2Pac – Me Against The World [2× 180g Vinyl LP]

2Pac – Me Against The World [2× Vinyl LP]

Details

• Format: 2× Vinyl LP, Album, Reissue, Stereo, Explicit, 180g
• Catalogue Number: 602508448898
• Barcode: 602508448898
• Genre: Hip-Hop / Rap / West Coast Hip-Hop
• Label: Interscope Records / Urban Legends
• Originally Released: 14 March 1995
• Reissue Released: 6th March 2020
• Pressing: 2× 180 Gram Vinyl
• Condition: New & Sealed

Description

Me Against The World is 2Pac's third studio album and, for many, his finest artistic achievement — a raw, introspective and deeply personal record that captures Tupac Shakur at his most reflective and emotionally honest. Released on 14 March 1995 via Interscope Records, it arrived at one of the most turbulent moments of his life: he was awaiting sentencing on a sexual assault conviction, had survived a shooting in New York in which he was hit five times, and was facing the full weight of the media and the legal system. He recorded the album in a matter of weeks and released it while incarcerated at Rikers Island — becoming the first artist to have a number one album while in prison.

The album debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200 and went on to achieve triple Platinum certification — a commercial achievement that belied the intimacy and vulnerability of its content. Where 2Pac's earlier work had leaned into the gangsta rap persona, Me Against The World pulled back to reveal the man behind it: anxious, tender, self-aware and painfully aware of his own mortality. It was his last studio album before signing to Death Row Records, and many regard it as his most cohesive and enduring work.

The album's emotional centrepiece is "Dear Mama" — one of the most celebrated rap songs ever recorded, a heartfelt tribute to his mother Afeni Shakur that earned a Grammy nomination for Best Rap Solo Performance and has since been inducted into the National Recording Registry by the Library of Congress. "If I Die 2Nite" is a chilling meditation on death that proved horribly prophetic; "So Many Tears" is among the most emotionally devastating tracks of his career; and "Temptations" — produced by Easy Mo Bee — is a brilliantly crafted centrepiece showcasing his lyrical dexterity at its sharpest.

This 25th anniversary reissue is pressed on 2× black 180g vinyl and stands as the definitive modern pressing of one of hip-hop's most essential records.

Tracklist

Side A

1. Intro
2. If I Die 2Nite
3. Me Against The World
4. So Many Tears
5. Temptations

Side B

1. Young Niggaz
2. Heavy In The Game (ft. Richie Rich)
3. Lord Knows

Side C

1. Dear Mama
2. It Ain't Easy
3. Can U Get Away

Side D

1. Old School
2. Fuck the World
3. Death Around the Corner
4. Outlaw

Credits

• 2Pac – Vocals, Executive Producer
• Easy Mo Bee – Producer
• Q-Tip – Producer
• QDIII – Producer
• Dave Hollister, Richie Rich – Featured Artists
• Shock G – Producer
• Label – Interscope Records / Urban Legends