2Pac vs The Notorious B.I.G

Ok, now this has to be one of the most famous & controversial differences in Hip Hop history! Let’s not get ahead of ourselves now, let’s understand exactly what lead up to 2Pac releasing one of Hip Hop’s greatest diss tracks ever. All was well between 2Pac and Biggie way back in the day they were even good friends who recorded some classic music together such as “Running From The Police”. So where did it all go wrong and escalate? in 1994 2Pac was on his way to record in a Times Square studio, he was running late but none the less made it to the studio, he entered the building and was confronted by three men and robbed at gun point for his jewellery, the rest of the story is in 2Pac’s words as he recalls what happened in 1994:
“I was with my homeboy Stretch, his man Fred, and my sister’s boyfriend, Zayd. Not my bodyguard; I don’t have a bodyguard. We get to the studio, and there’s a dude outside in army fatigues with his hat low on his face. When we walked to the door, he didn’t look up. I’ve never seen a black man not acknowledge me one way or the other, either with jealousy or respect. But this guy just looked to see who I was and turned his face down. It didn’t click because I had just finished smoking chronic. I’m not thinking something will happen to me in the lobby. While we’re waiting to get buzzed in, I saw a dude sitting at a table reading a newspaper. He didn’t look up either.”

“So first I’m, like, These dudes must be security for Biggie, because I could tell they were from Brooklyn from their army fatigues. But then I said, Wait a minute. Even Biggie’s homeboys love me, why don’t they look up? I pressed the elevator button, turned around, and that’s when the dudes came out with the guns-two identical 9 mms. “Don’t nobody move. Everybody on the floor. You know what time it is. Run your sh*t.” I was, like, What should I do? I’m thinking Stretch is going to fight; he was towering over those ni**as. From what I know about the criminal element, if ni**as come to rob you, they always hit the big ni**a first. But they didn’t touch Stretch; they came straight to me. Everybody dropped to the floor like potatoes, but I just froze up. It wasn’t like I was being brave or nothing; I just could not get on the floor. They started grabbing at me to see if I was strapped. They said, “Take off your jewels,” and I wouldn’t take them off. The light-skinned dude, the one that was standing outside, was on me. Stretch was on the floor, and the dude with the newspaper was holding the gun on him.

He was telling the light-skin dude, “Shoot that motherf*cker! f*ck it!” Then I got scared, because the dude had the gun to my stomach. All I could think about was piss bags and sh*t bags. I drew my arm around him to move the gun to my side. He shot and the gun twisted and that’s when I got hit the first time. I felt it in my leg; I didn’t know I got shot in my balls. I dropped to the floor. Everything in my mind said, Pac, pretend you’re dead. It didn’t matter. They started kicking me, hitting me. I never said, “Don’t shoot!” I was quiet as hell.

They were snatching my sh*t off me while I was laying on the floor. I had my eyes closed, but I was shaking, because the situation had me shaking. And then I felt something on the back of my head, something real strong. I thought they stomped me or pistol-whipped me and they were stomping my head against the concrete. I saw white, just white. I didn’t hear nothing, I didn’t feel nothing, and I said, I’m unconscious. But I was conscious. And then I felt it again, and I could hear things now and I could see things and they were bringing me back to consciousness. Then they did it again, and I couldn’t hear nothing. And I couldn’t see nothing; it was just all white. And then they hit me again, and I could hear things and I could see things and I knew I was conscious again.

It was like they were mad at me. I felt them kicking me and stomping me; they didn’t hit nobody else. It was, like, “Ooh, motherf*cker, ooh, aah”-they were kicking hard. So I’m going unconscious, and I’m not feeling no blood on my head or nothing. The only thing I felt was my stomach hurting real bad. My sister’s boyfriend turned me over and said, “Yo, are you all right?” I was, like, “Yes, I’m hit, I’m hit.” And Fred is saying he’s hit, but that was the bullet that went through my leg. So I stood up and I went to the door and-the sh*t that f*cked me up-as soon as I got to the door, I saw a police car sitting there. I was, like, “Uh-oh, the police are coming, and I didn’t even go upstairs yet.” So we jumped in the elevator and went upstairs. I’m limping and everything, but I don’t feel nothing. It’s numb. When we got upstairs, I looked around, and it scared the sh*t out of me.

Because Andre Harrell was there, Puffy [Bad Boy Entertainment CEO Sean "Puffy" Combs] was there, Biggie… there was about 40 ni**as there. All of them had jewels on. More jewels than me. I saw Booker, and he had this look on his face like he was surprised to see me. Why? I had just beeped the buzzer and said I was coming upstairs. Little Shawn bust out crying. I went, Why is Little Shawn crying, and I got shot? He was crying uncontrollably, like, “Oh my God, Pac, you’ve got to sit down!” I was feeling weird, like, Why do they want to make me sit down?

Because five bullets had passed through your body.

I didn’t know I was shot in the head yet. I didn’t feel nothing. I opened my pants, and I could see the gunpowder and the hole in my Karl Kani drawers. I didn’t want to pull them down to see if my dick was still there. I just saw a hole and went, “Oh sh*t. Roll me some weed.” I called my girlfriend and I was, like, “Yo, I just got shot. Call my mother and tell her.” Nobody approached me. I noticed that nobody would look at me. Andre Harrell wouldn’t look at me. I had been going to dinner with him the last few days. He had invited me to the set of New York Undercover, telling me he was going to get me a job. Puffy was standing back too. I knew Puffy. He knew how much stuff I had done for Biggie before he came out.” 2Pac Interview in Vibe Magazine.

The police were called and arrived shortly after, 2Pac noticed several of the officers who arrived at the scene who had also been involved in a recent court case which 2Pac was facing, it is said that 2Pac believed that this was a set up by the police. However this is also where the confrontation between 2Pac and Biggie and the East Vs West began, who’s to blame solely for the start of this confrontation, predominantly the media.

In an interview with 2Pac he speaks on his thoughts of the 1994 shooting in Times Square & how he felt disrespected by Biggie and Bad Boy Records.

Now lets fast forward, whilst 2Pac is in jail he is being told all sorts of stories even being told that “Biggie’s homeboys shot you”, this only added fuel to the disrespect that 2Pac felt, whilst serving time 2Pac is offered a way out from Suge Knight and in return for his freedom 2Pac must sign to Death Row Records alongside such artists as Snoop Dogg and Dr Dre.

Biggie released a song under the title “Who Shot Ya” shortly after the 1994 incident, however it is claimed that this was not a track directed at 2Pac, below is an excerpt from an interview 2Pac did with Vibe Magazine:



So you think Biggie’s song “Who Shot Ya” was about you?

It came out too quick. It was just tasteless. So if he think “Hit Em Up” is about him, hey, whatever.

You mention their names in there. They didn’t mention your name in “Who Shot Ya?”

I ain’t no punk. I ain’t gonna hide behind the facts.

Who do you think shot you a year ago?

I know, but it ain’t nothing to speak on.

But you know who did it?

They know who did it.

They who?

The people who shot me. The people who had me shot. Everybody that know, know. But I ain’t worried about that. Peace on earth. I got a whole new clique, those niggas in Jersey. So I’m not gangbanging against the east side. I got niggas from the east side in my clique dissin’ Biggie just as hard as me. It’s niggas out there that he done wrong. As far as Da Brat, she’s opening her mouth getting into some shit she don’t want to be involved with. I wanna be the peacemaker, Kev. I wanna tell everybody to just stop.



Not only did 2Pac fire shots at Biggie and Bad Boy on Hit Em Up but he also did so under his new alias Makaveli on the 7 Day Theory album in the track “Bomb First” alongside Biggie and Puffy being dissed on the Makaveli album several other artists also fell victim to Makaveli such as Nas, Mobb Deep, Jay Z & plenty more. The 7 Day Theory is one of the hardest albums 2Pac/Makaveli released. There was no official release of a response from Biggie Smalls after Hit Em Up as far as the music goes.