The iconic hip-hop group Tupac Shakur auditioned for in a San Jose hotel room
2Pac is known as the late star of Death Row, who, alongside Snoop Dogg and Dr Dre, challenged New York for the top spot in hip-hop. The LA-based record label, co-founded by Suge Knight, was one of the most powerful and relevant labels of the 1990s and produced classics such as Doggystyle, The Chronic and All Eyez On Me.
However, the ‘Hail Mary’ rhymer was approached by other labels and acts to whom he may have signed. Sadly, npne of the initial interest resulted in anything concrete. During an appearance on the Cam Capone News YouTube channel, 2Pac’s close friend and former assistant, Kendrick Wells, claimed that prior to signing with Interscope, Shakur could have signed with De La Soul or Def Jef.
In his interview, Kendrick Wells recalled that 2Pac’s former manager, Leila Steinberg, took the Oakland emcee to a show in San Jose where he De La Soul, Def Jef, and Afro-Rican. Reflecting on what happened thereafter, Wells unveiled that the 2Pacaplypse Now creator ended up auditioning for the acts in a hotel room.
According to Wells, he performed the track ‘Panther Power’. Speaking about how MCs rose through the ranks to become famous in the 1980s, Wells detailed, “They get tapes every day, they hear people every day. Unproduced, coming live is different from a finished product. So they go through the steps like they’re listening.”
Following the hotel audition, Wells admitted, “But obviously nobody called,” adding, “They had Tupac Shakur in a hotel room performing for them, and they didn’t sign him. They didn’t hook him up. They didn’t do anything with him.”
2Pac eventually signed with Interscope in 1991 and released his debut album, 2Pacalypse Now, later that year. He also released his second album, Strictly 4 My N.I.G.G.A.Z… through Interscope in 1993. Strangely, 2Pac and De La Soul would end up in a beef later along the line.
During their Drink Champs interview, the trio unveiled that 2Pac thought their music video for ‘Ego Trippin’ was purposefully mocking his music video for ‘I Get Around.’ The two acts ended up making amends, but for a while, there was tension between the trio and 2Pac.