The recording sessions that yielded Tupac Shakur's last album took place over seven Hennessy-soaked days in August 1996, while the multitalented rapper was concurrently filming two movies (Gridlock'd and Gang Release). Approximately 20 songs were put to tape at Los Angeles' Can-Am studios, 11 of which made the finished product. (Much of the remaining material - most notably three tracks produced by Quincy Jones' son QD3, whose sister Kidada was reportedly engaged to Shakur at the time of his death - would appear on various posthumous compilations.) That 'Pac's final work was produced mainly by Tyrone "Hurt M Badd" Wrice and Darryl "Big D" Harper - two Death Row Records also-rans who failed to draw interest even in the vacuum left by the departed Dr. Dre - and featured guest spots mostly from 'Pac's childhood friends and family, the Outlawz, speaks volumes about the climate at the label at the time. Released nine months earlier, 'Pac's double opus, All Eyez On Me, had been certified quadruple-platinum, making the controversial star the marquee name at the most successful company in rap music. Apparently, though, internal Death Row rivalries and tension were at play (no doubt compounded by the notorious "East vs. West" beef boiling between Tupac and Biggie and a host of other New York hip-hop figures). So with Snoop and the Dogg Pound in an adjacent studio, 'Pac closed ranks and rushed his supporting cast of underdogs through a blitzkrieg artistic process - creating a dark, insular, paranoid collection of songs he subtitled "The 7 Day Theory." The urgency of the album is palpable. (Many listeners have, in fact, suggested that 'Pac somehow "knew" that he was running out of time.) The way it captures the raw morbidity of a man staring down his enemies is as powerful as it is downright disturbing. (It's telling that Eminem, 50 Cent and Busta Rhymes chose to remake "Hail Mary" as a diss record aimed at Ja Rule.) Today, Makaveli, with all its attendant contradictions, remains 'Pac fans' favorite memorial to their hero after his passing. - XXL Magazine, 10/03. R.I.P. 2PAC. Revisit the LP below...
Below is a copy of (part) of XXL's feature on the LP in 2003...
