suge knight Archives

The 1st Look At Death Row Series Shows Suge Strong-Arming Eazy-E To Get Dre (Video)

The Death Row Chronicles is an upcoming six-part series on one of music's most successful and most controversial record labels. Airing on BET February 20 (beginning with part one and two), a two-minute video trailer released, featuring commentary from some of the people closest to Death Row Records' former CEO... Read more

January 16, 2018 TV, TV/Film, Video

Irv Gotti Says He Stopped Suge Knight From Releasing A Jennifer Lopez Sex Tape (Video)

In 2002, Irv Gotti produced two #1 remix singles for Jennifer Lopez. As a supplement to the actress-singer's quadruple-platinum J.Lo LP, she took a page from Mary J. Blige by releasing J To Tha L-O!: The Remixes. Like it's companion, the Epic Records remix album went to #1, featuring Hip-Hop guests... Read more

November 9, 2017 Video

21 Years After Tupac’s Death, The Game Questions How He’d Fit In Today (Audio)

Twenty-one years ago today, the physical world said goodbye to Tupac Shakur. Even with a week spent fighting for his life in a Las Vegas hospital, the 1996 news was sudden and scary, surrounding a Rap star that seemed, at times, immortal—and other times, doomed. Kanye West Killed 50 Cent... Read more

September 13, 2017 Audio

Suge Knight Indicted For Threatening Straight Outta Compton Director F. Gary Gray

On January 29 of 2015, Suge Knight was an uninvited guest on the film set of Straight Outta Compton. After being asked to leave, Knight used his Ford Raptor truck as a weapon in the parking lot of nearby Tam's Burgers. The events that followed left veteran music industry manager... Read more

August 3, 2017 News

The Outlawz Dispute Jimmy Iovine’s Claim That He Bailed Tupac Out Of Jail (Video)

The Outlawz have a complicated history with Death Row Records. Tupac's squad of New Jersey proteges would never release an album on Suge Knight and Dr. Dre's label. Marketed as acts on the imprint following Pac's death, they did sign, however, 1999's Top 10 Still I Rise album famously did... Read more

August 1, 2017 Video

An Insider Reveals How Suge & Death Row Got Those Unlikely Guest Appearances (Video)

When Death Row Records launched in the early 1990s, they used Hollywood's SOLAR Records Studios to lay their tracks. After making "Deep Cover" for the SOLAR's soundtrack of the same name, Dr. Dre recorded and mixed The Chronic with some of the very same consoles and equipment used to make... Read more

July 20, 2017 Video

A New Documentary Series Will Show The Rise & Fall Of Death Row Records

There are few storylines, whether fact or fiction, filled with more drama, violence, or ups and downs than the tale of Death Row Records. Founded in 1991 by Dr. Dre and Suge Knight, with help from SOLAR Records' Dick Griffey, The D.O.C. and incarcerated silent partner Michael "Harry O" Harris,... Read more

April 20, 2017 Video

Teasers For The Tupac Movie Have Been Really Good. The Official Trailer Is GREAT (Video)

Tupac Shakur's life story is coming to theaters in less than 10 weeks. The film, All Eyez On Me will chronicle the rise and fall of one of Hip-Hop's immortal voices. The movie traces a timeline from 'Pac's impressionable childhood to his sudden, tragic death. Following several teasers, the June... Read more

April 6, 2017 TV/Film, Video

The G-Funk Documentary Pulls Warren G From The Background & Makes Him The Pioneer (Video)

For nearly 25 years, Warren G has been a powerful force within Hip-Hop. A multi-platinum MC, a hit producer, and an accomplished DJ, Warren Griffin joined his 213 band-mates (Snoop Dogg and Nate Dogg) and Daz Dillinger in putting Long Beach, California on the Hip-Hop map. While Warren's first three... Read more

March 13, 2017 TV/Film, Video

Snoop Dogg’s Dippin’ From Death Row To No Limit May Have Saved His Career & Life (Audio)

In early 1998, Snoop Dogg left Death Row Records for No Limit. In a reported $4 million deal brokered by Priority Records, the Long Beach, California MC went from the breakout star signed by Dr. Dre at the top of the decade to the key acquisition of the reigning independent... Read more

January 5, 2017 Do Remember

The LOX Were Courted By Suge & Death Row. They Explain Why They Passed (Video)

This month, The LOX shocked Heads with the announcement of a partnership with Jay Z and Roc Nation. That news broke December 1, with an album coming just over two weeks later. The D-Block/Roc-backed Filthy America...It's Beautiful marked the Yonkers, New York trio's first full-length album in more than 16... Read more

December 27, 2016 Video

Puffy Details Stepping To Suge Knight After The Source Awards & Suge Backpedaling (Video)

On August 3, 1995, many historians believe that the East Coast and West Coast Hip-Hop Beef was declared. Accepting the Source Award in Madison Square Garden for the Above The Rim soundtrack, Death Row Records CEO and co-founder Suge Knight told attendees, “Any artist out there that want to be an... Read more

November 30, 2016 Video

Kurupt Looks Back At The Major Beefs Of His Career In “Unsung” (Video)

This week, the Unsung series aired its episode dedicated to Kurupt. The TV One program examined the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania upbringing of Tha Dogg Pound co-founder. Kurupt admits that Rakim is a leading Rap influence in his lyrical style and enhanced vocabulary. The biography follows Kurupt's move to California, and subsequent... Read more

November 27, 2016 TV/Film, Video

Learn 10 Mind-Blowing Facts About Dre, Tupac, & Eazy From The Definitive Book On L.A. Gangsta Rap

Perhaps even more than Hip-Hop's inception, or its commercial rise, the history of N.W.A. and the diaspora of West Coast Gangsta Rap is the culture's most intriguing story. There are heroes, villains, fights, triumphs, and a plethora of great music. Author Ben Westhoff's just-published Original Gangstas is as comprehensive a... Read more

November 24, 2016 Food for Thought

Hillary Clinton & Charlamagne Talk Death Row Meme & Her Response May Surprise You (Video)

Moments after taking the stage at the third presidential debate on October 19, Hillary Clinton became the subject of what may be the greatest Hip-Hop-meets-politics meme of all time. In it, her wardrobe choices for each of the three debates is matched up against uncannily similar outfits worn by Death... Read more

October 26, 2016 Video

Suge Knight Files A Law Suit Claiming Dr. Dre Tried To Have Him Killed In 2014

Twenty five years ago, Suge Knight and Dr. Dre were business partners at the burgeoning Death Row Records. Two Compton, California natives came together as manager and artist to build one of modern music's largest empires, in less than five years. Today (October 24), Suge and his lawyers sued Dr.... Read more

October 24, 2016 News

Eazy-E’s Daughter Intends To Prove Her Father Was Murdered, In A Documentary (Video)

It has been more than 21 years since Gangsta Rap pioneer Eric "Eazy-E" Wright passed away. In March of 1995, the public learned that the founder of N.W.A. and Ruthless Records had AIDS. Three weeks later, on March 26, Eazy was dead. Close associates have recalled that the Compton, California mogul... Read more

October 19, 2016 TV/Film, Video

Puff Daddy Credits Nas With Saving Hip-Hop & More In A Bold Tribute Speech (Video)

More than 15 years ago, Nas and Puff Daddy made a triumphant anthem together in "Hate Me Now." Appearing on Nas' third album, I Am... the record symbolically closed out the 1990s with an MC once allocated to the Underground shining as a reigning figure of Hip-Hop. Although Nas and... Read more

October 17, 2016 Video

Cold 187um Claims He Created G-Funk & Got Snoop Signed To Death Row (Video)

Last week, Above The Law's Cold 187um released his single "Legacy" featuring Ice Cube and The D.O.C. Premiering at Ambrosia For Heads, the track marked a full-circle reunion with the Pomona, California production and rapping icon with two of his former Ruthless Records label mates. Having just released his The... Read more

October 11, 2016 Video

Dr. Dre Reportedly Threatens Legal Action To Prevent The Michel’le Biopic From Airing

On October 15, Lifetime is scheduled to air made-for-TV film Surviving Compton: Dre, Suge & Michel’le. The biographical film is centered around Michel'le, who was a late 1980s and early 1990s R&B star on Eazy-E's Ruthless Records. Later on, Michel'le moved with producer Dr. Dre, The D.O.C., and their manager... Read more

October 9, 2016 News

Tupac Approved The Artwork For Makaveli’s Don Killuminati A Day Before He Was Shot (Audio)

Twenty years ago this month, Tupac Shakur was confirmed dead seven days after a Las Vegas, Nevada drive-by shooting. At the time, Shakur had released one of the biggest albums of 1996 care of double LP All Eyez On Me. However, the Death Row Records artist had recently completed an... Read more

September 24, 2016 Audio

Michel’le’s Biopic Shows Her Being Abused By Dr. Dre & Her Relationship With Suge Knight (Video)

Despite its commercial success and critical acclaim, N.W.A. biopic Straight Outta Compton also drew criticism for some of the misogyny seen in the film, as well as that which was withheld. In particular, there was a renewed focus on Dr. Dre's past abuse of women. As a result, in August... Read more

September 18, 2016 TV, Video

Ed Gordon Recalls Building Closeness With Tupac After Questioning His “Thug” Life (Video)

Tomorrow (September 13), veteran broadcast journalist Ed Gordon will launch his new, self-titled series for Bounce TV. Throughout the last 30 years, the Detroit, Michigan native has been a pillar of news and information, as a longtime host and correspondent on BET, plus contributor to "60 Minutes," "Today," and other... Read more

September 12, 2016 Video

SWV & Wu-Tang Clan’s Remix Did Not Sound Like Anything Before It (Audio)

In 1994, SWV (a/k/a Sisters With Voices) had become one of the most successful acts in the new guard of R&B-Pop. With its Gospel roots, the RCA Records machine (thanks to some demo tapes packaged with sparkling water) helped transform Taj, Coko, and Lelee into top-of-the-charts sensations. Like fellow New... Read more

September 8, 2016 Do Remember

A Film On The Murder Investigations Of Biggie & Tupac Is In The Making

Today marks the 20th anniversary (September 7, 1996) of the shooting in Las Vegas, Nevada that would ultimately cost Tupac Shakur his life. With biopic All Eyez On Me hitting theaters later this year, and 2009's Notorious telling the life story of The Notorious B.I.G. (a/k/a Christopher Wallace), a forthcoming... Read more

September 7, 2016 News, TV/Film

Snoop Dogg Discusses How Master P Saved Him From Death Row & Changed His Life

Although he has since reconciled with Suge Knight, there was a time when things between Snoop Dogg and Death Row Records were literally deadly serious. Shortly after Tupac's murder in 1996, Snoop wanted to make peace with Bad Boy Records and end the East Coast/West Coast beef once and for... Read more

August 28, 2016 News

Snoop Wanted To End The Death Row/Bad Boy Beef In 1996 But Was Shut Down By Suge (Video)

Over the last few weeks, Snoop Dogg has been very vocal about his complicated relationship with Suge Knight, both past and present. Two weeks ago, he sat down with The Breakfast Club and explained how he was able to forgive the Death Row Records CEO for literally trying to have... Read more

August 25, 2016 Video

Ed Lover’s Tupac Stories Will Make You Cover Your Mouth (Audio)

Contemporary Hip-Hop has a plethora of media personalities presenting, dissecting, and analyzing the music and culture. Names such as Sway Calloway, Charlamagne Tha God, Miss Info, and DJ Vlad come to mind in breaking news, discourse, and reaction to the daily stream of events. These personalities use different media platforms... Read more

August 16, 2016 Audio

Snoop Explains Why He Befriended Suge Knight After Knight Tried To Have Him Killed (Video)

Snoop Dogg was the latest guest on The Breakfast Club and, as is often the case, the OG shared a lot of game. Shortly into the discussion (3:45), the conversation turned to the current status of Snoop's relationship with Suge Knight. Snoop said that he and Knight, who is currently... Read more

August 11, 2016 Video

Snoop Dogg Claims He Is The Reason Tupac Signed To Death Row

In 1995 and 1996, Snoop Dogg and Tupac Shakur were label mates at Death Row Records. Notably, 'Pac had made a cameo in Snoop's 1994 film, Murder Was The Case—which was directed by Dr. Dre. He would also release a hit video single on Above The Rim soundtrack in "Pour... Read more

August 7, 2016 Audio

Suge Knight Sues Chris Brown In Connection With His 2014 Shooting

In 2014, Suge Knight was shot 7 times while attending a party hosted by Chris Brown at the Los Angeles clube, 1 Oak. Now, nearly two years later, as reported by the Associated Press, Knight has filed a lawsuit against both Brown and the club, alleging that Brown has a... Read more

June 27, 2016 News

The Game’s Rap Dreams Are Still Stranded On Death Row (Audio)

Dr. Dre released his solo debut The Chronic more than a decade before he would help introduce the world to 50 Cent. However, one Dre co-executive produced (with Eminem) 2003's Get Rich Or Die Tryin', it was a chain reaction of G-Unit artists that would quickly collect heat from D-R-E's... Read more

June 14, 2016 Audio

Easy Mo Bee Confirms Tupac Was Trying To End The East/West Beef

Easy Mo Bee is one of the artists who worked with Tupac Shakur and The Notorious B.I.G. the closest, during the mid-1990s. While acts like Bone Thugs-n-Harmony, Method Man, and Buckshot would record with both MCs, the Brooklyn, New York producer was deeply responsible for the soundscapes of Biggie Smalls'... Read more

May 23, 2016 Throwback

Michel’le’s Relationships With Dr. Dre & Suge Knight The Subject Of Lifetime Biopic

In 2015 film Straight Outta Compton, the lives and careers of N.W.A. members were profiled to a box office record-breaking response. Eazy-E, Ice Cube, Dr. Dre, MC Ren, and DJ Yella's recording, touring, and the establishment of Ruthless Records made for much of the film's story. Michel'le was present for... Read more

May 19, 2016 News, TV/Film

Tupac Shakur’s Estate Is Now In The Hands Of The Man Who Signed Him

Late Monday (May 2), Afeni Shakur died in Marin County, California at the age of 69. The mother of Tupac and Sekyiwa Shakur had become a mainstream figure, not just because of her high-profile son's life (and death), but also due to her years as a Black Panther, social activist,... Read more

May 4, 2016 News

Tupac’s Mom, Afeni Shakur, Has Died At The Age Of 69

Afeni Shakur, mother of 1990s Hip-Hop superstar Tupac Amaru Shakur, has died early this morning (May 3). She was 69 years old. While a cause of death has yet to be released to the public, the onetime Black Panther and inspiration to 1995 Interscope Records single "Dear Mama" has been... Read more

May 3, 2016 News

Producer Mike Mosley Reveals Several MCs Who Witnessed Tupac Record “Hit ‘Em Up” (Video)

In the mid-1990s, Tupac Shakur revamped his production personnel. While 1996's All Eyez On Me would be his first album at Death Row Records, working extensively with the label's production staff, those changes started taking shape even prior. On 1995's #1 LP, Me Against The World, 'Pac maintained a close... Read more

April 26, 2016 Throwback, Video

Daz Explains Why Lady Of Rage & Inspectah Deck Verses Did Not Make “All Eyez On Me” (Video)

Daz Dillinger produced five of the 27 tracks on Tupac's All Eyez On Me double album. Tha Dogg Pound MC/producer was a close affiliate of Shakur during his year with Death Row Records. The blockbuster album would eventually reach diamond certification, with Daz producing singles such as "I Ain't Mad... Read more

April 13, 2016 Video

J. Prince & Bun B Discuss Rap-A-Lot Records Ties To Death Row & Beyonce (Video)

2016 marks 30 years since James "J." Prince launched Rap-A-Lot Records. The Houston, Texas-based independent label would go on to achieve #1 albums, numerous platinum plaques, and a hand in the careers of artists ranging from Scarface to Drake, Tha Outlawz to Trae Tha Truth. The label's founder is notoriously... Read more

March 28, 2016 Video

Writers From The 90s Look At The Media’s Role In The East vs. West Beef (Video)

Twenty years later, there are few developments more significant in Hip-Hop than the events that unfolded around the feud that arose between Tupac Shakur and The Notorious B.I.G. That bad blood started when Tupac was shot in the lobby of Quad Recording Studios in New York City, in 1994. There... Read more

February 28, 2016 Video

Why Tupac’s “All Eyez On Me” Remains The First & Last Flawed Classic Album

Twenty years ago today (February 13, 1996), Tupac Shakur released what many would come to consider his magnum opus in All Eyez On Me. A Death Row Records double-album, the lone project 'Pac released at the label before his death is a sprawling ensemble of a man on a vendetta.... Read more

February 13, 2016 Food for Thought

MC Eiht Offers Firsthand Insight Into How Tupac’s Gang Affinities Killed Him (Video)

Although they would never release a song collaboration, MC Eiht and Tupac Shakur worked together in the 1990s. The two Hip-Hop artists would tour, as well as begin production on Menace II Society in the same cast (Shakur would later be fired). Reflecting on their relationship, the Compton's Most Wanted... Read more

February 4, 2016 Video

Big Daddy Kane Tells The Story Of The Night He & Tupac Recorded Together (Video)

Throughout the 1990s, Tupac Shakur and Big Daddy Kane maintained a friendship. It was during Kane's 1993 Manhattan show that 'Pac and The Notorious B.I.G., with Scoob and Shyheim The Rugged Child, famously spit their iconic freestyles together. However, Tupac and Kane would also record together. One song, reportedly titled "Too Late... Read more

January 14, 2016 Video

Afeni Shakur & Suge Knight Roles Cast In Tupac Biopic. Here Are Photos.

The principle characters in Tupac Shakur's life are being cast for upcoming biopic, All Eyez On Me. Tupac will be played by Demetrius Shipp, Jr., while the part of The Notorious B.I.G. was given to Notorious alum and former rapper Jamal "Gravy" Woolard. Now, two additional figures closest to Shakur... Read more

January 13, 2016 News, TV/Film

Tupac’s All Eyez On Me vs. Digital Underground’s Sex Packets. Which Is Better?

One year ago, Ambrosia For Heads launched a debate among its readers seeking to answer one of Hip-Hop’s most hotly-contested questions: who is the greatest MC of all time? “Finding The GOAT MC” lasted between September 2014 and May 2015, engaging millions of readers and ultimately producing its winner, as... Read more

November 12, 2015 Finding the GOAT

Kurupt Opens Up About Suge Knight & The Man He Killed (Video)

Of all the Death Row Records artists, Kurupt was the most prominent to be with the label for stints in the 1990s and 2000s. While the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania native MC only released one solo album at the imprint (2005's Against Tha Grain), he was hugely responsible for the label's success... Read more

October 20, 2015 Video

Daz Dillinger Is Really Serious About A Death Row Biopic…So Much So, He’s Cast It (Photos)

F. Gary Gray's Straight Outta Compton blockbuster biopic of N.W.A. addresses the rise of not only the group, but 1980s West Coast Gangsta Rap. In the film, in addition to the group members (Eazy-E, Dr. Dre, Ice Cube, DJ Yella, MC Ren), pivotal Rap figures are portrayed including The D.O.C.,... Read more

September 8, 2015 News

RBX Reveals He Was The First To Leave Death Row & The First To Sign With Aftermath (Video)

"The Narrator" RBX is one of Rap's most distinct voices. While the MC has only one Top 200 album (1995's The RBX Files, a #62 debut), he is widely recognized for his appearances on widely-considered classics. From The Chronic to Doggystyle to The Marshall Mathers LP, the Long Beach, California... Read more

September 1, 2015 Video

Master P Says He Saved Snoop Dogg’s Life, Wants Tyler Perry To Direct Biopic (Video)

To a skeptic, Master P's upcoming biopic King Of The South may appear to too closely follow the success of Straight Outta Compton. With No Limit built upon much of the Ruthless model, and TRU following N.W.A., one could argue that the New Orleans, Louisiana rapper/mogul/actor is simply pulling a... Read more

August 29, 2015 Video

Russell Poole, Lead Investigator Of The Notorious B.I.G. Murder, Has Died

The Notorious B.I.G.'s 1997 murder remains unsolved. One of the Los Angeles Police Department sergeant detectives who worked the hardest to change that, Russell Poole, has died. According to The Los Angeles Times, the former detective died Wednesday (August 19), while meeting with detectives at the L.A. Sheriff's Department. Although... Read more

August 20, 2015 News