"Toss It Up" is a song by rapper

Tupac Shakur Tupac Amaru Shakur ( ; born Lesane Parish Crooks, June 16, 1971 – September 13, 1996), also known as 2Pac and Makaveli, was an American rapper. He is widely considered one of the most influential rappers of all time. Shakur is among the Li ...

from his fifth studio album, '' The Don Killuminati: The 7 Day Theory'' (1996). Released under the

stage name A stage name is a pseudonym used by performers and entertainers—such as actors, comedians, singers, and musicians. Such professional aliases are adopted for a wide variety of reasons and they may be similar, or nearly identical, to an individu ...

Makaveli, the song served as the

lead single A lead single (also known as a debut single) is the first single to be released from a studio album by an artist or a band, usually before the album itself is released and also occasionally on the same day of the album's release date. Release s ...

to the

posthumous Posthumous may refer to: * Posthumous award - an award, prize or medal granted after the recipient's death * Posthumous publication – material published after the author's death * Posthumous (album), ''Posthumous'' (album), by Warne Marsh, 1987 * ...

album. It was first released in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

just under two weeks after his death, peaking at number thirty-three on the R&B singles chart. The song is known for including a diss toward

Dr. Dre Andre Romelle Young (born February 18, 1965), known professionally as Dr. Dre, is an American rapper and record producer. He is the founder and CEO of Aftermath Entertainment and Beats Electronics, and previously co-founded, co-owned, and ...

and instrumentally being very similar to Dre's production on the song "

No Diggity "No Diggity" is a song by American R&B group Blackstreet as the first single for their second studio album, '' Another Level'' (1996), featuring Dr. Dre and Queen Pen. Released on July 29, 1996, the song reached number one on the US ''Billboard' ...

". It features vocals and singing from Aaron Hall,

Danny Boy "Danny Boy" is a ballad, written by English songwriter Frederic Weatherly in 1913, and set to the traditional Irish melody of "Londonderry Air". History In 1910, in Bath, Somerset, the English lawyer and lyricist Frederic Weatherly initial ...

, and

K-Ci & JoJo K-Ci & JoJo is an American R&B duo, consisting of brothers Cedric "K-Ci" Hailey (born September 2, 1969) and Joel "JoJo" Hailey (born June 10, 1971). Natives of Monroe, North Carolina, they are also the lead singers of the chart-topping R&B g ...

. The single release altered slightly to the version found on the

album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...

. The album version was later included on Shakur's 1998 compilation ''

Greatest Hits A greatest hits album or best-of album is a type of compilation album that collects popular and commercially successful songs by a particular artist or band. While greatest hits albums are typically supported by the artist, they can also be crea ...

'' with a new mix and alternative lyrics.

Controversy

The finished production shared close similarities to Blackstreet's "No Diggity". Due to that,

Jimmy Iovine James Iovine ( ; ; born March 11, 1953) is an American entrepreneur, record executive, and media proprietor best known as the co-founder of Interscope Records. In 2006, Iovine and rapper-producer Dr. Dre founded Beats Electronics, which produces ...

sent a

cease and desist A cease and desist letter is a document sent to an individual or business to stop alleged illegal activity. The phrase "cease and desist" is a legal doublet, made up of two near-synonyms. The letter may warn that, if the recipient does not dis ...

order which forced them to reproduce the song. A new verse, dissing Dr. Dre, was also recorded for the new version. On the outro of the song, 2Pac also disses

Puff Daddy Puff may refer to: Science and technology * Puff, a small quantity of gas or smoke in the air ** Puff, a light gust of wind ** Exhalation ** Inhalation * Puff model, volcanic ash tracking model developed at the University of Alaska Fairbanks * PUF ...

and

Lil Kim Lil or LIL may refer to: Use as a short form of "little" Artists * Lill Babs, Swedish musician *Lil B, American rapper * Lil'B, Japanese pop duo *Lil Baby, American rapper *Lil Bibby, American rapper * Lil Bitts, Trinidadian musician *Li ...

, responding to what Puff Daddy said about him in an interview.

Music video

Two videos were recorded for the song. One, the main version, is set in a

garage A garage is a covered structure built for the purpose of parking, storing, protecting, maintaining, and/or repairing vehicles. Specific applications include: *Garage (residential), a building or part of a building for storing one or more vehicle ...

and features 2Pac wearing safety goggles and using a

blow torch A blowtorch, also referred to as a blowlamp, is an ambient air fuel-burning gas lamp used for applying flame and heat to various applications, usually metalworking. Early blowtorches used liquid fuel, carried in a refillable reservoir attache ...

and

baseball bat A baseball bat is a smooth wooden or metal club used in the sport of baseball to hit the ball after it is thrown by the pitcher. By regulation it may be no more than in diameter at the thickest part and no more than in length. Although histor ...

. was shot on the evening of September 6, 1996 . The videos were shot alongside featured artists Danny Boy, K-Ci and JoJo. Aaron Hall does not appear in the video. Both videos were directed by

Lionel C. Martin Lionel C. Martin is an American music video director, film director and VJ (media personality), VJ from Queens, Queens, New York. While he is known primarily as a music video director, he has also film director, directed the films ''Def Jam's How ...

Versions

*Album version: The only version to feature the "album vibe" introduction. *Single version: With "needle drop" introduction by 2Pac, entirely different mix, and less, "Boom!", backing vocals throughout. *

version: An entirely new mix of the album version, minus the "album vibe" intro, and features some altered lyrics. *Original early mix produced by

: Officially unreleased, though leaked, this version doesn't include the final, Dre diss verse. *Nu-Mixx version: A remix found on the 2003 compilation album,

Nu-Mixx Klazzics ''Nu-Mixx Klazzics'' is a remix album by American rapper Tupac Shakur, 2Pac, released in 2003 under Death Row Records and Koch Records. The album includes several songs from ''All Eyez on Me'' and ''The Don Killuminati: The 7 Day Theory'', with ...

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

References

{{K-Ci & JoJo 1996 songs 1996 singles Diss tracks Interscope Records singles Music videos directed by Lionel C. Martin Songs written by Danny Boy (singer) Songs written by Aaron Hall (singer) Songs written by Tupac Shakur Tupac Shakur songs G-funk songs Songs written by Teddy Riley Songs written by K-Ci