2Pac Forum Interviews

[WordsOfWisdom]

thats a good idea good call MCNewYork71

[MCNewYork71]

[MENTION=12879]Hafsteinn thanks i appreciate it.

[MENTION=1]Skyfall [MENTION=856]LarsVerb

hey guys i've thought of another addition to this 2F Interviews section. I thought it would be nice it we had a section within there that is for the transcribed interviews. I understand that we have them posted within the thread of the audio interview in the first post after they are typed and posted elsewhere in the thread. But i'm thinking that if we have a sub area that's just for the transcribed interviews it may help members that have a hard time understanding the audio or if english isn't their primary language and so on. because every interview we have people who'd like it typed up which is very understandable and makes it easier to read along while listening and stuff.

so i thought maybe we could do something like the reference section has where the threads cannot be changed unless by a mod or staff. that way each thread is clean it just has all parts of the interview typed up and then the thread is closed. so it's not a cluster fuck. if comments are wished to be made, we can put a link to the audio interview at the top of the post before we have the typed interview underneath it. i hope this makes sense. here's what i did so far but haven't posted because i didn't want to start building something without approval. here's frank's interview i did and transcribed.

pretend from under this line it's a brand new thread within the 2F Interviews section lol (you don't literally need to read the interview it's just an example of how it should look IMO for each individual interview, with each interview having it's own thread like the audios do.
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Frank Alexander Interview With [MENTION=3662]MCNewYork71 For 2Pac's 16th Death Anniversary.

To listen to the audio of this interview, you can play it on our youtube channel.

2PacForumChannel - http://www.youtube.com/user/2pacforu...e=results_main

If you listen to the videos on YouTube, please take a moment to comment and leave a thumbs up!

If you wish to comment on this interview or have any corrections, you may post them within the thread of the audio interview. (Links below)

Part 1: http://www.2pac-forum.com/showthread.php?t=65496

Part 2: http://www.2pac-forum.com/showthread.php?t=66512




Frank Alexander Interview With 2Pac-Forum's
MCNewYork71
Brought To You Exclusively From 2Pac-Forum.Com
& Frank Alexander



---Part 1 (1 Of 2)---


MCNewYork71 - Alright what's up everybody this is MCNewYork71 with 2Pac-Forum. Formerly known as Notorious-Makaveli. I'm here speaking with Big Frank, Frank Alexander what's going on?

Frank Alexander - What's up what's up what's up to all the fans out there? How's everybody doing? comin' up on Tupac's 16th death anniversary and STILL still an unsolved murder. What a damn shame. The statute of limitations of murder is zero, so one day we gonna get it solved and i'm doin' my best to make that happen.

MCNewYork71 - So Frank, we've got you here and wanted to ask you a couple questions. See what's up, what's going on. Wanted to know how you've been, how your family and ranch is doing?

Frank Alexander - I'm good i'm good, thanks for asking. Um, Family wise everybody's good. The ranch doin' what it's supposed to do. Horses out there grazin' and eaten hay. so they all happy. God's still providing. So it's all good, can't speak on nothing' bad.

MCNewYork71 - Good good, that's good to hear Frank. Let's see, um you're still doing bodyguard work today?

Frank Alexander - Um I um work in law enforcement, i went back into that. I work undercover, so i can't go into any details of that. But i do work part time um during the awards season. For all of the award shows, you know if you guys follow my Facebook page, if you follow my website you see pictures of the red carpet awards that i do, the BET awards, the AMA's, The Grammy's, The Golden Globe Awards, you know etc, etc, so on. Always on the red carpet, suited and booted. You know what's up.

MCNewYork71 - What did you think of Tupac before the first day you worked with him?

Frank Alexander - I had always seen Tupac in the news, like back around 93-94 time frame. Just before the first album i recognized Tupac on was Me Against The World.

Cause i never really listened to rap. We didn't have a radio station in California at the time that played rap or exclusive you know rap music. Except for it was a AM station called K-Day and back in the day, they would play rap. Which would be like Ice Cube, Ice-T, and most of the west coast rappers back in that time when they were coming out. I don't even know if it was called rap back then.

When I would see Tupac in the news it would be 'Tupac Shakur just shot 2 off duty police officers in Atlanta, Georgia" or "Tupac Shakur just had another court case and had a black eye when he appeared before the judge.", "Tupac Shakur spitting into the cameras as he's leaving the court rooms. It was all the negative stuff that I was ever seen or heard about Pac, back in the early 90's.

During that time, I, I didn't really care for Tupac, didn't know who Tupac was and never ever keeping in mind as i said earlier thought that i would ever work with him. Or anything like that because our worlds were so far apart. But as i did not know it as i was watching all this stuff and seeing this person that later on, God had already had our lives planned to, you know, meet. It happened and it was inevitable. It all came together as I explained to you earlier how we met.

So I didn't have an opinion about Tupac, one way or another as far as liking him or disliking him. He was just a brother that i saw out there that was a rapper that i didn't know a lot about anyway in the rap industry rap music. That i ended up learning about later.

When he first came to Death Row, when i was working there. he was just Tupac, no different than Snoop was just Snoop. You know? i wasn't all goo-goo and gaga over him because my first time ever body guarding was with an Iranian Prince that i was making $500 a day with. But yeah Pac back then, i didn't have one way or another feeling good or bad about him.

I'm glad things turned out as they did when we became friends, because dude was a genuine good person, good hearted person. The media showed that negative side of him, they didn't show the positive side, the side that everybody else knew about him. His family his closest friends, as he would call them his "closest road dogs" You know, that's how i knew Tupac.

All the other stuff didn't matter to me, what mattered to me was how he treated me and how i treated him. How our friendship developed everybody starts off fresh, when you start off being friends with someone. Until you do something to ruin that friendship.

MCNewYork71 - What are some of your favorite 2Pac songs that you listen to?

Frank Alexander - Aw man, my favorite songs would have to be during the time that i was with Pac. I know he's done put out a lot of good music. You know, before when he was with Thug Life and his first album and his second album, coming up to Me Against The World. But me, I would have to say the entire, All Eyez On Me CD is just like dope.

I mean what artist do you know today, that's a rapper that's put out a double CD and every song on it was a hit? Most albums or CDs consist of 12 to 14, 17 tracks and you may have 2 on there. And you'll buy that CD because it was that one track on there and the rest is garbage.

Pac put out All Eyez On Me every single track on there is just off the chain. That's why it sold as it did. 6x platinum and then after his death it broke Guinness world book records. Then Makaveli Guinness world book records. You know it sells, for a rap artist.

To this day, i listen to you know some other some of the other rap artist. But by far you know Tupac will always be the best and my favorite rapper, no matter you know what. It's no different than Elvis Presley he always be the king of Rock-N-Roll. Tupac will always be the king of Rap.

MCNewYork71 - Let's see, are you a collector of any sorts of Tupac memorabilia or anything, what are some cool items you may have that no one else in the world has?

Frank Alexander - Aw yeah, aw yeah, i of course have things that nobody else have. Because Pac signed stuff for me, that i'm sure nobody else have.

I have from the Gridlock'd movie, they gave.out these fold out Gridlock'd movie brouchers that is made out of like cardboard somewhat fold outs. one of them is Tupac, then one of them is of Tim Roth, the other one is Candy Newton. And then It talks about the movie, you know. then there's a picture with each one of them in their section. It's a sectional thing it folds out. i had them all sign it.

I have a matted framed Vibe magazine cover, it has Dre, Snoop, Pac, and Suge on the cover. Then the fold out that has all of the artist, that was the main artist of Death Row at that time and i stretched it out, then i had all of them sign the bottom of it, and i have all their signatures, so I have that framed and matted.

And i have some other stuff that i've done since Tupac's death that i've done that i've collected and put together. It's framed and matted signed by me. So yeah i have a lot of stuff that no one other than me would have. no other fans or even his family would have. You know, i have memorabilia that is priceless.

MCNewYork71- Sentimental value things, yeah?

Frank Alexander - yeah absolutely.

MCNewYork71 - A moment ago you were talking about the "How Do U Want It" music video and the X rated one. There's a rumor going around that Tupac had sex with a lot of those girls and then passed out. Is that true?

Frank Alexander - Aw yeah that's true! We both did! I brought some of them, i brought some of them. Yeah ain't no doubt. We were boss playaz. You know Pac rapped about in "Picture Me Rollin'" and "All Eyez On Me" and Big Syke and then in "Check Out Time" talking about boss playaz, and that's what we were doin man, we were rollin', we were livin', we were havin' fun.

you know and that comes with the territory. you know what i'm saying'. That comes with the territory, that is never ever in the history of music, Rock-N-Roll, Rap, R&B, you know, oldies, from mo town, from hardcore rockers Led Zeppelin', Elvis Presley, I mean everybody! Everybody you can think of is groupies, and those groupies get in, they find their way in. they know how to get to you when they want to get to you. Same way with sports, football, basketball. Tiger Woods in Golf. They, they know how to get to you. and the ones that was around us. They got just what they were lookin' for.

MCNewYork71 - You know "Toss It Up" the garage version? That was the last video that he finished recorded up right before he got shot? They were all in the garage with the Viper and all that?

Frank Alexander - Oh "Toss It Up" They shot that video the night before he was shot. Friday September 6th, 1996 is when that video was recorded in L.A.

MCNewYork71 - Now he was wearing that Euphanasia chain in that video, were you with him when he got the chain?

Frank Alexander - No, I had been on vacation for a couple of weeks at that time and he had, had got that chain made that medallion made by the time I came back from vacation and met back up with him. The next day that evening, September 7th is the first time I had seen that medallion. That night and then after he had got into that fight with Orlando Anderson. I had to pick it up and fix it. Because he had broke it in the course of fighting with him. That was the first time that I had touched it or ever seen it.

MCNewYork71 - Oh so he didn't, you didn't get to hear too much about it or anything then?

Frank Alexander - Oh well no, I know that the medallion, the symbol, the symbol on it was a black angel of death and Euphanasia was his new company and his record label that he was going under. For Makaveli. And he had planned on breaking away from death Row startin' out. See that's what I knew of it.

MCNewYork71 - So he mentioned Makaveli records to you and leaving Death Row?

Frank Alexander - Oh yeah of course, everybody knew that.

MCNewYork71 - Yeah

---End Of Part 1 (1 Of 2)---


---Part 1 (2 Of 2)---


MCNewYork71 - Now we know he um, he really helped your family out. Your niece Lemika, when she didn't' get to do the Make A Wish Foundation with Janet Jackson. Um in your book you mentioned that Tupac wanted to do something extra special for her. On top of everything he had already done for her. He gave her his drivers license and a blanket?

Frank Alexander - Yeah yeah yeah he gave her the blanket that he would uh cover up with when he would take a nap or lay down in the trailer on the set of Gridlock'd. It was a white blanket and he you know slept with that blanket everyday. Where it was in his trailer where he could cover up with it if he was cold or he cover up.

He gave her that blanket, he gave her his 1996 drivers license that was expiring on his birthday. He went in his pocket and just pulled it out gave it to her in the studio. And uh that was around June 9th or something like that and it expired on the 16th. So he gave her that original drivers license which I have that's another thing form 1996.

He you know, had them come over to his house that weekend for a barbecue and stuff like that. He did things you know that Janet Jackson wasn't even gonna do. You know and he was pissed at the fact that Janet wasn't gonna do anything with the kids period. So he had me call Molly his assistant at the time and he sent her like uh you know flowers, stuffed animals, you know stuff like that before she even came to California.

MCNewYork71 - Being in the studio a lot, you know for instance when you uh, when your family in town you had the camera rollin'. One thing lots of fans have been dying to see is footage from when Tupac was recording songs for the Makaveli album. Do you have any of that available or you know I mean I know you may have some but do you have any of that?

Frank Alexander - Of course I do and you know the thing is. I've never ever tried to put that footage together and just sell it. I've never tried doing that and if I, I guess the only way I would do that is if I knew I had a pre-order of enough interest in people that really wanted that footage. Almost like taking a patrician of names. And if there was a patrician, let's say for say and it was 100,000 names of fans that wanted that footage. That would probably inspire me to do it. Otherwise it'll never get done.

MCNewYork71 - Aw that's something Frank that I would recommend doing. I was gonna ask you if..

Frank Alexander - Here's the thing, what if, what if we held a contest and we said I would do it and I would sell it, if we had 100,000 fans that signed up for it and it would cost everybody $5.00? Because you figure it's gonna cost me to put it together. And then I'll take, I'll take 10% just like what you do in Tithing. 10% of that and we donate it, Me And the fans to the Tupac Amaru Shakur Foundation. Between now and his birthday, June 16th 2013. If we get 100,000 fans and there's more fans than that. $5.00 each we open up a PayPal account and every fan that signs up. Give through emails, send their email information. With a receipt from PayPal via an electronic receipt. And I put that together and all of those fans will receive that footage for Tupac 42nd birthday June 16th 2013. Then I will do it. And we give 10% of all that money to the foundation. If you start, if you start, If you start it, I"ll do it.

MCNewYork71 - I I think we need to get this in the progress in the works. The big thing, or the big thing is nothing' gets out past Amaru that has Tupac's name on it without their approval.

Frank Alexander - That that that has nothin', that has nothing' to do with anything. Because One, it has already been put out, some of it.. Two, I have and I am the lawful copyright owner of it, through the copyright, U.S. copyright department and I gave his mother a courtesy copy of it. When I first, after his death originally. I sent her a copy so she would have it. And, and she approved of it, I have never done anything without her approval. I already have her approval I've had her approval on that 16 years.

MCNewYork71 - You got that blessing a long time ago.

Frank Alexander - Right, so that's not a concern, worry, or a doubt. Plus I'm donating back to the foundation, so who's not going to say no to that anyways?

MCNewYork71 - No doubt, well Frank this is something that we should on a serious note get into the works. You'd have to get of course all 2Pac forums would have to know of this and every fans worldwide on Facebook,Twitter, etc. So it's something we definitely need to get twitching. I'll talk to the members on my site and we'll see what we can do.

Frank Alexander - That's what's up then, that's what's up.

MCNewYork71 - So we can speak on that later once we get something figured out. Here's another big rumor that's been on the internet for years, maybe you can put it to rest. Did Tupac record any songs with Alanis Morissette?

Frank Alexander - Not to my knowledge, not to my knowledge. I, I, I like some of Alanis Morissette's stuff her music. I've never met her and I've never seen her, you know. Like some of the other artist that he came around with that was on track with and stuff. I would have recognized and seen them coming into the studio. Unless he did something and there was like, I was a day off or something like that he did on the weekend and I didn't work that weekend. I worked every other weekend.

MCNewYork71 - Did you know if, Tupac ever got to record with Craig Mack And Run DMC? Or if they had intentions to record together?

Frank Alexander - Yeah yeah they definitely, definitely had intentions of working together. I was privileged to that meeting. When he, when Craig Mack. Matter of fact, I have pictures with my family and Craig Mack. When Craig Mack was on Gridlock'd set with Pac. They were talking about the One Nation One Love CD album that they were gonna be doing.

MCNewYork71 - Another one regarding music, Do you know if the song "Smile" was recorded with Scarface? Originally?

Frank Alexander - Which one, "Smile"? Yeah yeah that's, that's an original song. How music was done with Tupac and a lot of the artist, Richie Rich, E40, and those cats from the Bay area that he was doing stuff with. They would talk on the phone and they would lay their tracks down, in their studios up in the Bay. We didn't go up to the Bay, Pac wasn't go up there. Sometimes they would come down. But they weren't coming down to where he was in the studio with them doing stuff like that. So they would lay their tracks and do their stuff from their end. From his end he did his then they put it together. No different from the way it's done today.

MCNewYork71 - Now there's just been rumor going on the internet, for years that "Smile" was originally a 3 verse solo 2Pac song. So that's where the speculation came that maybe they really didn't record it together until after his death they threw Scarface on there and took out one of Tupac's verses. So that's kind of where that came from.

Frank Alexander - Yeah, I, I can't speak on that because I'm not sure. I wasn't privileged to that.

MCNewYork71 - Can you recall a specific time when Tupac just lost it in the studio and just wigged out?

Frank Alexander - Aw man that was a lot, that was just a lot of time. There wasn't no need to really put no date. No date or no time on that. Because he did that a lot.

MCNewYork71 - He was just wild, like you said that he was a Gemini.

Frank Alexander - Dude, Pac's a Gemini he would flip on you man and if you weren't doing what you was supposed to be doing. Being Outlawz or any other cat that was on Death Row that was doing something. Collaborating with him then if they weren't getting it right if they were screwing up. Then yeah he would flip out on you. He flipped out on me and didn't mean to. But he respected me and I respected him.

MCNewYork71 - That's great that's funny I bet there was some funny stuff. Hopefully you have some of that on film somewhere stashed away.

Frank Alexander - Yeah man.

MCNewYork71 - Can you think of any interactions that he did with fans? What his personality was like off the camera?

Frank Alexander - Aw yeah, Pac, Pac was very loving, he had a big heart. You know and again like I said the media doesn't show that. They always show the negative stuff about him.

But um, I remember one time we were walking. The first day of shooting Gridlock'd. We were walking from the building downtown in L.A. where they were shooting a scene at back to the trailer. And as we walked across the street, there were these kids walking across the street.

This little kid came over and said, "Tupac! Tupac! This is Tupac!"
You know and a bunch of kids ran over there. They were behind a chain link fence so we were separated from them with the fence. And Pac went up to the fence and was like, "What's up Lil Homies?" You know and uh, they like "I wanna be ya N.I.G.G.A. we can smoke weed and drink all day" and he was like, "naw naw naw naw naw, don't" he was laughing. He's like, "Don't be doin' that, don't sing that version, don't sing that one, do the clean version. What you doing listening to that? Do the clean version." He loved kids, he really loved kids. The little kid was like, "alright Pac alright" and he was all excited you know he signed em some autographs and stuff.

But uh, Pac loved kids. He was doing some things, he had some things in the works. That he was gonna do for a foundation, for "A Place Called Home" for homeless children. You know mothers and stuff like that. But it never happened.

MCNewYork71 - Once again we appreciate your time. From everybody on 2Pac-Forum I wanna give you my thanks and we'll be in contact with you.

Frank Alexander - Alright brotha

MCNewYork71 - Take care, Peace.

---End Of Part 1 (2 Of 2)---




---Part 2 (1 Of 2)---


MCNewYork71 - Back in the 90's, as you know Suge and Death Row were extremely intimidating and they were powerful due to their gang connections and record sales. From being on the inside, how much power do you believe they really had and the media made them out to be? Do you think it was..do you think that's how it really was?

Big Frank - You know that's a good question because, the key word is the "media", the media, Tupac wasn't as bad 2Pac was, it was the media that put the flame and ignited the fire that Tupac was throwing into the furnace. I use as an example you gonna build a camp fire. You gotta gather up enough wood, and once you get enough wood and get it secure. You have to do something to ignite it, whether you use a flame log to get it going, or you pour some lighter fluid on it and then strike a match bring a fire to ignite it. That's how big it'll make that flame, by how much wood you put in it and then how much gasoline or lighter fluid you put on there and you throw that match it's just gonna make that flame big. The flame with Death Row, that East Coast/West Coast all that. That was the wood being thrown into the mixture of what was gonna later turn out to be a disastrous situation. Using it as an analogy, Tupac was fueling the fire with the East Coast/West Coast. Suge Knight was the ignitor that had pretty much lit that flame after Pac built it up big enough.

I don't think to this day that Suge Knight was gang affiliated, was a blood, or anything. Because he grew up in Compton, he was from Compton, he went to college! When did he have time to be Blood affiliated? he didn't, he went to UNLV in Las Vegas, then he played football for a short period of time. Then he went and got with NWA and became a bodyguard, he was a bodyguard, alright. Then he bullied his way in, so Suge Knight went back into Compton and wore red and started calling his self a Godfather, because he was from Compton. I'm from Chicago, I grew up with Disciples, which are now known as "Gangster Disciples". My whole family is related to that, ok. So if I was going to stay true to colors of my hood, I would wear those colors.

Suge got lucky through his means and his way with Harry O. Got some money, started Death Row Records, got Dr. Dre, and them guys that was part of NWA to come over and do business to get this record label going. And that started it and once it started it, Suge Knight was the face of it, alright. But when you look at how things have evolved over time since Death Row's demise, ok. Cause it has died it died when Tupac died, Death Row died. All of the corruption, and all of the artist, and all of the break down of the artist leaving.

You have Suge Knight who got into 3 fights, and out of all 3 fights, he had his ass whooped. By this cat from the Rolling 60's, a barber that was 5 foot 7, 170 pounds. All over YouTube, where he's knocked out laying on the ground, right. And that's what happens to bullies, someone will knock them in the mouth and then everybody's got their ticket. The next time months later, at the All Star NBA game in Arizona, The W hotel one of Akon's managers/bodyguards slash whatever. Beats his face in and breaks 7 bones in his face. People started punchin' his clock because they got his number.

No different than what happened in this analogy of Mike Tyson. Mike Tyson got beat by Buster Douglass in 1990 when everybody thought that Mike Tyson was unbeatable because when he would come out his corner he came out like a bully, runnin' at his opponent, swinging, knocking them out, not giving them a chance. And that's the same thing in analogy wise that Suge Knight was doing until somebody got his number and started punchin' his ticket.

So that gang related/gang affiliated, all that stuff. That was hype, and all bullies, anyone that's been bullied that's out there know, when you stand up to a bully and you give them your best and if you come out victoriously, knock them out, hit them in the mouth knock them down. Knock that tree down, from the knees down they gonna fall. And once Suge fell like that in the public eye, wasn't nobody afraid of him no more. All that talk was nothing but that, talk.. Right so, that, gang related affiliated stuff, that don't mean nothin'. It don't mean nothin' at all.

MCNewYork71 - What was a typical day like working with Death Row and Suge Knight?

Big Frank - Suge, now this is the flip side of the coin. Suge was cool with all of us in security. He was cool with us, you know, he, he, appreciated security and gave security most props. Workin' around Suge and workin' with Suge, was cool.. But we didn't work for Suge like the artist had to work with Suge, being obligated to him to be in the studio, laying tracks. We were there for one reason, and one reason only. To keep the peace and keep security tight for the Bloods and the Crips that came and went in the studio. We searched everyone, nobody came in with weapons and nobody got out of pocket, you know. So we did our jobs and Suge always thought that security ran the studio and that security was the back bone to Death Row. And you know we got paid for a job that were doing and we did our job.

Everything else after that for the most part was behind closed doors with Suge and artist. Anytime something was going down, he brought both of us in law enforcement/former law enforcement we had to step outside, we weren't privileged to information that Suge and artist was talking about behind closed doors. Cause they didn't want witnesses and we would have to be witnesses so we had to step outside. And they regulated and did what they did behind closed doors.

MCNewYork71 - Would you say Tupac and Suge were as close as it seemed through what the media showed them to be?

Big Frank - Originally, absolutely you know, you gotta realize something. Tupac was sitting in a prison cell and while he was sittin in that cell. I'm sure Pac being who he is with his mind set, he was thinking of ways to get out of there. He was thinking of how he was gonna get out or who was gonna get him out. Either Interscope Records or Suge Knight was only his way out and his savior of getting out of jail. So Pac had to do what Pac had to do, what was in his best interest. And Suge Knight got there in time and he was the one that bailed him out. And once he bailed him out, Pac kept to his end of the bargain. He was gonna give him 3 Platinum cds. "All Eyez On Me" was 2 "Makaveli" was 3, after that Pac was out. And that was the deal that they had, so when that time came, that deal went South as we know today. It is what it is what happened.

But as far as being close, I could tell everybody you my brother, you my homeboy. And it depends on my mindset, who I am, how greedy I am if there's business mixed in with that friendship. And I need to be on top, you know, or vice versa, you. We may change the course of that friendship, but still have everybody thinking we tight like peanut butter and jelly. And when it takes time to spread it on that bread and get down to business things change. And then things changed and that's what happened.

MCNewYork71 - Let's see, working with Death Row can you recall any particular artist that came always came to the studio strapped?

Big Frank - Came to the studio, did you say "stressed" or "strapped"?

MCNewYork71 - Strapped

Big Frank - Like packin'? I'm sure, a lot of them did, but again. Securities job was to not allow any weapons of any kind, being knives. I don't care how big the knife was, guns of anything. If they had anything like that, they had to leave it in their car. So i'm sure, you know, before Pac was really set up with security maybe, you know, he, or maybe some of the Outlawz, or whoever was rollin' with him, Big Syke, one of the Outlawz themselves or what was that dudes name? Big Syke's homeboy at the time, his name, i forget his name he rolled with Syke all the time, i can't think of his name off the top of his head. It may come to me. But anyway yeah they, they could've had some but knew they couldn't bring it in so they would leave it in the car. Because it was made known. So we didn't have those kind of issues with people coming up in the studio being strapped.



---End Of Part 2 (1 Of 2)---




---Part 2 (2 Of 2)---



MCNewYork71 - Did you happen to be in the studio when Tupac was recording "Too Tight" for, with MC Hammer?

Big Frank - Um, I'm sure I was a lot of times. keep in mind the artist would be in the studio A, B, or C, there's 3 booths. Pac would always be in the largest one, which would be B or C and when my family was there that was C, studio C, A was small. We would be either in the kitchen, in the gym, up in the front, you know be in the kitchen eating. Something like that. And so they would be in there doing their thing, you know don't forget in there smoking' weed, drinkin'. And laying their tracks and doing their thing. So they were working. We were working as long as we were there and when they were ready to go we were on point and you know we followed them out. So my job being with him wasn't always being…sitting next to him knowing he was safe and secure inside the studio. So me being in the studio you know sometimes didn't mean I was sitting where he was sitting.

MCNewYork71 - Yeah in the area. Can you recall maybe Tupac's reaction to Stretch's death? Did he ever mention that to you or anything because they were pretty close up until he was shot in the studio.

Big Frank - Um, no Pac and I never talked about and nor was I around him, and I was around him a lot where he talked about anyone that was killed or anyone who had died and how he was feeling about anything and the reason why again I have to go back to this was because he was busy. Doing what he was gonna be doing, not knowing that his death was going to be coming a year from the time that he had been released. But now the music and the movies and the videos he was doing.

MCNewYork71 - The night that he was shot at the MGM after he had that altercation with Orlando, how was Tupac for the rest of the evening? Was he pretty pumped up after the fight, like an adrenaline rush or was he mad?

Big Frank - Oh yeah he was pumped up, he was pumped up. He just watched the Mike Tyson fight. And then from that, you know he had his own fight and then he changed clothes and was all fired up. You know he was all fired up, he was all wound up, you know a big high. But uh, that's how Pac was. I remember Pac telling me one time. He goes, "I need to get into a fight, Frank we ain't had a fight in a long time. I gotta get into a fight." I'm like, "Nah man we don't need to be getting into no fights, you don't' need to be catching no cases." He's like, "Man I need to hit somebody!" I was like, "No you don't."

Walking from set to set on Gridlock'd one time he said as I was literally almost carrying him because he was so tired. From working you know, being in the studio, doing video shoots, and then having to be on the movie set at 6 in the morning. He was never late, never ever late, never late, for any of those things he was doing. He was never late coming to the set, he was never late for a video shoot. He was never late from being in the studio. Now there's only 24 hours in a day and he was almost working 24 hours in a day. There's many times where we stayed in hotels because we had to be up the next day to be at the shoot or we had to be here or need to be there. As many times as I didn't go home at night because I had to drive so far to come back, within a few hours.

MCNewYork71 - Gosh, he's definitely a workaholic, definitely.

Big Frank - There's no doubt and all he work he left behind shows it and proves it.

MCNewYork71 - Do you think he had a sense of paranoia? In his music he raps about Feds have him under surveillance or people out to get him. Did he live paranoid the last year of his life?

Big Frank - You know that's funny that you even bring that up because I never, um, and he never showed it. This is the funny thing part about it. I never saw Pac in a light of where he was worried about something or about his life or anything like that. And it's really really boggling that he was that way. And he was only that way through his music because he didn't ever ever lead on. You know verbally or tell me you know like afraid of something like this happening or this and this. He was never anything like that he never had no conversations like that or anything of that nature.

You know so everything came out in his lyrics how he felt in his heart. And what he felt in his soul. And that's how most artist express themselves anyway is through their lyrics. And what came out through his lyrics, is what happened in his life. You know, as he felt.

He never thought that he would live to be 30. He never thought that someone black would be the one that would kill him. And both things happened and he wasn't worried or overly concerned about it. he didn't act like it, he wasn't walking around like it. He wasn't wearing bulletproof vest, you know. So what what happened, it happened and only God knew what it was going to be and only Tupac prophesized it through his lyrics.

MCNewYork71 - Now what's your opinion on the songs that are coming out now, since his death that are being remixed, you know with different artist that definitely weren't in there and the instrumental being changed and stuff. What's your opinion on his music being remixed?

Big Frank - Um, you know sometimes um, we have to be quite about certain things because the estate now has control over what is being done and i'll never speak against Tupac's mother because I love her as much as I love him. And what she's doing and what she feels she has to do in her heart in her mind. That's for the good and the best of the estate and I have to respect in that aspect of what she's doing. Do I agree with it? No, but I'm not the one to bring up an argument about it or want to speak you know down on it. I know, knowing Tupac a lot of it wouldn't be happening. That i'll say. Um, I don't think that some of the artist that uh, ha been remixed in his music, he would have been down with today because he wasn't down with them back in the day.

I think that the whole Coachella fest uh thing that happened with re-imaging him on stage. I thought that was a joke. Because Pac wasn't down with Snoop or Dre and he made that very known before his death. And I was there and I knew what the disagreements were with him and Snoop, I knew what the disagreement with him and Dre. I know why the things that occurred and that was happening happened.
So I wouldn't um, uh agree with a lot of the remix tracks and the people on the tracks.

MCNewYork71 - Um, working with Amaru do you have any inside scoops on any tracks or any projects coming up that you can speak on?

Big Frank - Uh no I can't speak on anything concerning Tupac's mother and her ventures and her personal business. Yeah I know of some, but I can't speak on it. No different that I hope that if I have things in the works that anybody that I've interested that have detailed information would speak on because that's when you know you have true trust with people. Is when uh, they share secrets with you and they keep them. So I can't speak on that

MCNewYork71 - What would you say your best memory would be with Tupac, if not that experience with your family?

Big Frank - That one there definetly being one of the bigger ones but um another one man would be the many days that we spent sitting in a trailer just having one on one conversations before the Outlawz would have gotten there that day, early in the morning he and I walking. There's pictures of us laughing and talking. From the different appointments that he had that he had to go to or whatever. There's many pictures of us, um you know showing love and friendship to one another. And those days and those memories are very precious and I'm glad that you know I have those pictures and a lot of fans more so than I do have those pictures. And they send them to me on Facebook all the time. It reminds me when I see them. There's some pictures on Facebook right now as we speak that some fans have sent the other day. You yourself have even sent me pictures of me and Tupac.

Somebody sent me a picture of Tupac and I gambling in the MGM that I didn't even know existed. You know he's at the table shooting craps and I'm standing behind him. I didn't even know that existed. Then there's a video out there where um, it's right after, no right before the fight, right before the fight. Everyones going into the MGM Grand Area for the fight and Pac is um walking through the crowd and I"m waking behind him and we cut off to the side and we go over towards the phones as we waiting on Suge to come with the tickets.

MCNewYork71 - Yeah where I think he's wearing that orange?

Big Frank - Yeah that orange shirt blue jeans and I have on all black.

MCNewYork71 - Real short little clips, some of the last footage of him.

Big Frank - Exactly, yeah yeah yeah, that there. stuff like that man, there's stuff that has surfaced that I didn't even know existed obviously. But it's um, it's it's it's cool. it's good memory stuff and brings back good memories and uh like for his birthday, I do things, privately to remember him you know.

For his death anniversary for 16 years. For the first couple years it was horribly, terribly, hard on me you know. But after the years have passed and then I spoke to his mother, she gave me some relief and some comfort. I let a lot of the blame and the weight go off me and after that happened conversation that expired between his mom and I, um I uh, found a new peace. If you would use that as a better term. I found a new peace and I uh, celebrate his death in honor now that God had blessed me and allowed me to be a part of his life and to him to be an icon that he was and I had a chance to share that last year of his life because there really wasn’t any bad times. There was no bad times the whole year except for that one and only fateful night of the night he was shot, that was it, that was it. But uh, we had good times. One of my most favorable times is when we went to Italy Avion, Italy.

MCNewYork71 – From your book it sounds it was a really good time.

Big Frank - Ooooh that, that was incredible, I mean, I, I, man I’m from the hood in Chicago. Robert Taylor projects I grew up in my family is you know part of the Hoovers, gangster disciples, you know. I left Chicago at a young age. Uh you know, me coming from where I came from uh, only God knew how my life was gonna be. I didn’t have an inclamation clue idea of what life was gonna be about and here it is. I’m in Italy, you know with this famous rapper in 1996, Italy. Now I’ve been all over the world being in the marine corp no doubt. But I mean there’s places I’ve gone and been to through the course of being a bodyguard that I’d never have gone on my own. My family up until the came to California had never left Chicago.


---End Of Part 2 (2 Of 2)---

[L-Booma]

[MENTION=3662]MCNewYork71

Honestly I think that will make it really confusing. I think its good that written interview are in the firts post aswell.

[007]

Sounds like an excellent idea to me [MENTION=3662]MCNewYork71

Transcribed sub forum added to 2F Interviews

go ahead and start dropping your transcribed in threads there. a mod can close them afterwards

[Omar]

thanks josh ... i think it makes shit more organized ... let them interviews roll out ...

[MCNewYork71]

2Pac Forum Interviews

[MENTION=1]Skyfall thanks man! [MENTION=7784]Omar thank you sir.
[MENTION=856]LarsVerb it will help members who only want to read it. That way they can read a fast loading page (even though the servers fast) but its just a straight up page similar to lyrics and reference with no comments no clutter just straight text. If they want to comment it can be done in the audio section where majority of activity will be anyway.
[MENTION=1]Skyfall I will start on this. When I get a chance. I don't have Internet at home and paid holiday tomorrow :-) so ill see what I can do. Only thing is I don't want other members to be able to post in there while its being put together.

Can u temporarily allow me or have someone open a thread for each interview and ill put it all together from there but have the threads locked besides me or people above me just until I can get it together? I just don't want people to have their post deleted and stuff so it's only the interview.

The frank one that I posted above for example is good to go. Paste and copy to the desired location. I'm going to check it out now. Thanks for creating this Josh! :-)

[L-Booma]

But they dont need to scroll or search, cause its always in the first post, like the way u do in ur idea. Sorry but i really dont see the value of this. It is just 2 of the same threads in my opinion.

[MCNewYork71]

2Pac Forum Interviews

But they dont need to scroll or search, cause its always in the first post, like the way u do in ur idea. Sorry but i really dont see the value of this. It is just 2 of the same threads in my opinion.

You're right about them being in the first post like we initially did. But now they can go to this section and just read the full interview start to finish. Like there's 2 threads for the frank interview. All 4 interviews go into 1 thread and that's the only thing in there and then thread closes. Same with LS. There's 3 videos so 2-3 threads I can't recall. But they'll all be in one big post transcribed. With a link to our YT channel and link to the audio of the thread. As long as its organized it will be nice and not clustered.

[Mr.Passion]

yes i think when all is in the first post, first the audio interview thereunder the written interview is better to find all so you have 2 section with written and audio think this too confused

you can hear the interview and read along at the same time, in 1 thread, think its better, ppl hear and read at the same time...if they do not understand everything

[MCNewYork71]

2Pac Forum Interviews

yes i think when all is in the first post, first the audio interview thereunder the written interview is better to find all so you have 2 section with written and audio think this too confused

you can hear the interview and read along at the same time, in 1 thread, think its better, ppl hear and read at the same time...if they do not understand everything

Right but when there are multiple threads because there's more than one part of the interview you'd have to switch threads to read them.

In this transcribed section all parts of the interview are written following each other. 1 thread one post no comments. Some members don't like the audio interviews because its hard for them to hear with the music so this will be very useful to them.

You can have 2 tabs open on your browsers. A YouTube and then the transcribed page if you want to read and follow along.

Just because we have this section as a subforum doesn't mean everyone has to use it. If anyone doesn't agree with this section being created. It's just extra help for others.

[Mr.Passion]

may well be possible, but I think it's too "confusing" and complicated to set up

it is not necessarily needed but if you mean do it..