2Pac -2004- Loyal To The Game (Amaru / Interscope)

• Compilation of renewed tracks originally recorded in 1991-1993.
  
• 2004, December the 12th.
• After the success of Resurrection O.S.T., Afeni Amaru gave Eminem the hard charge to lead the producing of the new compilation album of his son...
  

Picture taken from the same Reising & Taylor shooting taken in 1994 

some of them were used in Me Against The World

Is it an appropriate choice for a compilation gathering songs from 1992-1993 ?

Discogs page

1. Soldier Like Me feat. Eminem

2. Uppercut feat. Edi & Young Noble

3. Out on Bail

4. Ghetto Gospel

5. Black Cotton feat. Eminem, Kastro & Young Noble

6. Loyal To The Game feat. G-Unit

7. Thugs Get Lonely Too feat. Nate Dogg

8. N.I.G.G.A. feat. Jadakiss

9. Who Do You Love ? *

10. Crooked Nigga Too

11. Don't You Trust Me

12. Hennessey feat. Obie trice *

13. Thug 4 Life *

 

Bonus tracks :

14. Po' Nigga Blues (Scott Storch Remix) feat. Ron Isley

15. Hennessey (Red Spyda Remix) feat. Edi & Sleepy Brown *

16. Crooked Nigga Too (Raphael Saadiq Remix) feat. Raphael Saadiq

17. Loyal To The Game (DJ Quik Remix) feat. Big Syke

Producers - Eminem & Luis Resto (1 to 13)

* Bold : Until then these were leaked only in a very poor quality -  9, 12, 13, 15

 

Original producers - Big D The Impossible (1,4,5,8,10,11,16), Live Squad (1,2,7,9,12,15), Johnny J (13), DJ Daryl (14), Reginald Heard (6,17), LG Experience (3)

 

Originally intended for - 2Pacalypse Now / Tales of a 90's N.I.G.G.A. (8), Troublesome 21 or 2Pacalypse II / Ghetto Gospel / Fragile (1,4,5,9,10,11,14,16), Above the Rim OST (6,17), Mr. Middle Finger or Out On Bail (2,3,7), Thug Life Volume One sessions (1,12,13,15)

 

Original featuring - Live Squad (1,9,10,13), Thug Life (1,5,8,12,15), Y?N.Vee (2), Treach & Riddler (6,17), Prince's voice (7)

2Pac trapped in the Michigan ! Thank you Em' but stick to what you're able to do...

These tracks were recorded in 1991-1993. It is obvious that Afeni wanted them to sound modern, that's why she confides the remixing work to one of the most successful name of that time : Eminem.. Is Eminem a well-known producer ? No... At the height of the defy ? of course not at all. Was he able to gather competent people to do the job under his supervision ? Yes. Did he do it ? Not at all. The result is childish weak ass productions, average East Cost beats, totally irrelevant. Nothing sounds like 2Pac original work...

In the chosen tracks of this compilation, 2Pac was younger than during his period of fame at Death Row, so Eminem & Luis Resto have often altered his voice to make it sound older... the result is obviously awful (like if you couldn't recognize that the voice of your father/mother had been faked by an A.I. engine, modified... it can mislead only new listeners). More problematic, some sounds of the original can be still heard badly in the far background (like AB Money of Rappin' is Fundamental in "Out on Bail" chorus)... Surprising for an official release... Less good than most of fanmade remixes available on Internet...

 

When you see that the first song of that album combines verses from two different songs (one from beginning of 92, "Revenge of a Soulja" and one of late 93, "Judgement Day") with an average east coast sound and a totally unwelcome verse by Eminem, we can guess that the whole thing will be a waste of time to listen to...

Frankly, a total disaster (maybe not for the bonus remix tracks that were made by professionals), a shame for 2Pac's fans to know that youngsters will listen to this and say : oh this is it, this is 2Pac !

  

 

1. Soldier Like Me (Return of The Soulja) feat. Soulja Voice, Dee Tha Mad Bitch, Mopreme, Stretch, Eminem / Stretch REMIX Eminem & Luis Resto

• 1991-1992 - 2004. A mixture of two songs originally recorded for 2Pacalypse II and for Thug Life Volume I (cf. Honor Among Thugz). The first song was a sequel to the "Soulja's song" in his first album.
  
• Original version : Souljah's Revenge (Original) ; Judgement Day feat. Dee Tha Mad Bitch, Mopreme & Stretch 

2. Uppercut feat. Nic Nam (Y?N-Vee), Stretch, Edi & Young Noble / Stretch REMIX Eminem & Luis Resto

• 1993 - 2004. Originally recorded for Mr. Middle Finger.
  
• Original Version : Uppercut (Original) feat. Nic.Nam (Y?N-Vee) [remake] ; Uppercut (Unused 2003 Mix) feat. Nic.Nam

3. Out on Bail feat. Rappin' Is Fundamental / LG Experience REMIX Eminem & Luis Resto

• 1993 - 2004. Originally recorded for Out On Bail (his solo album in late 93 / early 94) during sessions in New York with Easy Mo Bee (and his group Rappin' Is Fundamental who were doing the original chorus), among other songs like "Temptations" and "Runnin'". It was a very important song for 2Pac, which appeared in almost every solo album projects until being dropped from the last sequence of Me Against The World. The original version is very well known because 2Pac played it live at the Source Awards in 1994.
  
• Original Version : Out on Bail (Original Intro) feat. AB Money ;  Out On Bail (Original No Intro Mix) feat. AB Money ; Out on Bail (Live at the Source Awards) feat. Mopreme & Stretch

4. Ghetto Gospel feat. The Kidz / Big D The Impossible REMIX Eminem & Luis Resto

• 1991-1992 - 2004. The song was firstly written down and firstly recorded in late 91, around Christmas, like "Troublesome" and "Changes". But 2Pac only recorded a reference track at that time. In 1992, he re-recorded the song for him and one of the Kidz.
  
• Original Version :  Ghetto Gospel (reference for The Kidz) ; Ghetto Gospel feat. Jesse The Kidz [snippet]

5. Black Cotton feat. Mouse Man, Eminem, Kastro & Young Noble / Big D The Impossible REMIX Eminem & Luis Resto

• 1992 - 2004. Originally recorded probably for Strictly 4 My N.I.G.G.A.Z. or for Wycked & The Mouse shelved album State of Emergency (cf. Ghetto Gospel). The original song has many elements that will be re-used in "Pain".
  
• Original Version : Black Cotton (Original) feat. Mouse Man 

6. Loyal To The Game feat. Treach (Naughty By Nature) & Riddler (DBG'z), G-Unit / Reginald Heard REMIX Eminem & Luis Resto

• 1994 - 2004. Originally recorded for Above The RIM Soundtrack / Regulate B-side during the East Thug Life sessions (cf. Exodus). It is very unfair to re-release an existing officially released song without labelling as a remix. And what a strange thing to take off a Treach's verse !
  
• Original Version : Loyal To The Game (Above The RIM /Regulate Version) ; Loyal To The Game (Original Radio Mix) feat. Treach & Riddler 

7. Thugs Get Lonely Too feat. Rated R, Macadoshis, Prince (sampled chorus), Nate Dogg / Stretch REMIX Eminem & Luis Resto

• 1993 - 2004. Originally recorded for Mr. Middle Finger with the well known voice of Prince sampled from "If I Was Your Girlfriend (Live Version)", then intended for Out On Bail and for R U Still Down Original concept (this last one about to be released in the pre-Death Row compilation project in summer of 95, cf. Exodus). Even the Nate Dogg welcome voice can't make it forgotten because 2Pac was so in admiration of Prince. Is it too hard to just imitate a bit the original in order to respect the author ?
• Original Version :  Thugz Get Lonely Too (Original Plain Version), Thugz Get Lonely Too (Original Breaks Version) [snippet], Thugz Get Lonely Too (Original Gigolos Mix)

8. N.I.G.G.A. feat. Mopreme, Mouse Man, Jadakiss / Big D The Impossible REMIX Eminem & Luis Resto

• 1991 - 2004. Originally recorded for 2Pacalypse Now (cf. Tales of a 90's N.I.G.G.A.) but maybe another version has been recorded for Wycked & The Mouse shelved album State of Emergency (cf. Ghetto Gospel). This was the first combo between 2Pac and his stepbrother, and the first "professionnal" song with his first rap partner Dana Mouse Smith (cf. The Early Years).
  
• Original Version :  Hymn of The 90's N.I.G.G.A. (Original) feat. Mopreme & Mouse Man

9. Who Do You Love ? feat. Stretch / Stretch REMIX Eminem & Luis Resto

• 1993 - 2004. Originally recorded for Mr. Middle Finger or Out On Bail.
  
• Original Version :  Who Do U Love ? (Original) feat. Stretch ; Who Do U Love (Solo) [remake].

10. Crooked Nigga Too feat. Stretch / Big D The Impossible REMIX Eminem & Luis Resto

• 1991 - 2004. Originally recorded for 2Pacalypse Now's companion EP Tales of a 90's N.I.G.G.A., then it appears in 2Pacalypse II (as a sequel to "Crooked Ass Nigga") and was about to be released in Troublesome 21 shelved album.
  
• Original Version :  Crooked Nigga Too (Original) feat. Stretch

11. Don't You Trust Me feat. Dave Hollister & Roniece / Big D The Impossible REMIX Eminem & Luis Resto

• 1992 - 2004. The song could have been recorded as a reference track for his friend Yonnie Stokes aka A Sista Named Mista, a woman who was credited in 2Pacalypse Now for "Rebel of The Underground" background vocals, but more likely she is the female rapper of "Part Time Mutha". She was supposed to be a part of 2Pac first shelved project Dayz of a Criminal with Jungle Posse in 90, then she was half of the Ghetto Gospel project in 92 (so with this song), and she was in a short lived lineup of Thug Life group in early 94 (cf. Honor Among Thugz pictures and unreleased song "Thug Bitch"). 
• Original version : Don't You Trust (Original), not very appreciated because of the Roniece's chorus being not on key ; Don't You Trust (Piano Mix) ; Don't You Trust (Alternate)

12. Hennessey feat. Big Syke, Mopreme, Obie trice / Stretch REMIX Eminem & Luis Resto

• 1994/03 (~) - 2004. Recorded in the beginning of 94 for the East Thug Life sessions with Live Squad (cf. Exodus). It was the last song in 94 to feature Thug Life members (Dramacydal album excepted, but probably recorded when 2Pac was still in prison). The song seems to be only a kind of freestyle or a short lived project of song left unfinished. The leaked acapella has Big Syke and Mopreme verses in a very poor quality, but the original sample has been recently identified in the background of it and Parish could made a first OG remake version.
• Original version : "Hennessey (Original) feat. Big Syke & Mopreme [Parish OG remake".
  

13. Thug 4 Life feat. Stretch / Johnny J REMIX Eminem & Luis Resto

• 1993/05 (~) - 2004. This song was originally recorded during the Thug Life concept Original album sessions (cf. Thug Life Original : Do U Luv The Thug Life ?), but the song was not supposed to be included in the album, maybe for a B-side, it was more likely recorded for the Kidz/Havenotz side project - 2Pac writing and and recording reference tracks for a group of young kids rapping -, project that was started in late 91 (cf. Ghetto Gospel) and lasted until late 93 (cf. Honor Among Thugz). The song was already available in poor quality leaks and in its acapella form, so it was a good idea to have it in this compilation. Unfortunately, Eminem didn't include the original verse of Stretch which is in a very very distorted state in the acapella leak.
• Original version : Thug 4 Life (Original) feat. Stretch [juda7 edit] (homemade edited mix with the Stretch lost verse and an alternate unused version of the original instrumental).

14. Po' Nigga Blues (Scott Storch Remix) feat. Knumskull, Ron Isley / DJ Daryl, Shock G of 415 REMIX Scott Storch

• 1992 - 2004. The song has been said to be a reference track for his friend The Govenor (also a friend of Richie Rich of 415) who recorded a version of the song in his album Floss Mode in 95, but the song was probably given to him later, and it appears in 1992 in a handwritten tracklist of 2Pac's original project of 2Pacalypse II : a sequel to 2Pacalypse Now. When 2Pac was in prison or not long after his death, Shock G was asked to remix the song and so he gave the wonderful "Cause I Had To" original remixed version with backings by Knumskull, version that was said purposed for a release in R U Still Down, finally leftover. 2Pac vocals were also pitched to sound older, but is was a more successful and discreet work.
• Original version :  "Po' Nigga Blues (Original)", "Cause I Had To (Shock G Remix) feat. Knumskull (backings)"

15. Hennessey (Red Spyda Remix) feat. Big Syke, Mopreme, Edi & Sleepy Brown / Stretch REMIX DJ Red Spyda

• 1994 - 2004. An alternate version of this remix has been made with the original verses from the leaked acapella, before the original sample was identified.
  
• Samples : D'Angelo - "Sh*t, Damned, Muthaf**ker"
  

16. Crooked Nigga Too (Raphael Saadiq Remix) feat. Stretch, Raphael Saadiq / Big D The Impossible REMIX Raphael Saadiq

17. Loyal To The Game (DJ Quik Remix) feat. Treach (Naughty By Nature) & Riddler (DBG'z), Big Syke / Reginald Heard REMIX DJ Quik