Track Listing

1. Intro
2. If I Die 2nite
3. Me Against The World
4. So Many Tears
5. Temptations
6. Young Niggaz
7. Heavy In The Game
8. Lord Knows
9. Dear Mama
10. It Ain't Easy
11. Can U Get Away
12. Old School
13. Fuck The World
14. Death Around The Corner
15. Outlaw

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #11486 in Music
• Released on: 2001-03-19
• Number of discs: 1
• Format: Explicit Lyrics

Amazon.co.uk Review
The gruesome details surrounding Tupac's third solo offering are enough to give any music fan the willies. Released when Tupac was in jail serving time for a rape conviction and just after his recovery from being shot-up gangland-style at a recording studio, this was his most introspective piece of work to date. The heavy-hearted album opens up with a radio commentary describing the circumstances surrounding his shooting, and then plunges headfirst into Pac's infatuation with death. "So Many Tears", "Death Around the Corner" and "If I Die 2Nite" are all dark, eerily prophetic tunes that lend credence to widespread theories which suggest that Pac anticipated his impending death. The perpetually thugged-out wonder reveals a more benevolent side when it comes to gender and family issues. On "Dear Mama"--a fitting tribute to his mother recorded in the "Keep Ya Head Up" vein--Pac takes listeners into the loving recesses of his heart, while on "Can U Get Away", he echoes similar respectful sentiments to black womynkind. This is probably 'Pac's most progressive issues-oriented release before he signed to Death Row and became a full-blown thug. --Dalton Higgins

CD Description
Forget everything you've heard and assumed about rapper/actor 2Pac and think only of his music, which has always stood in the shadow of his lifestyle. ME AGAINST THE WORLD tries to make sense of all the stormy events that have surrounded the gifted vocalist--transforming 2Pac into the "rap star" he's always yearned to be--and turns out to be his best work yet.
ME AGAINST THE WORLD seriously connects the rapper with his audience by remaining "real". Although much of the public is already familiar with the all-too politicised/publicised life of Tupac Shakur, the album disputes their perception and serves as his halo. "If I Die 2Nite" couples 2Pac's intense thoughts with the flava-in-ya-ear sound provided by hip-hop super producer Easy Mo Bee. 2Pac softens his tone on "Dear Mama", celebrating the one woman who has stuck by him through it all. The album also focuses on issues known and experienced not only by this "hip-hop outlaw", but by those who share his lifestyle. Many "thugs" have lost their homies and struggled to keep themselves alive in the hood, and so has 2Pac; and his mourning is manifested on "So Many Tears", which is enhanced by a sample of Stevie Wonder's harmonica. "Can U Get Away" carefully alerts women involved in abusive relationships, and labels 2Pac as their saviour. Giving props to the New York rap scene, "Old School" is a tribute to the founders of hip-hop and reminisces about "how it was". Musically, the comfortable tracks help convey positive messages("Young Niggaz"), and lyrically, 2Pac is, as always, on point.

Customer Reviews

A Thug Goes Soul-Searching
Okay - so most people got to know the late Tupac Shakur (R.I.P.) through his multi-platinum Death Row album "All Eyez on Me", which features the all-time classic "California Love". But how many of you actually know that 2Pac was already delivering brilliant albums before? If you want to do this great artist justice, don't sleep on his first three albums "2Pacalypse Now", "Strictly 4 My N****z" and "Me Against the World". The latter offering was published during 2Pac's stay in jail, which doesn't make it less on point than its predecessors; it actually features 2Pac's first breakthrough international single "Dear Mama". And you've surely already heard the bumping title-track in a club before. Furthermore, it's got "Temptations" on there - remeber the video in the hotel with Coolio acting as room-boy? Thematically, Pac slighty shifts away from the violent, highy outspoken tone he had on "Strictly...", and opts for a more mellow, but therefore much deeper approach to the subjects he's dealing with. This is probably 2Pac's most heartfelt and insightful record, since he raps on issues like family, loyalty, and - interestingly enough - fear of death. Don't let the more or less good, although not ground-breaking, production fool you - this album is a must for the understanding of 2Pac both as an artist and as a man.

Pac's Best
If you call yourself a 2Pac fan, and don't own this, you don't deserve to listen to the great man. This was his groundbreaking album which paved the way for the over-commercialised success of the popular 'All Eyez on Me'. Most people who are Pac fans or rap listeners will tell you that 'All Eyez On Me' is his best. However, I will tell you different. Me Against the World kicks off with 'If I die 2nite', a track which lays down one of the best beats I have heard with the phenominal opening lines to each verse. Then we have the title track, and 'Me Against the World' is more upbeat and is one for your car's system. However, the real qaulity track on the album is 'Dear Mama', where Pac opens up all of his feelings and thank-yous for his mother. All of the tracks on this album make you think about the great man, but an important factor is the lyrics. You MUST listen carefully in order to realise how clever the late great Tupac Amaru Shakur was, with inpecible rhyming and excellent philosophies strung together with dope beats. This album is the most appropriate reason for 2Pac's place on the rap throne.

your rap collection is not complete without this
1995 was the year Death Row was to see their resurrection with a new rapper. 1995 was also the year 2Pac finally was released from all the struggles he survived. 2Pac was released from jail when he agreed to do 3 albums with Death Row Records and work with Marion 'Suge' Knight. As a result, the album placed #1 on the Billboard charts for quite some time as well as being the first album to reach multi-platinum status. To understand this album, you must first understand the struggles 2Pac went through before this album came out. 2Pac believed he was a menace to society in music. The vice president critizied him saying that his music had no place in a civilized area. 2Pac was also arrested and imprisoned for an alleged sexual assault and to top it off, 2Pac was attacked and robbed in 1994 when he went to go and record a track with a rapper. Reports say that about $40,000 worth of jewellery was taken from 2Pac. With all this happening to 2Pac, the album turned out to be more political and showing his darker side. This CD is packed with classics starting off with 'If I Die 2nite', where he sings in a sad voice. 'Me Against the World' depicts his problems with the government, politics and his enemies. Nice touch with incredible lyrics. 'So Many Tears' shows his darker side where he talks about death and how he feels unwanted but 'Temptations' sets the CD's mood into a happy mood. Songs like 'Lord Knows' and 'Heavy in the Game' are more hardcore and heart-filling whereas 'Dear Mama' has to be one of the most heart-filled tracks he has ever written. Words cannot describe just how perfect this track is, definately one of my favorites of all time by the legendary 2Pac. 'It Ain't Easy' is the most mellowest track on the album where 2Pac performs just as well as on any other track. 'F*ck the World' and 'Outlaw' are more angry and sad but 2 excellent tracks you should listen to very carefully. But the track you're really looking for on this album is 'Old School', a classic song. The tune is incredible and his lyrics could have been better but they are alright. 'Can U Get Away' is a song worth listening to but nothing to special to look forward to. Overall, this is a brilliant masterpiece. It features so many great songs outlining 2Pac's struggles and I reccommend it to any rap fan.