2Pac: Me Against the World (2LP, 30th anniversary edition, midnight mist vinyl) [INTERSCOPE]

Why you'll love it

This 30th anniversary 2LP set comes on midnight mist vinyl, pressed in the Czech Republic. The album debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and held the top spot for four weeks, and "Dear Mama" reached No. 9 on the Hot 100.

This edition

• 2LP set
• 30th anniversary edition
• Midnight mist vinyl
• Pressed in the Czech Republic
• Stereo mix

About the album

Plenty of rappers get bigger on their third album. Tupac Shakur got quieter and closer to home. Facing a prison sentence and fresh off a run of trouble, he set out to make something more personal and reflective than anything he'd done, and the album arrived on March 14, 1995, while he was behind bars.

His mentor Shock G of Digital Underground shares production with Easy Mo Bee, Johnny "J," Tony Pizarro and the Danish duo Soulshock and Karlin. "Dear Mama," his tribute to his mother, topped the Hot Rap Singles chart, while "So Many Tears," "Lord Knows" and "If I Die 2Nite" wrestle with mortality and "Temptations" and "Old School" lighten the load. Dramacydal and Richie Rich drop by, and the Grammys nominated it for Best Rap Album.

For a time it outsold Bruce Springsteen's Greatest Hits as the year's biggest album in the US, and it went double platinum. "Dear Mama" later joined the Library of Congress's National Recording Registry, which makes it one of very few Mother's Day cards kept by the federal government.

Also at Kops: more 2Pac on vinyl · browse Hip Hop / R&B

Tracklist

Listen

On Interscope / Amaru, a reissue of the 1995 album.