Thug Life (group)
- West Coast hip hop
- G-funk
- gangsta rap
- Interscope
- Atlantic
- Out da Gutta
- Tupac Shakur
- Big Syke
- Mopreme Shakur
- Macadoshis
- The Rated R
Thug Life was an American hip hop group that consisted of 2Pac, Big Syke, Mopreme, Macadoshis, and The Rated R. They released one album, 1994's Thug Life, Volume I, before disbanding in 1995.
Etymology
According to Tupac Shakur, the name refers to the acronym: "The Hate U Gave Little Infants, Fuck Everybody".§[1] It represents the idea that the racism and marginalization experienced by black youth ends up negatively affecting society.[2]
History
Big Syke was a Crips gang member and Macadoshis was a drug dealer during the 1990s. Tupac, Randy "Stretch" Walker and Princess Mel formed Thug Life in 1992 with Tyruss "Little Psycho" Himes.[3] They recorded a song also titled "Thug Life". Soon Little Psycho joined the group, under the name Syke. Later Macadoshis and The Rated R joined the group. They signed with Interscope Records and recorded an LP titled Thug Life, Volume I. Tupac's stepbrother, Mopreme Shakur, later joined the group.
Thug Life, Volume I
On September 26, 1994, Thug Life, Volume I was released.
The first single and video was "Pour Out a Little Liquor" (which originally appeared on the Above the Rim soundtrack, released six months earlier), which was a Tupac solo song.
Tupac performed "Out on Bail" at the 1994 Source Awards.[4] The album was originally released on Shakur's label Out da Gutta. Tupac's mother's label, Amaru Entertainment, has since gained the rights to the album.
The track "How Long Will They Mourn Me?" appeared on Tupac's 1998 Greatest Hits album.
Thug Life, Volume I had sold 478,419 copies in the United States as of 2011.[5]
Members
- Tupac Shakur (d. 1996)
- Big Syke (a.k.a. Little Psycho or Mussolini) (d. 2016)
- Mopreme Shakur (a.k.a. Mocedes, The Wycked, Komani or Mo' Khomani)
- Macadoshis (a.k.a. The Original Mac 10)
- The Rated R (a.k.a. Super Star, Runner)
Discography
Studio albums
- Thug Life, Volume I (1994) #42 Billboard 200; #6 R&B/Hip-Hop
References
- ^ "Tupac explains thug life". YouTube. 2007-06-11.
- ^ "Here's How Tupac and THUG LIFE Inspired the Hate U Give". 7 April 2017.
- ^ Big Syke bio at Allmusic
- ^ Aqua Blanco, Alvin (9 September 2012). "Busta Rhymes Says Tupac Dissing A Tribe Called Quest Was A Misunderstanding". hiphopwired.com. Hip Hop Wired. Retrieved 8 January 2016.
- ^ "Tupac Month: 2Pac's Discography - XXL". XXL Mag. 16 September 2011. Retrieved 2021-01-18.
- v
- t
- e
- The Don Killuminati: The 7 Day Theory
- R U Still Down? (Remember Me)
- Still I Rise
- Until the End of Time
- Better Dayz
- Loyal to the Game
- Pac's Life
- 2Pac Live
- Live at the House of Blues
- Greatest Hits
- Beginnings: The Lost Tapes 1988–1991
- The Prophet: The Best of the Works
- Tupac: Resurrection
- The Prophet Returns
- Best of 2Pac
- Nothing but Trouble (soundtrack)
- Sons of the P
- Juice (soundtrack)
- Poetic Justice (soundtrack)
- Above the Rim (soundtrack)
- Gridlock'd (soundtrack)
- Gang Related (soundtrack)
- A 2Pac Tribute: Dare 2 Struggle
- The Rose That Grew from Concrete
- The Rose, Vol. 2
- "Brenda's Got a Baby"
- "If My Homie Calls"
- "Trapped"
- "Holler If Ya Hear Me"
- "I Get Around"
- "Keep Ya Head Up"
- "Papa'z Song"
- "Cradle to the Grave"
- "Dear Mama"
- "So Many Tears"
- "Temptations"
- "California Love"
- "2 of Amerikaz Most Wanted"
- "How Do U Want It"
- "I Ain't Mad at Cha"
- "Toss It Up"
- "To Live & Die in LA"
- "Hail Mary"
- "Wanted Dead or Alive"
- "I Wonder If Heaven Got a Ghetto"
- "Do for Love"
- "Changes"
- "Unconditional Love"
- "Baby Don't Cry (Keep Ya Head Up II)"
- "Until the End of Time"
- "Letter 2 My Unborn"
- "Thugz Mansion"
- "Still Ballin'"
- "Runnin' (Dying to Live)"
- "One Day at a Time (Em's Version)"
- "Thugs Get Lonely Too"
- "Ghetto Gospel"
- "Untouchable"
- "Pac's Life"
- "Playa Cardz Right"
- "I Don't Give a Fuck"
- "Runnin' from tha Police"
- "Ambitionz az a Ridah"
- "All Eyez on Me"
- "Hit 'Em Up"
- "Are U Still Down"
- "Panther Power"
- "Gotta Get Mine"
- "Smile"
- "Playa Cardz Right"
- The Rose That Grew from Concrete
- Holler If Ya Hear Me
- Biggie & Tupac
- Tupac: Resurrection
- Tupac: Assassination
- Dear Mama
- Yaki Kadafi
- Kastro
- Napoleon
- E.D.I. Mean
- Hussein Fatal
- Mussolini
- Komani
- Young Noble
- Outlawz
- Digital Underground
- Afeni Shakur
- Assata Shakur
- Mopreme Shakur
- Mutulu Shakur
- Thug Life
- Death Row Records
- East Coast–West Coast hip hop rivalry
- Niccolò Machiavelli
- Orlando Anderson
- Tupac Amaru Shakur Center for the Arts
- All Eyez on Me (film)
- Unsolved: The Murders of Tupac and the Notorious B.I.G.
- City of Lies
- "Taylor Made Freestyle"