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Tupac Shakur became angrier, irate, and irrational after joining Death Row, according to DJ Quik.
Prior to this week's premature release of Kendrick Lamar’s latest album, To Pimp A Butterfly, DJ Quik spoke with Montreality about the Compton, California rapper’s new album. He revealed that he’s “heard pieces of” To Pimp A Butterfly and added that it may have been a project Kendrick had in mind as he was working on his last studio album, good kid, m.A.A.d city.
“I’ve already heard pieces of it,” DJ Quik said. “And he’s not stuck. And I don’t think he’s gonna suffer from any kind of sophomore jinx because he’s already developed into—While he was doing good kid, m.A.A.d city it sounded like he already had this album in his sights already. So, he’s just playing it out. The groundwork was already laid…He’s expanding a little bit without going too far. He’s keeping in mind the fanbase that he already built and then he’s going for more. I think he’s ready for it. I think he can handle it all at this point. I think he can even handle more fame.”
DJ Quik also spoke on the late Tupac Shakur during his interview with Montreality. He explained that “there’s no conspiracy” behind the death of Tupac and says the rapper became “kinda irrational,” angry, “and more irate” when he signed with Death Row Records.
“There’s no conspiracy when it comes to Tupac,” he said. “The reality is is that Tupac was—Tupac had got disillusioned with the way business worked. Not getting his full respect. Not getting the money that he knew he deserved. He was like a business magnet and a mogul in his self, but he was signed to somebody. So, it was like he really couldn’t shine the way he wanted to shine. He had to lend his shine to others…I just don’t think that Suge took care of Tupac the way he really could have. And nurtured that…It was like when he went to Death Row he just became angrier and angrier. And more irate. And then unreachable. And kinda irrational in some cases.”
Due to the recent controversy surrounding former Death Row Records CEO Suge Knight, DJ Quik was also asked to share his thoughts on the former music exec’s possible involvement in a deadly hit-and-run accident.
He criticized those who have bashed Suge and later stated that this is the time “when you embrace people.”
“I said something about Suge one time and I regretted it because—You don’t add negativity to negativity,” the Compton musician said. “He taught me how to not be emotional about it. But then he ended up forgiving me too. So, as a person it’s so ironic that this seems like the time when everybody wants to be down on him and smash him. And like ‘Good for him.’ And celebrate and all this. But this is the time when you shouldn’t because it’s obviously now that he’s going through something physical and mental. And this is when you embrace people…I can’t just diss him. I’m sure he didn’t mean to do that, but he’s dealing with some health stuff that people don’t know about.”
DJ Quik’s interview with Montreality can be found below.
