I’d go with 2Pac, Ice Cube, Ice-T and Too $hort. Four artists whose influence helped shape the identity and direction of West Coast hip-hop. Eazy-E, E-40 and Snoop all have serious claims too.

No shit, Sherlock. Lol. And you do know Pac became synonymous with the West Coast, right? Nobody’s placing him on a New York Mt Rushmore, despite him going by ‘MC New York’ as a kid in Baltimore. You’re confusing birthplace with cultural identity. California Love. To Live and Die in L.A. Throwing up the Westside sign. These weren’t just songs and gestures. They were expressions of cultural identity.

And if we’re talking cultural impact rather than merely technical ability? Who are we still discussing, dissecting and debating on a daily basis 30 years after their death? If we’re judging purely on technical ability, then a Mount Rushmore could easily feature Black Thought, Pharoahe Monch, Gift of Gab and Aesop Rock. But that’s clearly not the criteria being applied here.

Exactly that. And there’s an important distinction between producing/directing a record and actually making the beat. Dre’s vision, ear and ability to bring everything together are undeniable, but that obviously shouldn’t overshadow the creative contributions of others. And word, some of those beatmakers accepted a fee and limited recognition as part of the arrangement. Similar set-up with Diddy 💯

Really appreciate such a thoughtful response, bro. I think you’ve touched on something fundamental here. Too often, Pac is judged through the circumstances of his death and the controversies surrounding his later years, rather than by how he actually lived and the experiences that shaped him. His upbringing, political consciousness, artistic sensitivity and personal contradictions all deserve to be part of that conversation. And I think your point about trauma is super important. We can’t fully understand Pac’s contradictions without considering the emotional and psychological weight of what he experienced, particularly at such a young age. Yes, he made many mistakes, but recognising these influences challenges us to look beyond the public persona and consider the human being underneath it. He was an extraordinarily complex individual, and appreciating that complexity means recognizing the humanity behind the mythology that’s been built up over three decades. Respect. 👊

Some of these comments I’m repeatedly seeing are genuinely disgraceful. I vividly remember the shock and sense of loss surrounding Tupac’s murder in 1996 as it unfolded. There’s a world of difference between actually living through that moment and looking back on it thirty years later with the benefit of hindsight - most of the bullshit coming from people not even alive then. You can scrutinise Tupac’s actions, acknowledge his contradictions and debate the circumstances surrounding his murder without suggesting that he deserved to die (as several people in these comments have done). And some of you speak with astonishing certainty about events you didn’t witness and circumstances you cannot possibly know in their entirety. Mike Tyson said it best: “Social media made y’all way too comfortable with disrespecting people and not getting punched in the face for it.” Historical hindsight isn’t firsthand experience, speculation isn’t established fact, and murder isn’t somehow justified because you disapprove of the victim, his bravado or his foolish mistakes. After all, he was merely 25 years old. Show some fucking respect, not only to the man himself, but to his surviving family - particularly his sister Set and stepbrother Mopreme, who have just poured their hearts out in court after enduring thirty years of grief. Meanwhile, some of you have apparently become overnight experts on the entire case. Diddy this, Suge that, Illuminati this, Orlando Anderson that, the Feds this. Endless speculation delivered with absolute certainty and zero authority. Crawl back in your box and go and obsess over the next fad. #Tupac #2Pac #HipHop #KeefyD

2Pac was absolutely ruthless on “Don’t Go 2 Sleep”! 🔥 Originally recorded in 1996 with the Outlawz and produced by Daz Dillinger during Pac’s Death Row days, this is one of his most vicious Bad Boy-era diss tracks. The aggression, delivery and sheer contempt in that outro are something else 🎤😤💯 Daz later revisited his own production, with a reworked version featuring himself and Kurupt appearing on the posthumously released Makaveli & Dillinger EP in 2001. I also put my own production spin on the Pac, Kurupt and Daz version for my Pac To The Essence Vol. 1 project. Check out my remix here👇🔥 configa.bandcamp.com/track/d…

Keith Murray is one of those MCs who rarely gets mentioned enough when people talk about the great lyricists of the ’90s. Distinctive voice, ridiculous vocabulary, abstract wordplay, charisma and a completely unorthodox flow - nobody really sounded like him. Seriously underrated MC. 🎤🔥

Beyond DOPE 🔥🔥🔥🔥

One of the standouts from Ghostface’s 1996 debut Ironman. RZA flips Bob James’ legendary “Nautilus” break into something absolutely frantic, while Ghost, Rae and Cappadonna go nuts over it. And the video, built around footage from the Japanese anime Speed Racer, was the perfect match for the track’s energy. Peak mid-’90s Wu. 🎤🔥🐝👐

Yep 💯 According to accounts, Tupac and others assaulted Sam Sneed after seeing East Coast artists, including Kool G Rap, appearing in the video. The irony is that Sneed and Kurupt were both from Pennsylvania, Tupac was born in NYC and grew up there and in Baltimore, and Lady of Rage was from Virginia by way of NYC…

What a joint! One of those Death Row classics that deserves way more recognition. Released on the Murder Was the Case soundtrack in October 1994, “U Better Recognize” was Sam Sneed’s only single during his time at the label, with Dre on the hook and Sneed delivering over his own production🔥💯 Sneed was a force behind the boards, co-producing classics including “Natural Born Killaz” and “Keep Their Heads Ringin’”. And this black-and-white video is an early Hype Williams gem 💎

Dre is a legend, but man, has he dined out on other people’s production over the years. Sneed, Mel-Man, Scott Storch, DJ Quik. The list goes on.

2Pac was absolutely ruthless on “Don’t Go 2 Sleep” 🔥 Originally recorded in 1996 with the Outlawz and produced by Daz Dillinger during Pac’s Death Row days, this is one of his most vicious Bad Boy-era diss tracks. The aggression, delivery and sheer contempt in that outro are truly something else 🎤😤💯 Daz later reworked his own production, adding verses from himself and Kurupt for the Makaveli & Dillinger EP, released in 2001.

2Pac & The Outlawz - “Made N***az” (1996) 🔥🎤 One of Pac’s hardest Death Row-era joints. Produced by Pac himself alongside Johnny J, this is Pac and the Outlawz going absolutely IN 🔥 Originally released on the Supercop soundtrack in July 1996, just weeks before Pac’s death, the track later appeared on the Gang Related soundtrack in October 1997. And that music video! 🎬 One of Pac’s final videos, directed by Gobi Rahimi. There were multiple versions, including that iconic rotating-camera performance and the hilarious but menacing scenes featuring Biggie and Puffy lookalikes! 😂🔥 30 years later, this joint still goes HARD. And let’s not overlook Pac’s involvement behind the boards either 💯

Good riddance to this POS and he deserves everything he gets 👋

Taken from AZ’s second album, Pieces of a Man, released in April 1998, this reunited AZ and Nas over production from legendary producer L.E.S. 🔥 L.E.S. also produced “Life’s a Bitch” on Nas’s Illmatic in 1994, the track that introduced so many of us to AZ and one of the GREATEST verses of all time 💯 Four years later, the same three talents came together again, this time with L.E.S. flipping Glenn Jones’s “Show Me” into a smooth and soulful backdrop.

I also put my own production spin on the Pac, Kurupt and Daz version of “Don’t Go 2 Sleep” for my Pac To The Essence Vol. 1 project. Check out my remix here👇🔥 configa.bandcamp.com/track/d…