Case Study : Popular Culture - Biggie and Tupac HSB4UI

Rap and Hip Hop is the top selling music in the United States today Rap and Hip Hop is the top selling music in the United States today. We will examine the rivalry between East Coast and West Coast Rap, and the feud between and violent deaths of Notorious B.I.B. and Tupac Shakur. Rightly or wrongly, the lyrics and lifestyles of the artists of this type of music is blamed by many people and organizations for violence and aggression in society.You will be encouraged to decide and articulate if you believe this is the case, or if rap and hip hop are just scapegoats for this behaviour.

Review Entertainment Theory Learning Theory Catharsis Theory

East Coast vs West Coast Hip hop emerged in the 1970s on the streets of the South Bronx. Powered by DJs such as Kool Herc, Grandmaster Flash, and Afrika Bambaataa, the new genre became popular throughout the city's neighborhoods. The New York City area remained the forefront for rap music throughout the mid-80's, becoming home to numerous stars like Run-DMC, LL Cool J, KRS-One, Big Daddy Kane, Biz Markie, Slick Rick, Salt-n-Pepa and others.

In 1986 the LA gangsta rap scene exploded In 1986 the LA gangsta rap scene exploded. A young drug dealer named Eric Wright saw the potential profits and fame of the hip hop lifestyle, so he began recording songs in his parents' garage. Wright, going by the name Eazy-E, befriended two local artists named Dr. Dre and Ice Cube. Along with locals DJ Yella and Arabian Prince, the group became N.W.A.

In 1993, fledgling A&R executive and record producer "Puff Daddy" Sean Combs founded the New York-centered hip-hop label, Bad Boy Records.The next year, the label debut releases by Brooklyn-based rapper Notorious B.I.G. (also known as Biggie Smalls, born Christopher Wallace) and Long Island-based rapper Craig Mack became immediate critical and commercial successes, and seemed to revitalize the East Coast hip-hop scene by 1995

Songs began to be released on both coasts dissing the other coast, such as “_____ Compton,” and “ The Last word” Tupac was robbed and shot and publicly accused Biggie and Puff Daddy of being involved. Biggie released a song called “Who Shot Ya” at the same time Tupac was shot, which he interpreted as Biggie mocking him. Tupac later released “Hit Em Up” in which he claimed to be sleeping with Biggie’s wife.

In August 1995, California-based (West Coast) Death Row CEO Suge Knight took a dig at Bad Boy and Combs at that year's Source Awards; announcing to the assembly of artists and industry figures:”Any artist out there that want to be an artist and stay a star, and don’t have to worry about the executive producer trying to be all in the videos ... All on the records ... dancing, come to Death Row!”

at a party soon after a close friend of Knight’s was shot and killed - Knight accused Puff Daddy of being involved associates on both coasts are shot, wounded, killed and assaulted, accusations go back and forth - songs are continually released by artists such as Snoop Dogg (West Coast, until he falls out with Suge Knight) and others Chino XL (East Coast) dissing the other

The Murders At the 1996 Soul Train Awards in Miami there was a confrontations in the parking lot between the entourages of Bad Boy and Death Row - guns were drawn. Soon after at the Vibe Awards in New York, Nas and Tupac confronted each other. Tupac, at Suge Knight’s urging, also ripped a chain from Orlando Anderson’s neck. On September 6, 1996 Tupac was shot several times in Las Vegas, dying a few days later.

6 months later, on March 9, 1997, Notorious BIG was shot to death while sitting outside in a car during a hip-hop industry party in Los Angeles To this day NOBODY has been convicted of either murder

Theories LAPD Involvement (several officers worked off-duty for Death Row Records)- the FBI now admit they were following both Biggie and Tupac at the time of their murders, but did not see the actual killings The perpetrators are dead (see recent article - Orlando Anderson, who the FBI believe killed Tupac (motive - chain incident), and Wardell “Poochie” Fouse, who they believe killed Biggie (motive - $13,000 fee), have since been murdered in “unrelated” gang activity)

Questions Were the deaths of Tupac and Biggie due to the lifestyles they led and environment they grew up in OR were they due to external factors ? Were the deaths of Biggie and Tupac due to the nature or rap music or is it unfairly blamed ? 3. Does life imitate art (their music) or does art imitate life ?

Update after the Film Although police never found any direct evidence to link him to Tupac’s murder, Tupac’s mother filed a wrongful death suit against Orlando Anderson, saying what many believe – that Anderson killed Tupac after the altercation in the casino caught on camera that was shown in the documentary

Greg Kadling, a retired L. A. P. D Greg Kadling, a retired L.A.P.D. detective who was put in charge of the special task force that investigated the murder of Notorious B.I.G. after his mother filed suit against the force for hundreds of millions of dollars, says the man who killed Biggie was Wardell Fouse, known on the street as “Poochie” for a fee of $13,000, paid by Suge Knight for revenge for the Tupac murder

In his book he claims to have solved the case but the L. A. P. D In his book he claims to have solved the case but the L.A.P.D. “shelved” the case. He says both the Tupac and Biggie cases are considered “solved” internally by the Las Vegas Police Dept (Tupac) and the L.A.P.D. (Biggie) but the public is upset because nobody has been charged or prosecuted, because both Orlando Anderson and Poochie are dead

Orlando Anderson was killed in May 1998 outside a Compton Record shop after an altercation with rival gang members (he was alleged to be a member of the Southside Crips), and Poochie was killed on his motorcycle in Compton (allegedly by a fellow member of the Bloods, or Pirus - Suge’s associates are the Mob Pirus and the other group are the Fruit Town Pirus - as a result of in-fighting in the gang)

Other Notables Detective Russell Poole died of a heart attack while interviewing somebody for about the case in August 2015 Suge Knight’s girlfriend confessed to delivering the money to Poochie - she was given immunity, but the L.A.P.D. has a policy of not prosecuting murders based on only one witness

Suge Knight is currently in jail in solitary confinement awaiting murder charges. It is alleged he ran down two men in the drive through of a Compton fast food restaurant, killing one man and injuring another. Knight claims the injured man threatened to shoot him first. This happened on the set of a commercial for the film “Straight Outta Compton.”