Tupac Shakur: Man Arrested In Connection With 1996 Murder
NEW YORK, NY - APRIL 25: American rapper, songwriter, and actor (1971-1996) Tupac Shakur poses for a portrait during the 1994 Source Awards on April 25, 1994 at the Paramount Theatre in New York, New York.
A man has been arrested in connection with the 1996 murder of hip-hop icon Tupac Shakur. Duane “Keffe D” Davis was arrested early Friday morning, according to the Associated Press. The exact charges have not been made public at this time.
Shakur was killed on Sept. 7, 1996, in a drive-by shooting in Las Vegas. He was sitting inside a black car with Marion “Suge” Knight. Knight, at the time, was the CEO of Death Row Records. On the night of Sept. 7, 1996, police say the two stopped at a red light near the iconic Las Vegas Strip when a white Cadillac pulled up next to them, and gunfire erupted. The “Dear Mama” rapper was shot multiple times. He succumbed to his injuries a week later in a local hospital.
Over the years, Davis has admitted that he was in the convertible during the shooting. He confessed his involvement in his 2019 tell-all memoir, Compton Street Legend. In a BET interview, he claimed that his nephew, Orlando “Baby Lane” Anderson, was the one who pulled the trigger from the backseat of the vehicle. The shooting erupted after a casino brawl in which Shakur, Anderson, and others were involved.
While Davis always put the blame on his nephew, Anderson denied any involvement in the Shakur shooting. He died two years later in a shooting in his home city of Compton, California.
The arrest comes two months after Las Vegas police raided Davis’ wife’s home on July 17. The house is located in Henderson, which neighbors the city. According to the AP, documents obtained by the outlet say that “police were looking for items concerning the murder of Tupac Shakur.”
No arrests have ever been made in connection to the rapper’s death. Las Vegas police have said that witnesses refused to cooperate with law enforcement, which led to the case never being solved. Nevada does not have a statute of limitations for prosecuting homicide cases.
5 Documentaries on Hip-Hop Artists To Stream Now
Hip-Hop is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. While the genre is one of the youngest, its impact has been massive. The genre originated in the early ’70s in New York in African-American communities in the Bronx. Hip-hop starts with the music: rapping, DJing, and freestyling. But those elements led to others, including breakdancing and graffiti art.
Hip-hop has been in the mainstream in ways that its founders never would have dreamed.
“When we started on this journey decades ago, we were often told, ‘No.’ No, you won’t be able to leave New Jersey. No, if you rap, you can’t sing. No, singers can’t become actresses. No, actors can’t also produce,” Queen Latifah said to Entertainment Weekly in a statement as she is set to become the first female rap artist to be celebrated at the Kennedy Center Honors.
“To now be recognized amongst so many multi-hyphenates feels unbelievable, not for just me and my team, but for our community. I’m beyond grateful for this recognition.”
Throughout this year, hip-hop has been celebrated in performances by some of the greats. At the 2023 BET Awards, there were performances by MC Lyte, Big Daddy Kane, The Sugarhill Gang, D-Nice, Warren G, Yo-Yo, Trick Daddy, Trina, Uncle Luke, Redman, Erick Sermon, and Keith Murray — also known as “Def Squad,” and more highlighted rap on Culture’s Biggest Night.
Earlier this year, Questlove curated a hip-hop tribute at the 2023 Grammy Awards where Missy Elliott, Run DMC, Salt n Pepa, Public Enemy, Grandmaster Flash, Ice-T, Queen Latifah, Busta Rhymes with Spliff Star, Nelly, GloRilla, Lil Baby, and more took to the stage. That led to a summer tour featuring the Roots and LL Cool J where they were joined by different hip-hop legends at each stop on the tour.
If you have been a fan since the beginning or you’ve just begun listening, you’ll learn more from these projects. Take a look at five documentaries on these hip-hop artists:
Autumn Hawkins is the National Hip-Hop and R&B writer for Beasley Media, currently residing in New Jersey. Prior to working at Beasley Media, she was in broadcast news as an entertainment producer. When she's not impatiently waiting for Beyoncé to drop new music, she is reading, shopping, or planning a vacation.
