: an older, respected man in the scene. According to the family, the “Code of THUG LIFE” was developed with such men (THUG LIFE: Meaning and Code).

Outlawz. The group Tupac gathered around himself at Death Row. According to fan lore, the name is connected to the “Outlaw” lettering on his arm (The Outlawz).

Quad Studio. The recording studio in Times Square where Tupac was robbed and shot on November 30, 1994 (Shooting 1994).

Rikers Island. The New York jail where Tupac was incarcerated in late 1994 and early 1995. The Vibe interview “Ready to Live” took place there (Ready to Live).

Shakur. Arabic shakūr for “very thankful.” The family name came to him through Lumumba Shakur (Names and Aliases).

THUG LIFE. Tupac’s life motto and acronym for “The Hate U Give Little Infants Fucks Everybody,” tattooed across his stomach in 1992 (THUG LIFE: Meaning and Code, Tattoos).

Westside. The West Coast and the battle cry of Death Row; as a hand sign, the fingers form a “W” (Westside Hand Sign).

Additional terms from Tupac’s sphere are explored in depth on the respective topic pages; this glossary is continuously updated.