Sway Calloway Shares the Story of His Final Interview with Tupac Shakur
A few months before Tupac’s death, Sway spoke with the history-making artist on the set of the “How Do You Want It” music video.
Shade 45 host Sway Calloway remembered the last interview he did with his friend, Tupac Shakur, a few months before his death.
Sneaking onto the set of Tupac’s video for “How Do You Want It,” Sway made his way past droves of press and “big-ass, hulkish-sized” security guards, he said. Ducking and running military-style in an effort to remain unseen, Sway eventually made his way to Tupac’s trailer for the interview.
As Sway knocked on the door, he could hear Tupac holding court. Inside, the rapper’s captive audience included R&B artist Jon B., who was playing some instrumentals for him; the lead singers of Jodeci, K-Ci and JoJo, just hanging out; and, of course, some attractive women.
On the 20th anniversary of Tupac’s death, Sway reflects on discovering the late artist’s genius as a freestyler on the Bay Area-circuit, following him through his ascent to stardom and that final interview.
“I think he had something he wanted to get off his chest … in relation to his relationship and dynamic with Bad Boy, P. Diddy, The Notorious B.I.G., and other East Coast artists at that time,” Sway said during an exclusive interview with SiriusXM. “I really didn’t know what I was walking into … It turned out to be one of the most electrifying conversations I’ve ever been a part of with an artist. It taught me a lot.”
Tupac was gunned down on September 7, 1996, in a drive-by shooting after leaving a Mike Tyson fight at the MGM Grand casino in Las Vegas with Death Row Records CEO Suge Knight. The 25-year-old rapper died six days later on September 13. The case remains unsolved.
Tupac’s life was marred by personal struggles and legal woes. But Sway talked about the other side of a man he defined as “brilliant,” “humble,” and a political activist who had “so much energy and cared so much about people.”
“Pac took a lot of political bullets for us … It was unfortunate the way he died,” said the “Sway in the Morning” host, who described Tupac as an “action figure for young Black men coming out of the Bay Area.”
As for that final interview with Tupac, “I wish I knew then what I know now about the art of interviewing,” Sway said. “I would have asked Pac more directly about his role in things that happened to him. What his goals were, what his mistakes were, where did all that energy and knowledge come from?”
And those final words captured on audio?
“I’ve never listened to it,” Sway said. “It’s hard to hear my voice next to his.”
To hear more from the SiriusXM interview with Sway, as well as memories from DMC and Snoop Dogg, check out the full video:
