How DJ Quik avoided death alongside 2Pac
DJ Quik was an integral part of the Death Row revolution in the 1990s. Although he was never officially signed to the label, he played a big part in producing for many of its major stars, such as 2Pac, Snoop Dogg, Nate Dogg, and others.
Due to his proximity to all of the label’s stars, DJ Quik formed friendships with them, and before long, he was close friends with legends like 2Pac. Quik has spoken about this before, such as when he told KDAY radio, “I got to party with 2Pac, and at least try to talk to him. Just watchin’ him go in and kill every record like that, whether the mic was on or not, he was just on.”
Hanging out with 2Pac would be any hip-hop fan’s biggest dream, and they would do it in a second if possible. However, as Pac and DJ Quik got closer, they began to hang out more frequently. That said, DJ Quik oddly avoided death by deciding to cancel a rendezvous he had agreed with 2Pac and Suge Knight.
Notoriously, this was the night 2Pac was shot in a drive-by after a vehicle pulled up to the passenger seat of Suge Knight’s BMW and opened fire. The rapper was hit four times and was pronounced dead after a brief stay at the University Medical Centre of Southern Nevada.
According to Quik, his mother’s intuition kicked in, and she refused to let him go. Recalling his mum’s intervention when Knight tried to pick him up, the musician remembered, “My mom was so gangster. She made Suge and them leave when they tried to get me to come with them to the Tyson fight that night.”
He continued, “She said, ‘If y’all don’t get away from my muthafuckin’ door, I’m gonna start blastin’. I’mma call the police first, then shoot y’all in y’all muthafuckas’ ass.’ She had all the guns.” Bewilderingly, despite their friendship, Quik chose to stay at home with his mother instead of attending the epic MGM Mike Tyson fight.