He was fatally shot several times in Las Vegas, Nevada on September 7, 1996 after attending a boxing match and died in hospital a week later. Earlier acts of violence have said to have been spurred by antagonism between him and other East Coast rappers (namely Notorious B.I.G), bred by gangsta rap.
The Las Vegas Metro Police and Compton police, although they never officially solved the case, concluded that Shakur was shot by Southside Crips after the Tyson fight. Hours before, Tupac had been involved in a confrontation between the Death Row entourage and a Southside Crip by the name of Orlando Anderson.
Conspiracy theories about his death abound: there are some who insist that he is not dead, or that the shooting was a government assassination.
A previous assassination attempt led Shakur to seek protection, and Shakur employed bodyguards after getting out of jail in October, 1995.
At the time of his death, Shakur was also building on his acting career. John Singleton wrote the film Baby Boy with Shakur in mind for the leading role, but Shakur died before it was made. It was eventually filmed with Tyrese Gibson in his place, and released in 2001, five years after Shakur's death. From 1991-1996, Shakur acted in 7 films, including the critically acclaimed Juice, Poetic Justice with Janet Jackson, and Gridlock'd with Tim Roth. Shakur even wrote a play while in jail.
Shakur's mother was Afeni Shakur, an early member of the Black Panther Party and victim of the United States' Federal Bureau of Investigation COINTELPRO against the Black Liberation movement. Much of Tupac's upbringing revolved around the Black Panther philosophy.
On November 14, 2003, a documentary about the rapper entitled Tupac: Resurrection, was released.
1.) 2Pacalypsenow (1991) Discography
2.) Strictly 4 My N.I.G.G.A.Z (1993)
3.) Thug Life: Thug Life Vol. 1 (1994)
4.) Me Against the World (1995)
5.) All Eyez on Me (1996)
6.) Makaveli: The Don Killuminati: 7 Day Theory (1996)
7.) R U Still Down (1997)
8.) 2Pac's Greatest Hits (1998)
9.) Still I Rise (1999)
10.) The Rose that Grew from Concrete (2000)
11.) Until the End of Time (2001)
12.) Better Dayz (2002)
13.) Tupac Resurrection (2003)