I count myself as extremely lucky filing my weekly missive for Rialto Channel for a huge number of reasons. These include being in the position of having a platform to rant about one of my favourite subjects, as well as being in awe of the sheer volume of killer docos constantly being produced globally and the fact that I get to watch and talk about them! I am spoilt when it comes to kick ass new discoveries every week, and have become pretty bloody fussy when it comes to what I do – and don’t – like.
I count myself as extremely lucky filing my weekly missive for Rialto Channel for a huge number of reasons. These include being in the position of having a platform to rant about one of my favourite subjects, as well as being in awe of the sheer volume of killer docos constantly being produced globally and the fact that I get to watch and talk about them! I am spoilt when it comes to kick ass new discoveries every week, and have become pretty bloody fussy when it comes to what I do – and don’t – like.
When I sat back on the couch to watch this week’s MURDER RAP: INSIDE THE BIGGIE AND TUPAC MURDERS I was excited, especially given that I have devoured many a book on both cases and love the music of both artists. I was psyched, to put it mildly. Perhaps too psyched, as when the latest doco about one of hip hop’s greatest mysteries started to unfold I was a little disappointed.
At the heart of the film is two of the most infamous unsolved cases in the history of American crime - the murders of renowned rap stars Tupac Shakur and Biggie Smalls. They have been the subject of exhaustive investigations, relentless speculation, and a web of conspiracy theories and dark secrets. This doco purported to be the first to reveal “the real inside story behind these sensational cases” and comes with a seriously impressive pedigree. Using invaluable information sourced from hundreds of police case files, as well as taped confessions never before shown on film, and interviews with lead detective Greg Kading and other witnesses, it is the riveting account of the police task force set up to investigate what really went down almost ten years later.
One of the key witnesses depicted in the doco says, "what I do have to tell you is gonna blow your fucking minds!" and that is exactly what this documentary set out to do – and I was ready! The information presented definitely did that, as compiled by Kading and his investigators. In 2009, before his team could finish building their cases, Kading was removed from the taskforce, owing to an internal affairs investigation relating to a separate case. He was later exonerated, but soon after retired from the department and the taskforce was dismantled.
Incredible claims by Kading’s crew that have never been put to rest include that a Compton Crip named Orlando Anderson killed Tupac. The taskforce’s key witness was Anderson’s uncle, Keffe D. He claimed to be riding in the white Cadillac with Tupac when the star was gunned down, and said Sean “Diddy” Combs offered their party USD $500,000 to kill Tupac, and the same amount to kill Suge Knight. It also says that they were never paid, hence their keenness to talk. The second claim is that a Mob Piru Blood gang member named Wardell “Poochie” Fouse killed Biggie, and was paid $13,000 by Death Row Records mogul Suge Knight for the task.
Now a superstar and multimedia mogul in his own right, Diddy has always denied involvement in Tupac’s murder. Knight, currently in jail on a separate murder charge, could not be reached for comment and he has not spoken publicly on Kading’s findings. In addition both Anderson and Poochie have since been murdered in unrelated incidents, so the finger pointing has ground to a halt. Nuts!
So with all of this in mind, why was I a little disappointed in the documentary? I guess it was just so incredibly factual, with little artistic flair. Many of the docos I have been watching lately play with some pretty interesting modes of storytelling but this was just relentless action, footage and facts. If you don’t mind that then this is definitely for you – and it goes without saying that the subject matter is groundbreaking and shocking in turn.