== 1993 - THUG LIFE DEMO TAPE ==

  • First sessions of recording for a new album/soundtrack project around the topic of Thug Life
Pictures taken by Dorothy Law, April of 93


Discogs page
Listen the Demo Tape in Youtube, or grab it there

Tracklist :
 
1. Definition of a Thug Nigga (Demo)
2. Thug Life (Demo) feat. Big Syke & Prince Ital Joe
3. Fake Ass Bitches
4. Pour Out A Lil' Liquor (Demo)
5. I'm Gettin' Money
6. Faced Shootouts (Interlude)
7. Is It Cool 2 Fuck (Demo) feat. Macadoshis, Rated R & Natasha Walker
8. High 'Til I Die (Demo) feat. Rated R & Macadoshis
9. Time 2 Get My Drank On feat. Y?N-Vee
10. Mr. Troublesome
11. Niggaz in the Pen feat. Mopreme & Mouse Man
 
Bonus Tracks added to the original tape :
 
12. Gotta Get Mine (Video Version) feat. MC Breed
13. Yo ! MTV Raps Classic (Interview & Freestyle) feat. Coolio, MC Breed & Macadoshis & Rated R
 
#1 was about to be published in Poetic Justice OST (29th of June '93).
#10 was the eponymous song of Troublesome 21, album shelved in mid of '92.
#11 was supposed to be included in Menace II Society Soundtrack (26th of May '93) but was finally leftover. 
 
 

Original concept of Thug Life : a code of honor for members of gang

It has been said that 2Pac has had a first usage of "thug" or even "thug life" in an early song with his group called 2 From The Crew around 88, but there is no proof (cf. Benefits of Poverty).

In 92, 2Pac with his stepfather Mutulu Shakur (activist member of the Black Liberation Army, father of Mopreme and Pac's sister Sekiywa, sentenced to sixty years of prison), alongside with some O.Gs (Original Gangsters), wrote down a text called the "Thug Life code" (here is a copy) in order to appease the gang war (especially between Crips and Bloods). It is said that 2Pac then formed a sort of "Thug Life" collective with Stretch and a person named Princess Mell (??). So in late of 92 / beginning of 93, 2Pac started to use the term of "Thug" and the expression "thug life" in the songs he was recording with Warren G ("Gotta Get Mine", "Definition of a Thug Nigga"), and in his concerts (cf. "I Get Around Thug Life Party Remix" featuring Stretch).

 
 
 
 
Dec. 92 - Jan. 93 ?
Draft for a soundtrack titled "My Mother Fuckin' Money Maker" 

 
 
Gathering a new team
 

In late 92 (maybe by the intermediary of TNT Recordings), 2Pac met the group Evil Ming Gangsta's : Big Syke then called Little Syke, manager of the group Kato, Mental Illness, Domino and Johnny J. They were about to release their album All Hell Breakin' Loose (1993, Organize Records), fully recorded in Echo studios like most of these first Thug Life sessions. 2Pac invited Big Syke and Johnny J to record the eponymous song around his new concept, with Pac as Souljah's voice, Syke and Prince Ital Joe.

He also associated with Double Jep (Macadoshis & Rated R) and with Natasha Walker and Y?N-Vee, and maybe thought to include that finally erased song with Coolio (they were probably recording it at the time of MTV Raps interview). But the album was still mainly a solo album. With Johnny J and Warren G as producers, it was a plain West Coast album.

 
Picture of the original demo tape ? 
 

Thug Life was initially not a group but a solo album with many guests

So at that time of these first recordings, Thug Life was not really a group, Double Jep and Syke hadn't recorded together... And Mopreme was probably far from there (because of the end of his project with Mouse Man, cf. Fragile) even if 2Pac included a remix of a song he had with him. So the whole group was already there but not as a group yet.

Giving "Definition of a Thug Nigga" to the Poetic Justice Soundtrack (Epic, released the 29th of June 93), 2Pac acting in it with Janet Jackson, that was a perfect promotion for the album. At that point, 2Pac started to give out a first incarnation of this project, what we used to call "Thug Life Demo Tape".

 
 
 
 
 
 
February - March ?
 

Not long after this demo tape, 2Pac took off all interludes and promo filler, tried to fill his new album with planned new songs "Do U Love The Thug Life ?" and "Death Around Each Corner", probably not recorded yet.

2Pac will record new songs with Warren G ("How Long Will They Mourn Me", "Lie 2 Kick It") and Johnny J ("Death Around The Corner", "I'm Loosin' It", "Ready 4 Whatever") to make a real West Coast album. He also remixed some of these original versions ("Definition of a Thug", "Thug Life", "High Til I Die"). But "Do U Love The Thug Life ?" probably became "Who Do U Luv ?" and was the beginning of the second Thug Life Original album, that will turn into Mr. Middle Finger.

 
 
 
 
 

DETAILED TRACKLIST

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

01. Definition of a Thug Nigga (Demo) (Poetic Justice OST) / Warren G

  • 1993/01-03 (~). Released without major changes - no circus sound sample during the verses - in 1993 in Poetic Justice Soundtrack (June of 1993, Epic) and in R U Still Down (1997, Amaru). Warren G says 2Pac called him because he heard about the song "Indo Smoke" Warren G produced for Mista Grimm (also in Poetic Justice OST). Maybe it was the promo demo tape Mr. Indo, that 2Pac heard in early 93 (also featuring Warren G & Nate Dogg, 2Pac will also appeared in the Video of the song). He also says they recorded "How Long Will They Mourn Me" the same night, and only after that he produced "I Gotta Get Mine", "Comin' Real Again" for 2Pac & MC Breed and two other songs for MC Breed... MC Breed's album went out in late April so it seems a bit tight (more likely recorded in January like it is everywhere written). These recordings times stay mysterious...
  • Samples :

02. Thug Life (Demo) feat. Big Syke & Prince Ital Joe / Johnny J

  • 1993/01-02 (~). Remixed for Thug Life original album. Syke said that it was the first song recorded for the project, in which 2Pac first used "Thug Life" as a concept. That's probably why Prince Ital Joe will be invited again by 2Pac to record 3 songs in late 95 for his project Thug Life Volume 2. and 2 again for Makaveli.
  • Samples : 

03. Fake Ass Bitches feat. Rated R / Johnny J

  • 1993/04 (~). Fairly remixed in R U Still Down (1997, Amaru). U can hear it in the "Thug 4 Life" tour. It is said to be a freestyle he delivered after recording "Pour Out A Little Liquor". After the Thug Life original concept album being scraped, Pac thought to include it in his new solo (cf. Out on Bail) before giving it to Yesz (or Nic-Nam ?), a female rapper of Y?N-Vee, for Thug Life Volume One sessions in the end of 93, beginning of 94 (cf. Honor Among Thugz).
  • Samples :

04. Pour Out A Little Liquor (Demo) / Johnny J

  • 1993/01-02 (~). Released without major changes in Above The RIM (1994, Death Row) and in Thug Life Volume 1 (1994, Interscope). It seems that the song recorded with Johnny J has been almost never modified.
  • Samples :

05. I'm Gettin' Money / Mike Mosley (?), Johnny J (?), Stretch (?)

  • 1993/01-02 (~). Fairly remixed in R U Still Down (1997). Mike Mosley was credited of the song in R U Still Down (credits : Mike Mosley & Tony Pizarro, the second being clearly the producer of the remix), but it could be a Johnny J production even if it doesn't really sound like his usual vibe. Mike Mosley was then a producer for C-BO, E-40 & The Click. He will also co-produced "Shit Don't Stop" with Stretch in Thug Life Volume 1, "Heavy in the Game" and "Can U Get Away" in Me Against The World and 3 tracks for Dramacydal unreleased album in late 94.
  • Samples :

06. Faded Shoutouts (interlude) / Stretch (?), Johnny J (?)

  • 1993/01-03 (~). Often mispelled "Faced Shoutouts". This interlude will not be included in Thug Life original final album. Sharing the same sample with "I'm Loosin' It", it is possible that the interlude turned into that song.
  • Samples :  

07. Is it Cool 2 Fuck (Demo) feat. Macadoshis, Rated R & Natasha Walker (Y?N-Vee) / Live Squad (?), Johnny J (?)

  • 1993/01-02 (~). The song was really loved by the group. They mention that one was playing when the group was at a party where Kato got killed. And it is also this song that Natasha Walker will hear playing in the Interscope studios, Dogg Pound and Snoop listening at it... Luniz will pay an hommage to that song in their second album in 1997 with the superb "Is It Kool" featuring Mokenstef, using parts of the music and some lines (the song being leaked at that time or maybe Numskull heard the song with Shock G when they were charged of remixing old tracks like "Cause I Had To" (by 2Pac while he was in jail ? cf. When I Get Free).  
  • Samples : 

08. High Till I Die (Demo) feat. Rated R & Macadoshis / Johnny J

  • 1993/01-02 (~). Remixed for the Thug Life original concept album around July of 93 (?). In March 94, months after the album being rejected, 2Pac chose to re-record the concept as a solo song with the same title (cf. Stay True). 
  • Samples :
    • Jr. Walker & The All Stars - "These Eyes" (melody)

09. Time To Get My Drank On (interlude) (Demo) feat. Y?N-Vee / Johnny J (?), Stretch (?)

10. Troublesome / Jeremy JZ Jackson

11. Niggaz in the Pen feat. Mopreme & Mouse Man / Truman Jefferson remixed by Stretch

  • 1992/12. The first version of the song is called "Brothers in the Pen" and had a totally different Pac verse and was intended to be in W.A.T.M. album project (cf. Ghetto Gospel). The song has probably been re-recorded to be included in Menace II Society OST (1993), but 2Pac was fired of the movie...
  • Samples : 

BONUS TRACKS :

12. Yo ! MTV Raps (Interview & Freestyle) feat. Fab 5 Freddy, Coolio, MC Breed & Macadoshis & Rated R / Dobbs The Wino, Ted Demme (?)

  • 1993/02/05 (?). Fab 5 Freddy interviews Tupac in the Ecko studios and outside, where he is recording for his new album Thug Life. Tupac wears the same jumpsuit than on the Dorothy Law pictures taken in April 93. 2Pac speaks about his beginnings, presents his team and his new project. They give some shorts freestyles. In the video, there is also Dobbs the Wino. It is said they recorded a song together with Coolio for the album, probably at this occasion. It is also said Dobbs The Wino asked for being paid and 2Pac answered to erase the song... This erased session is often mistaken with "Til I C L.A.", a concept song in Euthanasia / All Eyez on Me tracklists that presumably turned to be "California Love".

 

 


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