Ranking the Best 2pac Albums

“Why are YOU ranking 2pac’s albums?”

I know, I know if you’re a longtime Soul In Stereo reader, I’m sure you’re asking yourself that question right now – for good reason. O’er the years (as the hymnists would say), I’ve been pretty vocal about my criticisms of 2pac the artist – but never Tupac Shakur the man.

While I stand by my views of his latter-day antics and I still push back against some of the GOAT claims, that’s just my take on Pac the rapper. Pac the human being was a deeply complex individual and I have undying respect for his willingness to raise social awareness in his music.

And even an ol’ hater like me can’t deny this simple truth – 2pac is THE most influential rapper of all time.

Today, I’m finally doing what many of you thought would never happen – ranking all of Pac’s albums (yes, including the posthumous releases and collabo albums) from bottom to top. But I’m skipping the endless greatest hits and compilations because this guy has a LOT of albums. Still, this will be the first time I’ve heard many of these releases, so consider this my Pac education.

Pac’s unquestionably a legend – but let’s see if these albums hold up from a non-Stan perspective.

12. R U Still Down? (Remember Me) (1997)

Soul in Stereo rating: 2.5 stars out of 5

Edd said: Though it’s not the first posthumous release, R U Still Down is the first album constructed without Pac’s input. Therefore, it kicks off the era of 2pac Content Dump, where we’d get a decade of compilations of unreleased tracks. The result, of course, is a glut of mediocre content that fans are forced to pick through to find them gems. Like bobbing for apples in a septic tank. In fact, it’s very similar to the bloated playlists masquerading as albums that we’re cursed with in 2022. Pac truly is an innovator. There are a few notable tracks – “Do for Love” is lowkey one of my favorite Pac songs – but there’s SO. MUCH. MINDLESS. FILLER. It’s hard to show this one love when it’s clear most of these songs weren’t meant to see the light of day.

Forgotten favorites: “Do For Love,” “Hellrazor,” “Nothing to Lose”

11. Pac’s Life (2006)

Soul in Stereo rating: 3 stars out of 5

Edd said: Pac’s Life is last Pac album to date and by 2006 it was clear that they’d shaken all the coins they could from the homie’s corpse. The random assortment of features do this one no favors, nor do the paint-by-numbers production. Pac’s performances are actually pretty potent but his aggressive flow clashes with late-00s synthy beats. It’s incredibly forgettable but at least it’s not a double-disc monstrosity, which makes it more digestible.

Forgotten favorites: “Playa Cards Right” (Female and Male versions), “Untouchable”

10. Until the End of Time (2001)

Soul in Stereo rating: 3 stars out of 5

Edd said: I’m sure Pac fanatics couldn’t wait to get TWO HOURS of unreleased posthumous Pac material but MY GOD THIS ALBUM IS SO LONG. Like R U Still Down, this feels less like an album and more like one of those giant bins of lame DVDs at Walmart – you’ll find some good stuff if you wanna spend half the day digging through it, but who has the time? Shout out to the Outlawz though, whose presence gives this project a bit of diversity and energy. Overall, there are a few more bright points than its predecessor but the whole thing just feels unnecessary.

Forgotten favorites: “When Thugz Cry,” “Runnin on E,” “Breathin”

9. Loyal to the Game (2004)

Soul in Stereo rating: 3 stars out of 5

Edd said: Well if you wondered what would happen if Pac signed to Shady/Aftermath, Loyal to the Game might be your answer. The album consists of unreleased East Coast/West Coast beef-era songs remixed by Eminem. Considering that Em’s production is, um, often shaky at best, that didn’t bode well for this album. The result is pretty weird: Em adds his trademark bells and whistles to Pac’s madman rants and they feel really out of place, making many songs sounds like weird YouTube mashups. Thankfully, a solid array of features help out a lot, with artists like Obie Trice and G-Unit matching Pac’s energy much better than randoms like TI and Ashanti do on other posthumous projects. Still, hearing Pac over Em’s demonic carnival beats is just too jarring.

Forgotten favorites: “Loyal to the Game,” “Thugs Get Lonely Too,” “Don’t You Trust Me”

8. Better Dayz (2002)

Soul in Stereo rating: 3.5 stars out of 5

Edd said: Like Until the End of Time, this album is a glut of unreleased Makaveli-era tracks remixed with 00s-era artists and producers. Hearing Pac over 106 & Park-ready beats just sounds SO WEIRD on first listen but a lot of them work a lot better than you’d expect. This double album is much better constructed than most of his other posthumous releases, which aids the flow. The sequencing makes it feel like a legit album, not a random grab-bag of old songs. It’s certainly not an essential release but at least it’s not offensive.

Forgotten favorites: “Who Do You Believe In,” “Never B Peace (Nitty Remix),” “Thugz Mansion (Nas Acoustic)”

7. Still I Rise (1999)

Soul in Stereo rating: 3.5 stars out of 5

Edd said: Yes, yet ANOTHER posthumous album, this time featuring remixed tracks with the Outlawz. Hearing Pac collabing with people that, you know, HE ACTUALLY MET AND WAS COOL WITH, instantly puts it above the other material that Frankenstein’d together after his death. That said, there’s not a lot going on here. As you’d expect, all eyez are on Pac every time he steps to the mic, and there are some pretty strong concepts that touch on faith and the consequences of thug life (“Teardrops and Closed Caskets” is a true forgotten gem) but nothing reaches the heights of his prime. Also, the absence of Outlawz standout Hussein Fatal is really felt. It’s certainly listenable, but like all of Pac’s posthumous albums, it’s inconsequential. Still, it’s easily the best of the Zombie Pac albums.

Forgotten favorites: “Teardrops and Closed Caskets,” “Baby Don’t Cry (Keep Ya Head Up II),” “High Speed”

6. 2Pacalypse Now (1991)

Soul in Stereo rating: 3.5 stars out of 5

Edd said: Finally, we get to the albums that Pac actually saw hit the streets ’s debut. His 1991 debut was really ahead of its time, with its themes of identity ringing just as loudly today as they did then. Pac was still finding himself as an his MC here – he hadn’t quite developed his trademark “rhyme everything with Hennessy and enemy” flow. Instead, we get lots of experimenting with his delivery, with mixed results. Likewise, the storytelling is strong but, outside of the singles, the production comes off pedestrian. You could see the growing pains on this album, but you could also see the potential.

Forgotten favorites: “Violent,” “Soulja’s Story,” “Part Time Mutha”

5. Strictly 4 My N****Z… (1993)

Soul in Stereo rating: 3.5 stars out of 5

Edd said: Second time was the charm for Pac, who more clearly develops into the superstar he’d become. The beats hit harder and while his content is more bleak and confrontational than his debut, he’s sociopolitical themes are as strong as ever. Besides “Keep Your Head Up” and the eternal summer banger “I Get Around,” Strictly 4 My N****Z  is light on hits but heavy on defiance. Once again, so-so production can be an issue, with several of the tracks sounding interchangeable as a result. “My mama used to tell me, if you can’t find something to live for, you best find something to die for.” Man, that certainly hits different today.

Forgotten favorites: “Representin’ 93,” “5 Deadly Venomz,” “Last Words”

4. Thug Life: Volume 1 (1994)

Soul in Stereo rating: 4 stars out of 5

Edd said: Some of you may have never heard of this album, and honestly, it completely slipped my mind until doing research for this post. Thug Life was the short-lived group comprised of Pac, frequent collaborator Big Syke, The Rated R, Macadoshis and Pac’s stepbrother Mopreme. Pac may be at his at his rawest on this LP, which features the strongest production outside of Me Against the World and All Eyez on Me. In fact, I strongly considered ranking this above All Eyez – which I’m SURE would caused massed rioting in the streets – but that album slightly edges this one out due to its sonic diversity. But don’t sleep. If you haven’t heard this one, track it down – it’s by far Pac’s most underrated effort.

Forgotten favorites: “Bury Me a G,” “Pour Out a Little Liquor,” “How Will They Mourn Me”

3. All Eyez on Me (1996)

Soul in Stereo rating: 4 stars out of 5

Edd said: All Eyez on Me landed at the peak of Pac’s mainstream popularity, is the home to his biggest hits and would be his last album before his untimely death. That makes it the definitive Pac album – but, sorry Pac stans, despite its reputation as a hip-hop classic (and it is) it’s not his best. That certainly doesn’t mean it’s a failure, far from it. Pac takes a break from the heavy political themes that defined his early work to embrace mix of party starters and gangsta anthems. But All Eyez’s achilles’ heel is like every other double album on this list – endless filler tracks that keep it from fulfilling its potential, especially on disc 2. Even if you knock the 27 song tracklist to, say, 20 you’d still likely have an easy 5-star release. Regardless, this will always stand as THE Pac album … even if it isn’t perfect.

Forgotten favorites: “Got My Mind Made Up,” “Life Goes On,” “Run Tha Streetz”

2. The Don Killuminati: The 7 Day Theory (1996)

Soul in Stereo rating: 4 stars out of 5

Edd said: Don Killuminati is favorite Pac album – and that’s coming from a guy who loves all the rappers that were in Pac’s … err, Makaveli’s crosshairs at the time. There’s lots of mystique surrounding this album, from the barrage of barbs against rap’s biggest stars to the endless conspiracy theories that arose following Pac’s tragic death. I had friends who swore that Pac was rise from the dead, Black Jesus style, on the seventh day of … something. We’re still waiting on that seventh day. Regardless, the album itself is some of Pac’s best work, balancing his reckless Thug Life persona with his sex symbol status and flashes of activism. More than any other album, Pac truly feels at war with himself, resulting in an album that is as toxic and violent as it is heartfelt and passionate.

Forgotten favorites: “White Man’z World,” “Hold Ya Head,” “Against All Odds”

1. Me Against the World (1995)

Soul in Stereo rating: 4.5 stars out of 5

Edd said: The debate over Pac’s greatest works typically comes down to All Eyez on Me and this album – and in my eyez, there’s no question which one is strongest. Me Against the World is Pac at his most introspective – he’s questioning his place in the world while busting back at all his Hennessey Enemies. Sonically it’s a lot more mellow than his previous releases, which allows listeners to connect with Pac’s themes. But it’s also the most consistent in terms of production, an issue that has plagued almost all his other releases from hitting the next level. The only thing that keeps it from reaching that coveted 5-star status is a minor dip in consistency on the album’s second half. But that’s a minor quibble. Me Against the World is truly Pac at his best. His legacy may be extremely complicated, but this album solidifies his greatest.

Forgotten favorites: “Death Around the Corner,” “Lord Knows,” “Old School”

See, even the Unbiased Reviewer can show 2pac love. Shout out your favorite albums below and weigh in on the MATW vs AEOM debate below.