''Pac's Life'' is the tenth and final studio album, and sixth

posthumous Posthumous may refer to: * Posthumous award, an award, prize or medal granted after the recipient's death * Posthumous publication, publishing of creative work after the author's death * Posthumous (album), ''Posthumous'' (album), by Warne Marsh, 1 ...

album by American rapper

2Pac Tupac Amaru Shakur (; born Lesane Parish Crooks; June 16, 1971 – September 13, 1996), also known by his stage names 2Pac and Makaveli, was an American rapper and actor, regarded as one of the greatest and most influential rappers of all tim ...

, released on November 21, 2006 on

Amaru Entertainment Amaru Entertainment (formerly Amaru Records) was a record label founded in 1997 by Afeni Shakur after the death of her son Tupac Amaru Shakur. The label was created to handle the release of Tupac's previously unreleased material, and was give ...

. The album debuted at number nine on the US ''Billboard'' 200 chart.

Background

Shakur's vocals were recorded during his time spent on

Death Row Records Death Row Records is an American record label that was founded in 1991 by The D.O.C., Dr. Dre, Suge Knight, and Dick Griffey. The label became a sensation by releasing multi-platinum hip-hop albums by West Coast-based artists such as Dr. D ...

, excluding the two bonus tracks found on the UK and JP editions of the album. Of all the songs featured on the album, including the bonus tracks, only one song—"Soon As I Get Home"—is in its original, un-altered form, all others being remixes with updated beats and features. A broad range of artists contributed to the album, including

Outlawz Outlawz was an American hip-hop group founded by Tupac Shakur and Yafeu Fula in 1995. Originally known as Thoro Headz and Young Thugs, the group attracted attention with their appearance on Tupac's song "Flex", which was the B-side of his singl ...

Krayzie Bone Anthony Henderson (born June 17, 1973), better known as Krayzie Bone, is an American rapper. He is a member of the hip-hop group Bone Thugs-n-Harmony. Career Solo After finding success with Bone Thugs-n-Harmony, Krayzie Bone recorded his so ...

Snoop Dogg Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr. ( ; born October 20, 1971), better known by his stage name Snoop Dogg (previously Snoop Doggy Dogg), is an American rapper, record producer, and actor. Rooted in West Coast hip-hop, he is widely regarded as one of t ...

Chamillionaire Hakeem Temidayo Seriki (born November 28, 1979), better known by his stage name Chamillionaire (), is an American rapper. He began his career in Houston's hip hop scene in the late 1990s. He was briefly signed with the local record label Swishah ...

Ludacris Christopher Brian Bridges (born September 11, 1977), known professionally as Ludacris (, spoken as "ludicrous" in American English), is an American rapper and songwriter. Born in Champaign, Illinois, Ludacris moved to Atlanta, Georgia, at age ...

, A-3,

Big Syke Tyruss Gerald Himes (November 22, 1968 – December 5, 2016), better known by his stage names Big Syke and Mussolini, was an American rapper best known for his work with the American hip-hop groups Thug Life and Outlawz. His stage name "Big S ...

Papoose Papoose (from the Narragansett ''papoos'', meaning "child") is an American English word whose present meaning is "a Native American child" (regardless of tribe) or, even more generally, any child, usually used as a term of endearment, often in ...

Keyshia Cole Keyshia Myeshia Cole (née Johnson; born October 15, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, television personality and actress. Dubbed by critics as the " Princess of Hip-Hop Soul", she is known for her soulful voice and heartfelt lyrics. Bor ...

Jay Rock Johnny Reed McKinzie Jr. (born March 31, 1985), better known by his stage name Jay Rock, is an American rapper from Los Angeles, California. Rock signed with local independent label Top Dawg Entertainment (TDE) in 2005. He secured a major lab ...

Young Buck David Darnell Brown (born March 15, 1981), better known by his stage name Young Buck, is an American rapper. He signed with Birdman's Cash Money Records in 1997, formed the hip hop collective UTP with Juvenile and Soulja Slim in 2000, and j ...

, Ashanti,

T.I. Clifford Joseph Harris Jr. (born September 25, 1980), known professionally as T.I. or Tip, is an American rapper and singer raised in Atlanta, Georgia. Harris is credited as a pioneer of the hip hop subgenre trap music, along with fellow Georgi ...

, Lil' Scrappy,

Nipsey Hussle Ermias Joseph Asghedom (born Airmiess Joseph Asghedom; August 15, 1985 – March 31, 2019), known professionally as Nipsey Hussle, was an American rapper, entrepreneur, and activist. Emerging from the West Coast hip-hop scene in the mid-20 ...

, three posthumous appearances by Kadafi, and Jamal Woolard, who became famous for portraying The Notorious B.I.G. in the 2009 biopic '' Notorious'' and in the 2017 biopic '' All Eyez on Me''. The album's title track and lead single features singer Ashanti and fellow rapper

. The two featured artists also participated in the filming of the song's music video, filmed at the

Tupac Amaru Shakur Center for the Arts The Tupac Amaru Shakur Center for the Arts, based in Stone Mountain, Georgia, was a performing arts center supported through the Shakur Family Foundation. The Shakur Center's mission was to provide opportunities for young people through the arts ...

. The World Premiere of "Pac's Life" was on at 7:30 PM on BET's '' Access Granted'' on Wednesday, November 22. The video was also featured on BET's behind-the-scenes filming of "Pac's Life".

Promotion

The album was recorded in

Van Nuys, California Van Nuys ( ) is a neighborhood in the central San Fernando Valley region of Los Angeles, California. Home to Van Nuys Airport and the Van Nuys City Hall, Valley Municipal Building, it is the most populous neighborhood in the San Fernando Valley ...

. A week of events was conducted for the celebration of the release. It kicked off on Saturday November 11 at the Vaknin Gallery with "All Eyez On Me: Hip-Hop's Legendary Performers and Photographers," where photographers displayed their material. On Tuesday November 14, at the same venue, a VIP party previewing Pac's Life took place from 7:00pm – 10:00pm. The events were then shifted to the

(TASCA) where coat drives were held on Wednesday, November 15 and Friday, November 17 everyone who brought a winter coat received two admission tickets to the Pac's Life album release party. On Monday November 20, a "Pac's Life Teen Art" competition took place from 6-8 PM, where children ages 13–17 competed in an art exhibit contest.

Critical reception

Reviews from critics and fans were mixed, with the general consensus being that while 2Pac's vocals were undoubtedly strong, the modern production sounded commercialized.

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

wrote: "This isn't to say that there is not some great material on Pac's Life, because there is ..., but the power of 2Pac's words is often lost behind the modern production ... and new verses from artists like Ludacris, Lil Scrappy, Ashanti, and Young Buck."

Commercial performance

''Pac's Life'' debuted at number nine on the US ''Billboard'' 200 chart, selling 159,000 copies in its first week. This became 2Pac's tenth US top-ten album and his seventh posthumous album to reach the top-ten.

Track listing

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Release history

References

{{Authority control 2006 albums Albums produced by E.D.I. Albums produced by Swizz Beatz Interscope Records albums Albums published posthumously Tupac Shakur albums Albums produced by L.T. Hutton