2pac And Outlawz Still I Rise Album < FREE – Report >

In the sprawling, often chaotic discography of Tupac Shakur, few albums carry the bittersweet weight of Still I Rise . Released on December 14, 1999—over three years after the rapper’s tragic murder in Las Vegas—the album exists in a peculiar space. It is not a solo masterpiece like Me Against the World , nor a raw, unfiltered posthumous double album like The Don Killuminati: The 7 Day Theory . Instead, Still I Rise is a collaborative manifesto, a group album credited to 2Pac and the Outlawz .

Critics argued that the Outlawz (except for the late Yaki Kadafi) weren’t strong enough to carry a full project. More damning was the accusation that Afeni Shakur and Death Row Records (who still controlled much of the material) were "feeding Pac’s corpse to the fans." There was also controversy regarding the remixing—some verses were taken from original songs and placed onto entirely new, unrelated beats. 2pac and outlawz still i rise album

Yet, despite the critical snubs, the album was a commercial success. It debuted at #6 on the Billboard 200 and #2 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, eventually going Platinum. Why? Because the fans didn't care about the politics. They wanted to hear Tupac’s voice. They wanted the catharsis. Still I Rise is ultimately the Outlawz’s finest hour—and their curse. They proved they could rap. Young Noble’s frantic energy, E.D.I. Mean’s poignant clarity, and Hussein Fatal’s menacing delivery (Fatal actually left the group before the album’s release due to contract disputes, but still features heavily) are all on display. In the sprawling, often chaotic discography of Tupac

The Outlawz (originally known as the Outlaw Immortalz) were in a difficult position. Formed in 1995 after Tupac’s release from prison, the group—including Hussein Fatal, E.D.I. Mean, Young Noble, Napoleon, Kastro, Yaki Kadafi (who also died in 1996), and later Storm—had been 2Pac’s soldiers. They were the battalion that chanted “Thug Life” as a philosophy, not just a slogan. But without Pac, they risked becoming relics. Instead, Still I Rise is a collaborative manifesto,

They tried. They really did. But the album serves as a reminder that some lightning bolts cannot be caught in a bottle. 2Pac was the lightning; the Outlawz were the bottle. Is Still I Rise a classic album? No. Is it essential listening for any 2Pac fan? Absolutely.

However, the album’s title became ironic. The Outlawz never fully "rose" to the level of mainstream success after this. They continued to release music (including Novakane in 2001), but they would forever live in the shadow of their fallen leader. Still I Rise remains their most visible monument—a group album that is catalogued in history as a 2Pac album. Listening to Still I Rise in 2024 (or beyond), the overwhelming emotion is melancholy. You hear Tupac talking about his "unborn child" and his "fear of reincarnation." You hear Yaki Kadafi, a teenager full of venom, who died of an asthma attack (or, as some conspiracy theories claim, a covert hit) just months after Pac. You hear a crew promising to hold down the fort for their general.