Nick Broomfield's "Biggie & Tupac"

New info released in Biggie's FBI File! Check it out!


UPDATE 8/6/2010: I've noticed a lot of people coming here looking for pictures of Tupac's dad and his wife.  Tupac's dad, Billy Garland is pictured below, and is extensively interviewed in the Nick Broomfield documentary mentioned in this article.  Tupac wasn't married, but he was dating one of Quincy Jones' daughters at the time, Kidada Jones.  He had no children.  Because of the continued interest in this topic I've redone and updated some of the dead links for this page.  I highly recommend that anyone interested in this topic to watch the documentary and read the books mentioned at the bottom.  Please comment about this article and what you think of the conspiracy.  If you came here from Google Images, you can view the whole article by clicking here.

I've just watched "Biggie & Tupac" for the first time and thought it had some interesting theories and viewpoints in it that I had not heard before. I had previously seen another work by the director, Nick Broomfield, about Kurt Cobain and Courtney Love titled "Kurt & Courtney" - another tragic tale of two people who couldn't get along and a death possibly revolving around money.

Although both documentaries are several years old, I've just gotten around to seeing them for the first time. In Biggie & Tupac Nick Broomfield shortly details the lives and then the deaths of both rappers, and interviews some people who knew them both and the conspiracies surrounding them.

Since their death, both Biggie and 2Pac have released albums and have become rap icons. Their own feud left a lasting legacy on rap and the music industry as a whole. Arguably, since their death, no other rap artists have come close to their acclaim and infamy. Nick Broomfield's documentary takes a closer look into the supposed "East Coast vs West Coast" rap war and it's two most prominent victims.

Billy Garland, Tupac's Biological father

One of the first interesting characters we meet is Tupac's biological father, Billy Garland, a person who we don't hear much about except his experiences directly with Tupac and meeting Biggie in the hospital after Tupac had been shot. It isn't mentioned whether or not he was a Black Panther like Tupac's mother, Afni Shakur, or if he had any association with the black power movement of the 70s.

During a part of the film that was later touched on in Resurrection was the fact that people in jail were telling Tupac that Biggie's people had shot him. An interesting theory from this documentary is the possibility that the people in jail were possibly FBI or other law enforcement authorities placed there to try and influence Tupac because they were concerned about hip-hop in the same way they were concerned about the black power movement in the 70s. This is a theory I had not heard before and might be worth exploring, if in fact the FBI was or is concerned about any type of gangster rap. In fact, the FBI has released the FOIA files on Tupac Shakur. There are large sections blocked out and it is hard to gather exactly what is discussed in these files, although I have not gone over them thoroughly.

Marrion "Suge: Knight

In another part of the documentary it is revealed that despite the fact that Suge Knight claims that he was shot in the head, he was only grazed (which has already been established elsewhere). Yet, the fact that he was actually in the same car that Tupac was shot in leads one to question how the hit was planned out if in fact Suge Knight did order it. Why would he not have Tupac killed out in the open but instead risk the chance of himself being injured or killed being in the same car? The answer in the film, made by former LAPD Detective Russell Poole, is that the hit was actually made by the Crips in retaliation for the beating of Orlando Anderson when in fact Suge Knight had ordered a separate hit on Tupac.

Lil Cease

In the discussion regarding Biggie's shooting some very interesting comments are mentioned. Rapper and member of Junior MAFIA Lil Cease who was sitting behind Biggie when he was shot claimed that the party by VIBE magazine that night was shut down by the police that night for a fire drill. Why would the LAPD conduct a fire drill at a major celebrity event that night? Is Lil Cease misstating something, possibly that there was a fire at the event? Regardless, the implications that the event was shut down by the police is a very disturbing theory. If the Rampart Scandal was any indication of the deep police involvement with gangs, then it is quite possible that the entire murder could have been orchestrated by corrupt members of the LAPD. Another disturbing fact is that the FBI were trailing Biggie and Puff Daddy and were taking surveillance photos of them that night they were at the VIBE awards. If the FBI had Biggie under surveillance, why were no pictures taken of the murder? Wouldn't you think that with the extremely sophisticated technology and tactics that the FBI uses to surveil individuals that they would have seen at least some evidence to say who committed the murder. In fact, Biggie's mother, Voletta Wallace, wanted to know the same thing. In fact, she filed a lawsuit against the LAPD accusing them of being involved in her sons death which was dismissed by a judge but is expected to be brought again in the future.

UPDATE 4/2010: A judge dismissed the lawsuit brought against the LAPD by Biggie's mother, Voletta Wallace.  LA Times: Notorious B.I.G. lawsuit against LAPD dismissed

There were also allegations made by a former LAPD cop that he had documents claiming that the he and the FBI had been following behind Tupac's car on the night he was shot.

Another claim made by one of Biggie's bodyguards, Gene, was that a member of the Nation of Islam had killed Biggie. That man, Harry Billups (aka Amir Muhammad) was fingered by several other individuals as being the man who killed Biggie. The Nation of Islam has been alleged tied to some other prominent murders, including that of Malcom X. But why would the Nation of Islam want Biggie dead? Interestingly, in the FOIA file released by the FBI on Tupac Shakur, there is mention of possible death threats on him as well as late rapper Eazy-E by the radical group, the Jewish Defense League. But neither Biggie or Tupac's lyrics were anti-semitic or disparaging to Islam, so why would either of these groups target rappers?

According to the documentary, a Senate Select Committee in 1993 was conducted on "hip hop" which lead to the FBI surveillance. However, the search of Senate Committee hearings turned up no such lead. It could be perhaps that it was on another topic, but a search of all hearings in 1993 turned up nothing either.

Unfortunately, Christopher "Biggie" Wallace's FOIA file does not appear in the FBI's reading room, nor could I find any online copy of anyone requesting it. It's possible that the FBI and other government organizations have blocked access to the releases of his files if investigations are still pending. Maybe if I get a chance I'll request the files and see what I get in response.

UPDATE!!!: The FBI finally released the file they had on Biggie!

FBI FOIA File on Tupac Shakur

Crime Library: The Murders of gangsta rappers Tupac Shakur and Notorious B.I.G.

Findadeath: Notorious B.I.G and 2Pac




Some more good information about the death investigations have been written by investigative journalist, Cathy Scott, in her books The Killing of Tupac Shakur and The Murder of Biggie Smalls which provide a time line of the killings and some up to date information from the investigators about the murders.