The world was stunned by the death of legendary rapper Tupac Shakur in 1996, leaving behind a trail of unsolved mysteries and conspiracy theories.
As the highly anticipated documentary “Dear Mama” prepares to air on F/X on April 21st, the focus shifts to the darker side of the music industry and the role its executives played in Tupac’s tragic downfall.
Leila Steinberg, Tupac’s former manager, recently spoke to the hosts of SiriusXM’s “The Last Mile Radio,” discussing the upcoming documentary and its focus on being honest about certain aspects of Tupac’s life.
Steinberg opened up about the mistakes made during Tupac’s career, admitting that the music industry and its executives were significant factors in his collapse.
“I have to sit here as someone who was close to Tupac until his death, who was present many times when I no longer worked with him in a managerial capacity,” Leila Steinberg said. “I was at lots of video shoots that he did. I was in the studio at Can-Am when he was with Suge. And this industry is so destructive that if I point the finger, I would say that executives and this industry had more to do with his collapse than anything.”
Steinberg revealed that Alan Hughes, the director of “Dear Mama,” reached out to her last year with a vision for a five-part series on F/X.
According to Steinberg, Hughes’ goal was to create an honest and healing piece about Tupac’s life and those around him, including herself. She acknowledged that Tupac, known for his passion and emotion, often acted out of anger, leading to further complications in his life and career.
While reflecting on her time with Tupac, Steinberg took responsibility for the mistakes made during his rise to fame as well.
“We really blew it. We made a lot of mistakes. Tupac was not always right. Matter of fact, he was so passionate and so emotional and so often not emotionally literate, not able to control his emotions. And so he let his anger speak first, and then later he would apologize or acknowledge things…and so if we’re gonna heal, we have to be honest,” Steinberg said.
As the documentary approaches its release date, fans of Tupac and the music industry alike will get a rare glimpse into the truth behind one of the world’s greatest unsolved mysteries.
“Dear Mama,” which is executive produced by Quincy Delight Jones III (QD3), Nelson George, and others, promises to be an unflinching and revealing exploration of the many factors that led to Tupac Shakur’s tragic and untimely death.
