Tupac Amaru Shakur, also known by his stage names 2Pac and Makaveli, was an American rapper. He is widely considered one of the most influential and successful rappers of all time. Shakur is among the best-selling music artists, having sold more than 75 million records worldwide.

Early life

A bird's-eye view of New York City, looking north from 96th Street, along Second Avenue, towards East Harlem. The intersection in view is 97th Street. East Harlem, the neighborhood of New York City where Shakur was bor Shakur was born on June 16, 1971, in East Harlem, Upper Manhattan, New York City.While born Lesane Parish Crooks, at age one he was renamed Tupac Amaru Shakur. He was named after Túpac Amaru II, a descendant of the last Incan ruler, who was executed in Peru in 1781 after his failed revolt against Spanish rule. Shakur's mother Afeni Shakur explained, "I wanted him to have the name of revolutionary, indigenous people in the world. I wanted him to know he was part of a world culture and not just from a neighborhood."Tupac's surname came from Lumumba Shakur, a Sunni Muslim, whom his mother married in November 1968, their marriage fell apart when it was discovered that Lumumba was not Tupac's biological father. Shakur had an older stepbrother, Mopreme "Komani" Shakur, and a half-sister, Sekyiwa Shakur, two years his junior.

Personal life

In his 1995 interview with Vibe magazine, Shakur listed Jada Pinkett, Jasmine Guy, Treach and Mickey Rourke among the people who were looking out for him while he was in prison. Shakur also mentioned that Madonna was a supportive friend. Madonna later revealed that they dated in 1994. Shakur became close friends with Jada Pinkett while attending the Baltimore School for the Arts. Shakur helped Pinkett land her first movie role in the film Menace II Society (1993).In turn, Pinkett secured Shakur a guest starring role on the sitcom A Different World in 1993.She appeared in his music videos "Keep Ya Head Up" and "Temptations".She also came up with the concept for his "California Love" music video and had intended to direct it, but she removed herself from the project. In 1995, Pinkett contributed $100,000 towards Shakur's bail as he awaited an appeal on his sexual abuse conviction. Pinkett later revealed that she turned down his marriage proposal while he was incarcerated at Rikers Island in 1995.Speaking about Pinkett, Shakur stated: "Jada is my heart. She will be my friend for my whole life. We'll be old together. Jada can ask me to do anything and she can have it."Pinkett said Shakur was "one of my best friends. He was like a brother. It was beyond friendship for us. The type of relationship we had, you only get that once in a lifetime." After Shakur was shot in 1994, he recuperated at Jasmine Guy's home.[139] They had met during his guest appearance on the sitcom A Different World in 1993. Guy appeared in his music video "Temptations" and later wrote his mother's 2004 biography, Afeni Shakur: Evolution of a Revolutionary.