1996 - Lil' Homies (with Death Row All Stars)

• February - April '96 : leftover tracks for various undefined projects, before Big Syke and Johnny J left Death Row, and notably for an early project of soundtrack/compilation project eventually titled "Lil Homies" that turned into Gridlock'd.
  
• After Thug Pound sessions and before Outlawz 1st album what will finally be Immortalz. During the recordings of his second Death Row solo album (Me Against The World pt. 2).
  
• Lil' Homies could be seen as an intermediate state of the group between Outlaw Immortalz and Outlawz, but the group didn't record a lot at that time... It could be more likely a kind of Death Row All Stars compilation project led by 2Pac circa February-March. Then 2Pac started to select songs for the Rap side of Gridlock'd movie soundtrack, and helped to work on Big Syke's solo album.
• These projects evolved into Gridlock'd and Gang Related soundtracks but Death Row mostly left them over.
  
• Johnny J is the main sound identity of this compilation. 
• Sources : none...
  

Soul Train Awards, the 29th of March

### This is a personal attempt to create / imagine the compilation project 2Pac had at that time, on which we know nothing... A project that eventually turned into Gridlock'd Soundtrack Rap Side. So we gathered tracks from this period, which could find place nowhere else, tracks that had been taken off from his solo album. The result is good ! ###

Tracklist - LISTEN

1. Road 2 Glory

2. Lil' Homies pt. 1

3.

4. When We Ride On Our Enemies

5. Give Me Love (Interlude)

6. Ride 4 Me feat. Hussein, Kurupt & Ego-Trip

7. Too Late feat. Big Daddy Kane, MC Hammer & Nutt-So

8. Three Wordz (Only Move 4 Tha Money) feat. Snoop Dogg & Bad Azz - unfinished mix / dominator remake

9. Breathin' (GBM Version) feat. Outlawz & Ganksta Bitch Mentality

10. Lil' Homies pt. 2 feat. Outlawz

11. Ballad of a Dead Soulja

12. Good Life feat. Edi & Big Syke

13. Thug In Me (Johnny J Remix) feat. K-Ci & Jojo

14. Wherever U Are (Breaks Mix) feat. Big Daddy Kane

15. Better Dayz (OFTB Version) feat. Big Syke & O.F.T.B.

16. Just Watchin' feat. Snoop Dogg & Dogg Pound

17. My Closest Road Dawg (Alternate Mix) feat. Big Syke

Bonus Tracks :

. Ghetto Star feat. Nutt-So & Danny Boy

. This Ain't Livin' (Short Mix) (with reference for Snoop)

. Bitch Nigga (by Big Syke & Napoleon)

• Producer - Johnny J, Daz (8, 14), Darry Harper (6), Mike Mosley & Rick Rock (12)
• Chorus - Danny Boy (2, 7, 10, 11), Nanci Fletcher (2, 10), Sixx Nine of Sixx Feet Deep (9, 9), Tyrone Wrice aka Hurt-M-Badd (14)
  

 

On this solo album handwritten tracklist, 2Pac mentions 5 different projects he was working on at that time : 

• Hammer's album
• Big Syke's album
• a compilation
• a soundtrack
• a "Lil' Homies" project

Suge Knight, 2Pac, MC Hammer & Snoop Dogg

at the 23rd American Music Awards (January, the 29th)

MC Hammer on Death Row

In late January of 96, 2Pac helped MC Hammer to record "Too Tight" with Johnny J and Nanci Fletcher. He presumably recorded a reference track for him. In mid March, they will record "Too Late" with Big Daddy Kane and Nutt-So, also for his album. Another things about this album are : beats by Daz, chorus by Danny Boy and Hurt M Badd, 2 tracks with Lil Big of A.M.G. (who was also with Nutt-So, 2Pac and Outlawz on "Don't Sleep" - Aug. 96 ?), "Feel Like Hammer" featuring Storm (Storm wasn't at Death Row between February and June 96), "Can U Feel It pt. 1" with Nutt-So, Mac Mall, Kurupt, Knumskull (who speaks about "One Nation", Spice 1 and a skilled Storm. There could be a part 2 with maybe 2Pac... All these records sound presumably more summer 96.

Maybe in mid April, considering the huge success of All Eyez on Me, Suge asked 2Pac to give his best for the Hammer project... like Dr. Dre, Dogg Pound... gave their best for him ("California Love", "Can't C Me", "Got My Mind Made Up"). That could be the reason 2Pac finally sold his "Unconditional Love", clearly the most important track of his new solo album project (represent very well the kind of album he presented in his April interview). 

MC Hammer's album could have been considered as the next huge Death Row project to be released... If so, it would mean the new 2Pac solo album project was not yet to be published... That could be another reason for 2Pac to have dropped the album...

Too Tight has probably been completed in summer of 96, and was about to be released in fall of 96. Maybe just when 2Pac's been killed... It changed everything... Maybe Suge Knight decided to release Killuminati album instead... what could eventually have led Hammer to leave the label...

Big Syke solo on Death Row

In January of 96, with Mopreme departure from Death Row, Big Syke is now a solo artist in the label because the Outlawz are younger rappers. Logically, he planned to record his first solo album with the help of 2Pac. "My Closest Road Dog" shows us the beginning of that project. Initially a 2Pac's solo album track, Syke finally recorded two verses and took the track for himself. The "All New Heat" addition notes shows 2Pac sold "Until The End of Time", what was also one of the most representative track of his solo project. Maybe the tracks "Bitch Nigga" and "Good Life" were firstly aimed for that album, Syke maybe was about to record songs with every Outlawz members... We could add some advanced mixes from Thug Life/Thug Pound to fulfill this Syke project : "What'z Next", "6 or 12", "M.O.B.", "World Wide M.O.B. Figgaz", "Play Ya Cardz Right"...

"Lil' Homies" - intermediate state between Outlaw Immortalz & Outlawz ?

When he recorded the first version of "Lil' Homies" in January of '96, maybe it was thought as a group name to replace Thug Life / Outlaw Immortalz after Mopreme's departure and Syke going solo, so maybe to call Outlaw Immortalz without Big Syke (It kind of reminisce of the Young Thugz). He gave the song to the Outlawz in March. Lil' Homies as a group, this is what appears in All New Heat tracklist : "Thug Mansion featuring Lil' Homies"... But when he scrapped this album project, the name "Lil' Homies" could have became the title of a project. It could be an anticipated title for the Outlawz LP. But at that time, 2Pac had recorded "Thug Mansion" as a solo song, so 2Pac could have thought at that exact time to give that title to his Death Row compilation project album.

"Soundtrack", Gridlock'd movie was planned to be shot in May

This handwritten tracklist has probably been written down circa April '96, maybe before 2Pac sold "Unconditional Love" to MC Hammer. We find back "Wordz 2 My First Born" and "Who Do U Believe In" like it was announced in "All New Heat" tracklist notes. The thing is that Big Daddy Kane does not appear on this, but they for sure have already recorded their song "Wherever U R" (mid March)... Or this tracklist could be earlier than what we think (before "All New Heat" ?)...

We can observe that 2Pac mixed his "Me Against The World pt. 2" solo album project into a rap soundtrack part for Gridlock'd. So the idea was to have a strong 2Pac presence alongside many guests (in non-2Pac songs or as featured artists ? everything can be thought, the names are just listed).

So we could consider that this Rap Side project is the "compilation" and the "soundtrack" at the same time. And either "Lil' Homies" is the anticipated title for the Outlawz album, either it is the title of this project before it became Gridlock'd soundtrack... But in this case, why "Unconditional Love" is still there...

Snoop Doggy Dogg's new album - Three songs for him ?

In late February of 96, Snoop was freed from all charges of his murder case. Just a few days or even a few hours later, he was in studios with 2Pac recording the studio freestyle "If There's A Cure" with 2Pac (the 21st of Feb.), and five days later they were recording "Just Watching" together with also the Dogg Pound and Hurt-M-Badd. The same day, 2Pac wrote a song for Snoop's new album : "This Ain't Livin'". Snoop was agreed to have friends writing for him (Daz will write "Street Life", Tray Deee will write many verses for him...). But he was probably not happy with the mood of the song, the thug topic, the Johnny J music... Probably not a long time after that (same day ? late Feb. ? early March ?), they recorded together the song "Three Wordz" with Daz. Bad Azz tried a hook ("Only Move 4 The Money") against Snoop's idea but they were finally happy with it. 

But something happened... A few days later (circa mid March), 2Pac re-used the beat of "This Ain't Livin" for "Road 2 Glory" and Snoop recorded "May I Funk Wit You" with the same verse than "Three Wordz"... Nothing extraordinary but following this, no 2Pac songs were included in Doggfather album sequences, and Snoop was on Gridlock'd early tracklist but only as a featured artist for Nate Dogg.

O.F.T.B. album

DETAILED TRACKLIST

(Special thanks to Bomb1st members Filla and Dominator for samples credits)

01. Road 2 Glory (aka Wrote The Glory) / Johnny J

• 1996/03/14. This song re-uses the instrumental of "This Ain't Livin'" (probably Snoop didn't like it) for an anthem to Mike Tyson's new fight. And 2Pac sung it live at the Mike Tyson Vs. Frank Bruno (the 16th of march) for the Tyson's entrance. It also re-uses the topic "When we ride on our enemies" he recorded one week earlier.
  
• Samples : 
• Latimore – "Let’s Straighten It Out" (melody)

02. Lil' Homies feat. Danny Boy & Val Young (chorus) / Johnny J

• 1996/01/22 - 03/07 (?) (new mix ?). Remixed in Until The End of Time (2001). There is an alternate mix with Edi at the chorus, and another unleaked mix that could have been made during Pac's lifetime to replace the Hooker & Santana sample. It can mix together solo and Outlawz versions.
  
• Samples : 
• John Lee Hooker & Carlos Santana – "Chill Out" (melody)
  
• Big Daddy Kane - "Raw" (vocals)
  

03

04. When We Ride On Our Enemies (Rough Mix) feat. ? (chorus) / Johnny J

• 1996/03/07. Remixed in Until The End of Time (2001). Unknown voice singing in the background. 
• Samples :
• Prince - "When Doves Cry" (concept)
  
• Sting - "Fragile" (melody)

05. Give Me Love (Interlude) feat. Sixx Feet Deep (chorus) / Johnny J

• 1996/02/13. Another track with the same title was supposed to have been recorded the 24th of october 95 (probably a mistake, maybe the date of "Ma Babies Mama", cf. When I Get Free). Is it just an interlude, an instrumental with chorus ?
• Samples : 
• The Isley Brothers, "Voyage to Atlantis" (Jay-Z used a similar sample in "It Ain't Personal")

06. Ride 4 Me feat. Hussein, Kurupt & Ego-Trip (?) / Darryl Harper (?)

• 1996/03/23. There are versions with two verses from the girl, one with only one, and a shorter version without any. Nothing is known about her (Starr-Loc, Storm and other denied to have recorded these verses and the voice however doesn't correspond). Maybe it could be two sisters with the same voice. Somebody said once that they could come from the porn world... 
• Samples : 
• Najee - "Betcha Don't Know" (melody, bassline interpolation)
  
• --?---The SOS Band – "No Ones Gonna Love You" 
  
• --?---Funkadelic – "(Not Just) Knee Deep"

07. Too Late Playa feat. MC Hammer, Big Daddy Kane, Nutt-So & Danny Boy / Johnny J (?) or Kevyn Lewis (?)

• 1996/03/07 - 16 (?). In an interview, Big Daddy Kane explains that they recorded this song just the night after the fight between Mike Tyson and Frank Bruno (the 16th of march) where they all met (for what 2Pac recorded the entrance song "Road 2 Glory" with the same sample than the unfinished song "This Ain't Livin'", recorded two days before...). Suge invited him at Death Row to record with Pac and Hammer. "Too Late" was a song concept planned by 2Pac before All Eyez On Me, originally planned to be produced by Warren G (like written on some early tracklists of late 1995). So it was in no way a One Nation song.
• Samples : 
• Junior – "Too Late" (melody interpolation, vocals interpolation)
  

08. Three Wordz (Original Only Move 4 Tha Money) feat. Snoop Dogg, Bad Azz (chorus) & Daz (backing) / Daz - REMAKE Dominator

• 1996/03 (~). Remixed with Daz instead of Snoop in late versions of unofficial Makaveli & Dillinger (1999, DPG), and in I Got Love in These Streets EP (2002, DPG). There is a space at the end but the structure indicates it is just a Pac/Snoop duet : Pac's verse, Snoop's, Pac & Snoop. Bad Azz said in an interview he tried a chorus for the song against Snoop's advice and finally convinced them. The unfinished state of the song reminds of the Thug Pound project with also 2Pac & Snoop presenting their groups Thug Life and Dogg Pound. But very probably they recorded the song in late Feb. / early March when Snoop started to record material for his new Doggfather album. 2Pac recorded the reference track "This Ain't Livin'" for Snoop's album (the 26th of Feb.), and instead of recording it they recorded "Three Wordz". A few days later in March, Snoop re-used his verse with the same "three words" mention in "Eastsiders (Original)" feat. Daz & Tray Deee and then in "May I Funk With You" (2nd verse), both produced by Soopafly. The second one appears in all Doggfather known sequences from the 21st of March to the 17th of June (cf. Doggfather sessions). This verse will end up in "We Just Wanna Party With You" for Men In Black Soundtrack in 1997. Why Snoop scrapped the song ? Maybe there was a kind of bitterness and jealousy for 2Pac who was leading everything in Death Row. In May, Snoop didn't show up at Saturday Night Special where he was supposed to rap with 2Pac. In June, maybe with the help of Suge, Snoop purposed 2Pac to have verses in "Street Life" and in "Out The Moon" instead of Lil C-Style (finally leftover). The beat could be an old Dogg Pound's demo or freestyle with Kurupt's verse from "Who Got Some Gangsta Shit" and almost the same Bad Azz hook (so maybe circa 94 for Murder Was The Case).
• Samples : 
• George Benson - "Turn Your Love Around" (piano interpolation)
  
• Kid Creole - "Stool Pigeon" (guitar interpolation, bassline interpolation)

09. Breathin' (GBM Version) feat. Kadafi, Sylk-E Fyne, Edi, Diamond & T-Ski / Johnny J - FIX EDIT

• 1996/02-03 (?). Nicely remixed in Until The End of Time (2001) with new Outlawz verses. This version with verses from Kadafi, Edi and three female rappers shows again how 2Pac always wanted to promote women in rap. Alternate title could be "Sista Gotta Have It" (for what we have this date of the 31th of March). Unfortunately, this leaked version is disappointing and not finished : the chorus only runs after 2Pac and Kadafi, the verses are just pasted on the music, there is no mix, the last verse has a wrong start by T-Ski... Sylk-E Fyne said that the first version had only her and Storm... Kadafi has the same verse than "World Wide" with OFTB recorded in 96/03/31. But he starts his verse with "See as the youngstas we run the..." instead of "see as the Outlawz we run the world", meaning the group had not changed his name yet.
  
• Samples : 
• The Isley Brothers - "Summer Breeze" (melody)
• The Honey Drippers - "Impeach The President" (snare)

10. Lil' Homies (Outlawz Version) feat. Kastro, Napoleon, Edi, Danny Boy & Nanci Fletcher / Johnny J

• 1996/03/17 (?). In this Outlawz version, 2Pac is only speaking and rapping the chorus. There are a long version with three verses (K-Nap/Edi-K/Nap-Edi) and a short one with the third one missing. As usual, probably Pac recorded his own version before giving the song to his friends. That title gives the idea Lil' Homies was the nickname of the Dramacydal group (announced as featured artists in All New Heat tracklist), for a short time circa Feb.-March before it turned into Outlawz. Before that, they were still called Dramacydal (cf. All Eyes On Me booklet), Outlaw Immortalz was a supergroup gathering Thug Life, Dramacydal, Fatal N Felony & Storm. It is probably when Syke decided to record solo circa March, that the group shortly became Lil' Homies (they became Outlawz during the recording of "Secretz of War" in the last days of March or first of April - Outlawz is not used in "Hit Em Up" or before).
  
• Samples : 
• John Lee Hooker & Carlos Santana – "Chill Out" (melody)
  
• Big Daddy Kane - "Raw" (vocals)

11. Ballad of a Dead Soulja feat. Sixx Feet Deep (chorus) / Johnny J

• 1996/02/02 (19 for the new mix ?). Fairly remixed in Until The End of Time (2001) with the same sample. "Soulja" was the pitched voice he used to depict a dark minded avatar, assuming his most agressive thought. The song never appears nowhere in any project tracklists (except maybe as an anticipated song titled "Ballad of the caged bird") but the fact that they gave a new mix to the song lead to think that it was not only an unfinished scrapped song but that 2Pac really wanted to release it somewhere.
  
• Samples : 
• Curtis Mayfield, "Little Child, Running Wild" (melody)

12. Good Life feat. Big Syke & Edi / Mike Mosley & Rick Rock

• 1996/03/31. Alternate mix (pre-mix) released in Until The End of Time (2001). The recording of the song can be seen in a studio footage with "Hit Em Up" recording (that has the date of the 29th of March).

13. Thug In Me (Johnny J Remix) feat. K-Ci & Jojo / Johnny J

• 1996/03/19 (?). Released without major changes in K-Ci & Jojo's X (2000, MCA), and fairly remixed in Until The End of Time (2001). It is said that the first version with Jewell was using a sample impossible to clear (cf. Euthanasia/Black Gold). Johnny J stopped producing for 2Pac in the end of April. Maybe K-Ci & Jojo recorded their chorus when they came for "How Do U Want It" video version the 19th of March.

14. Wherever U R (Breaks Mix) feat. Big Daddy Kane / Johnny J

• 1996/03/07 or 16 (?). In an interview, Big Daddy Kane explained that he recorded first with 2Pac, then with 2Pac and MC Hammer ("Too Late"), at last wrote a song for MC Hammer and his Too Tight album. Some bootlegs include this song in One Nation project because it's a combination east/west. But it has been recorded 3 months before the other songs, it was not included in the known handwritten tracklists of the project. The kind of live instrumentation is also totally different.
  
• Sample : 
• Rick James – "Dance Wit’ Me" (melody interpolation)

15. Better Dayz feat. Big Syke & OFTB / Johnny J  

• 1995/10 - 1996/03/07 (?) (Syke & OFTB added). 2Pac gave that 95' solo song (cf. When I Get Free) to OFTB and erased his second and third verses to make space for them. Intended to be included in shelved OFTB album I Come Up Hard in 1996-1997, finally released in OFTB's The Missing D.R. Files (2007).
• Samples :
• The Isley Brothers - "Lets' Fall In Love pt. 1 & 2" (melody)

 16. Just Watchin' feat. Snoop Dogg, Dogg Pound & Hurt M Badd (chorus) / Daz

• 1996/02/26. This song is said to have been recorded for Snoop's Tha Doggfather (1996, Death Row) but it clearly sounds like other 2Pac songs from that time and that reconstituted project. It was firstly said that the chorus was by Charlie Wilson of the Gap Band but he denied. It sounds like Tyrone Wrice aka Hurt M Badd.
  
• Sample : 
• The Dramatics – "Just Shopping (Not Buying Anything)" (melody, vocals interpolation)

17. My Closest Road Dawg (Alternate Mix) feat. Big Syke / Johnny J

• 1996/02/13-19. This mix is a bit longer than the other one (3'58 Vs. 3'52) but its mixdown sounds is clearly more finished and different than the original solo take remixed in Until The End of Time (2001). The song also appears in a draft of Syke solo album written by 2Pac.
  
• Samples : 
• The Jones Girls – "Children Of The Night" (melody)

 

 

BONUS TRACKS :

. This Ain't Livin' (with reference for Snoop Dogg) / Johnny J

• 1996/02/26. Remixed in Until The End of Time (2001). This song is said to have been written for Snoop Dogg (like "Too Tight" for MC Hammer). More probably it was supposed to be a 2Pac/Snoop duet ("I Never pulled the trigger / Didn't touch that bitch" sounding like a new "2 of Amerikaz most wanted") and 2Pac wrote and tried the lyrics for his busy friend (like he made a verse for Money B in "I Get Around" demo, Snoop was then starting to work on his second Death Row album). Unfortunately, it seems Snoop never recorded his part... Maybe they recorded "Three Wordz (Only Move 4 The Money)" instead.
  
• Samples : 
• Latimore – "Let’s Straighten It Out" (melody)

. Ghetto Star (Original Version) feat. Nutt-So & Danny Boy / Go Twice

• 1996/03/08 (?). Published as a bonus track with an added outro in some versions of Nutt-So's The Betrayal (2000). Released in Better Dayz (2002). A first take can be heard in the background of the leaked mix of the song, with alternate chorus and vocals takes.
• Samples : 
• Leon Ware - "What's Your World" (melody)

. Bitch Nigga feat. Big Syke, Napoleon / Darryl Harper 

• 96/03/12. 2Pac re-uses his verse from "This Life I Lead", what could indicate the Thug Pound project was really buried... Was the song recorded for Syke's album or for the compilation project ?