Tupac and Snoop Dogg meeting for the very first time had the two artists battle rap as Michael Rapaport was there!
Michael Rapaport stopped by to speak to Romeo and Cece, on 93.5 KDAY in the morning, as he spoke about his comedy tour, top 5 NBA players of all time and top 5 rap groups of all time. After selecting Wu-Tang, NWA, Public Enemy, Outkast and Tribe Called Quest, up next were two of hip hop’s biggest icons.
Hosts Romeo and Cece would ask Michael about an iconic photo that lives on the internet, which has Ice Cube, Tupac, John Singleton and Michael himself.
“This was at the Poetic Justice wrap party. John and Tupac had just finished that movie, there’s a lot of excitement. I had a next to nothing part in there,” recalled Rapaport. “Cube was obviously there cause he was friends with John. To be honest with you they were getting ready to take the picture and John said, ‘Get in here Mike, get in here Mike.’”
Without hesitation Michael was ready for a history making photo. “I was like such a fan of all three of those guys and I jumped in the picture. I remember when the photo was being taken, I remember the flash hitting me on my face. Obviously the flash is bright on me, because I’m the only white guy, white dude in the picture. It went to the light,” explained Michael.
Tupac and Snoop Dogg Meet For The First Time
The photo wasn’t the only highlight of the night. Before the photo was taken, Michael had already witnessed history, as Tupac and Snoop Dogg would meet for the very first time.
“That night was a cool night because I saw with my own eyes and heard the conversation between Tupac when he first, the very first time met Snoop Dogg. That also happened a couple of hours before, so it was a memorable night, memorable time,” said Michael Rapaport on 93.5 KDAY.
“I literally saw with my own eyes. They greeted each other and then they were like rhyming on the mic freestyling. Tupac was like, I remember him saying, ‘All your homies staring at me like you want something at me.’ It wasn’t like beef, but they were like batting,” Rapaport recalled on VLAD TV back in 2017. “They were like feeling each other out. Tupac was with his little crew and Snoop was with his crew and I was right there.”
Thinking back on that day, Michael is very appreciative for that moment, “I was so young. We were all so young. You know obviously with the passing of John Singleton, who was a friend of mine, such a good dude. And Tupac who needs no explanation. Then to come full circle and still have a friendship and working relationship with Ice Cube. I’m so glad that the photo got taken and it’s an honor that it still lives.”
Tupac The “Lighting Rod”
Speaking on Tupac, Rapaport said Tupac was special and it was quite obvious he was going to become something big. “What he accomplished musically, artistically as an actor and as a musician. But socially, the inspiration that he inspired to people that are in hip hop, not in hip hop, socially, politically. That inspiration that you saw in the late great Nipsey Hussle. You can tell he was inspired by Tupac to sort of take his plan, to take his hopes and dreams and to the next level,” said Rapaport.
Initially before meeting Tupac, Rapaport was not convinced. He and Jada Pinkett were good friends as the two had the same agent. Rapaport had previously recalled on an interview with VLAD TV, Jada mentioning Tupac to him back in 1991. After hearing Jada talk highly of her friend claiming he would become a great rapper and actor, Rapaport wasn’t convinced.
But that was until, Rapaport watched Juice. “But, when I saw him in Juice, I was like this motherf***** is talented, as an actor. I just thought that performance was like De Niro in Mean Streets. I was like this f***ing guy is dope. Like, I had already heard him rhyme. I’m like he’s a good ryhmer, he’s dope. But, when I saw him in Juice, I’m like this guy is special,” said Rapaport.
Fun Fact: Snoop Dogg smoked his first blunt thanks to Tupac on the very first night they met.
Michael, like many, is amazed at how much Tupac accomplished at the age of 25. “It’s a shame. And to do so much and have such an impact at such a young age. To pass at 25, it’s incredible. He was a lighting bulb. He was a meteor and he came and he went. You knew at the time he was special. There was a vibration and glow around him. I remember every single time I had the chance to talk to him it was brief. You knew he was special. You never thought things would end up that way, but you knew he was a unique guy. And he knew it. He accomplished so much,” he added.
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