While incarcerated at an upstate NEW YORK
prison recovering from gunshot wounds suffered on November,
30, 1994 at a Times Square recording studio from an
apparent robbery Tupac Shakur planned, plot-strategized
on his method to seek and destroy the people involved
with the attempt on his life. He felt there were certain
rappers with prior knowledge of the so-called robbery
that took place and did nothing to prevent his near
assassination. It wasn't enough that Tupac was already
facing a very long prison term for rape and weapons
charges. No, these people felt with Tupac dead the rap
game spotlight would soon be on them. This plan backfired
after Tupac survived five gunshot wounds and later tells
of his near assassination and their involvement. They
insisted that Tupac was crazy and only looking for attention.
After surviving the horrible attempt on his life Shakur
still couldn't escape the troubles he faced with the
law. On December 1, 1994 while still in a wheelchair
Tupac was acquitted of sodomy and weapons charges but
was found guilty of sexual abuse. On February 14, 1995
he was sentenced to 41/2 years and immediately began
serving his time in New York Rikers Island Penitentiary.
Two months later, according to Vibe magazine, Tupac
renounced his "Thug Life" persona and commits
himself publicly to positive works. In this same interview
he spoke of starting an organization to help reach troubled
youth with Mike Tyson and Monster "Saika Shakur"
Cody (Author of Monster). He
implicated "Biggie Smalls", "Puffy"
Combs, Andre Harrell, "Stretch"(switch sides
I guess his new friends wanted him dead) Walker, among
others in the recording studio ambush.
In the days that Tupac spent recovering in the hospital
and jail he did not receive one visit, phone call or
explanation of what took place from the people present
at the studio ambush. Neither Biggie Smalls, Sean "Puffy"
Combs, the artist who he came to the studio to record
with- Lil' Shawn nor
his so-called friend Randall "Stretch" Walker
took the time to visit or write Tupac in this deepest
time of need. Even some of the large fan base he had
left behind was beginning to forget about him. Meanwhile
Biggie Smalls capitalized on this and was slowly but
surely becoming the next Hip-Hop Rap King.
After a few months Shakur began to feel like no one
gave a damn about him being almost assassinated and
then locked up. He was beginning to ask himself was
"Thug Life" really worth spending 4 1/2 years
of his life locked away like a caged animal. However
Tupac changed his new found mentality when he noticed
all the fame the people who wanted him out the way were
receiving
while he was stuck inside a jail cell. A fire began
to burn within the Don's soul and mind. There was no
way he would allow these cowards the pleasure of dethroning
him and stealing his crown. Not even Prison could stop
Tupac from plotting his revenge once he heard "Who
Shot Ya!" a song written by the Late Biggie Smalls.
Shakur knew his current Thug Life Soldiers were ready
for whatever but would they be enough to go up against
this now NEW YORK superpower?
In Tupac's heart he knew his "Thug
Life" soldiers would go to war if they had to.
More importantly he understood that this wasn't just
any type of war. He was planning a war not to be fought
with fist, guns or knives, but words. Shakur learned
at an early age that the pen was mightier than the
sword, and no one could express himself quite like he
could. Born and raised in New York Tupac knew the war
wouldn't be an easy one; he needed a team of young soldiers
who could flow with a style similar to New York. However
Shakur recognized he couldn't recruit New York rappers
to go up against their own MC's. He would soon come
up with an even better strategy.
Tupac had enough of NEW YORK and its big city (of) dreams.
He had already tried giving his place of birth much
love and respect which almost cost him his life. He
felt it was time to reinforce his team. This new team
would consist of soldiers who had a similar background
as his own. These soldiers would be trained in the Art
of War; a team who wouldn't be afraid of saying whatever
they felt like saying.
While incarcerated at NEW YORK Clinton Correctional
Facility Tupac began receiving visits from his half
brother (not related by blood: his mother Yaasmyn Fula
and Afeni Shakur were best friends) who also shared
the same type of up bringing as he had. Tupac's half
brother's mother was also a member of the Black Panthers.
Shakur's half brother was none other than the late Yafeu
"Kadafi" Fula. On a few occasions during visits
to Tupac, Kadafi spoke about a homeboy he knew from
his hometown (Montclair, NEW JERSEY) who could flow
his azz off but wasn't afraid of $h!t. Kadafi continued
to tell Pac that his Big Homie was well known in Montclair
as being a true rider. He spoke of an incident that
occurred with Tupac's own cousin and childhood friend
(now known to the world as Kastro and EDI). Kastro and
EDI came to visit Kadafi in Montclair when they were
robbed of their hats. Kadafi went to get a homeboy not
many brothers wanted to mess with, to ask him to get
the hats back. Once Kadafi told his homie what had happened
he stepped without hesitation to the thieves and retrieved
the hats back. EDI and Kastro along with Napoleon belonged
to a NEW JERSEY based rap group called "Dramacydal."
EDI, who is Brooklyn born, went to school with Tupac.
Napoleon was introduced to Tupac by Kadafi. Shakur's
heart went out to Napoleon after learning how he watched
in horror the assassination of both his parents. Tupac
loved the fact that Kadafi and Napoleon were not from
NEW YORK, however he wondered were these four enough
for what he was planning? Once Kadafi learned of Pac's
plan to assemble a new rap crew, he immediately thought
of his Big Homie from Montclair. He asked Pac if he
could bring his friend to visit him in prison. The friend
he referred to was the one and only Bruce
Washington a.k.a. Hussein Fatal. When Kadafi asked Fatal
if he wanted to go visit Tupac up at Clinton Correctional
Facility, of course he didn't believe him. "Man
get the hell out of here, you don't know no Pac,"
was his response. The two left it at that and it wasn't
until Kadafi's mother mentioned the prison visit to
Fatal that he realized it wasn't a joke. The very next
day Bruce Washington was sitting across from Mackaveli
the Don. Before Fatal could fully introduce himself,
Pac called him by name and asked him to flow a few verses.
Afterward Pac asked him if he wanted to come to California
and record on his next album. Once Tupac learned of
Bruce Washington's background he knew this man was a
true rap soldier. The rebellious, misbehaving, death
before dishonor mentality that Pac wrote about in his
music was just a part of what Fatal possessed. Bruce
Washington already had Outlaw written all over him.
Marion "Suge" Knight, owner of Death Row Records,
posted over a million dollar bond for Tupac's release.
Shakur signed with Death Row Records and was finally
in a position to do something with his newly formed
rap crew. The group Dramacydal, Kadafi, and Bruce would
soon meet with Tupac in Los Angeles to begin collaborating
on Pac`s album called All Eyes on Me. Now that the four
rappers joined Tupac the name Dramacydal was dropped.
Pac wanted to use the name LIL' HOMIES. Fatal voiced
that the name LIL HOMIES made them sound like a bunch
of young riders; he and Pac were around the same age,
and he definitely didn't want people referring to him
as a lil homie. Instead he suggested the name OUTLAWZ
and Pac agreed.
Later Fatal introduced Young Noble to the OUTLAWZ after
a pickup basketball game sponsored by Death Row Records.
Noble was a childhood friend of Fatal's also from Montclair,
N.J who moved to Los Angeles. Pac realized with the
help of his younger brother & Conrad, Kadafi he
had formed a team he felt would not only take over the
hip-hop game but also restore him to his rightful place
on the throne. Pac was beginning to love his new family.
They were young, ready for whatever and each had their
own story to tell. The best part of his new team was
that the majority of them were not from NEW YORK (Tupac
and EDI were NEW YORK born). The OUTLAWZ are mainly
Jersey Ni***s who could flow with a style unlike their
NEW YORK counterparts. With the help of these OUTLAW
soldiers Tupac Shakur would launch a mighty verbal assault
on the NEW YORK rap scene.
On June 4, 1996 only 12 days before his 25th birthday
Tupac and his OUTLAWZ released "Hit 'Em Up"
a brutal (verbal) assault against Biggie Smalls, Bad
Boy Records, Mobb Deep and others. It was said a few
well known west coast rappers were asked to flow on
this record but all refused. Hussein Fatal asked if
he could be the first to flow on "Hit 'Em Up"
and Tupac agreed. Hussein's verse, "Get out the
way yo! Biggie Smalls just got shot..." was the
first time a rapper mentioned shooting another famous
artist on wax.
At times Tupac thought Kadafi and Fatal were just as
crazy as he was. Like the time Fatal tried to sneak
a gun in Los Angeles's House of Blues or when he saw
both of them pull out and take a piss in the middle
of a crowd. Still Tupac loved and respected their outlaw
mentality. There were many
nights Pac and Fatal stayed up all night just talking.
Tupac being the teacher and Fatal the student. Fatal
has said that Pac taught him the rules of the rap game.
During these talks Tupac was basically schooling him
on how to obtain the fame and fortune he's destined
to achieve by being one of his closest soldiers. Shakur
told Hussein to, "always keep it real with yourself
and the team you assemble around you." Fatal and
Pac's relationship grew so close when introducing Fatal
to certain crews, like the Boot Camp Clique, he would
introduce him as his Lieutenant.
Fatal and about a hundred of his Jersey soldiers accompanied
Pac to the MTV Video Music Awards in NEW YORK where
a confrontation with the rapper Nas took place. Nonetheless
Hussein and Shakur weren't always on the best of terms.
Some would say the two were too much alike, both stubborn
and wanting his own way. Pac figured Fatal had a lot
of heart when Fatal "borrowed" his Land Cruiser
without his permission and then totaled it. Everyone
at Death Row knew you had to be out of your mind to
mess with something that belonged to Pac or Suge. People
were known to catch a beat down just for smoking up
Pac's weed. Pac was so mad about the truck situation
that he immediately
sent Fatal back to NEW JERSEY. This wasn't the first
time Pac had to send Fatal or Kadafi back home for acting
too crazy. In Tupac's song The First To Bust he even
had a verse that said, "...sometimes I question
Hussein..." Just a real and honest statement about
how he felt about Fatal sometimes making the wrong decisions.
After returning to NEW JERSEY Fatal knew he had really
messed up this time. He got in contact with Kadafi's
mother and asked her to get in touch with Pac so that
he could apologize for crashing the truck. That very
day Fatal received a call from his girlfriend informing
him to return to California where he apologized to Pac.
On September 6, 1996 Hussein had to leave California
again, but this time for a court appearance on assault
charges. On September 7, 1996 Fatal received the horrible
news: his best friend and mentor Tupac Shakur was shot
four times! After leaving the Mike Tyson vs. Bruce Seldon
fight in Las Vegas, he was shot twice in the chest,
once through his hand and once in his leg. Friday September
13, 1996 only 6 days after being shot, Tupac Amaru Shakur
died at the Las Vegas University Medical Center intensive
care unit.
Hussein Fatal said his life has never been the same.
He blames himself for the shooting and feels that if
he hadn't left Pac for his court appearance and went
to Las Vegas maybe the outcome would have been different.
One month later, Hussein was hit with more bad news.
He learns that Kadafi, the one responsible for bringing
the OUTLAWZ together, was shot and killed. It was said
that Napoleon's cousin killed him following some verbal
disagreement. The story is that Napoleon's cousin pulled
out his gun and pointed it at Kadafi. Kadafi responded
by showing his bulletproof vest and saying, "if
you're going to kill me you have to put one in my head..."
The cousin did just that. Fatal said when Pac was assassinated
he didn't want to rap anymore. Soon after, Kadafi was
murdered by his own crew and making matters worse Suge
Knight went off to jail. It's no surprise he felt like
rapping was far worse and more dangerous than selling
drugs. Hussein said the only reason he was in LA was
because of Pac and with him gone there was no reason
to stay. Therefore he left. I didn't call for money,
socks, clothes or anything. Fatal states, "I just
went the f*@# home back to Jersey." No matter what
happened Hussein felt an obligation to respect Pac's
wishes and not sign with Death Row Records. Up until
that point in his life Bruce Washington was headed for
a long prison term or maybe death. However fate gave
him a chance to make some good out of his young confused
life when the late Yuta "Kadafi" Fula introduced
him to the late great Tupac Shakur. Now with both of
these influences gone, Fatal felt he had no choice except
to return to a life of crime. It wasn't enough he was
part of recording successes such as- Hit 'Em Up, All
About You, Made Ni**as, When We Ride and the hook on
Hail Mary. Not even the honor, fame or monetary compensation
for being an "OUTLAW" could subdue his true
outlaw nature.
Following a few months of terrorizing Hussein began
to miss his former life as a rapper. With the help of
his ex-manager Courtney he would soon sign with Relativity
Records and record his first solo album In the Line
of Fire. This particular album did not sell very well
and Fatal knew he did not put forth his best effort.
Fatal honestly admits he was not ready to become a solo
artist. Nevertheless with Tupac's untimely death and
the remaining Outlawz signed with Death Row, he just
didn't have a choice. Hussein said that Pac specifically
told all of his Outlawz not to sign with Death Row as
he planned for his own label. Fatal later became unhappy
with Relativity Records and signed with Rap-A-Lot Records
where he began recording is second album Death Before
Dishonor. Before he could release this album Bruce Washington
was arrested in Newark, NJ. Court records show as a
juvenile Washington a.k.a. Fatal was arrested a total
of 24 times between 1987 and 1989. He pled guilty to
four charges, including trespassing, robbery and assault.
As an adult Hussein was arrested a total of twenty times.
In December 1999 Fatal was arrested at the Robert Treat
Hotel downtown Newark, NJ. Washington was being sorted
by the Orange Police Department in NJ for assault. On
July 12, 1997 Orange Police responded in the area of
220 Main Street to a report of assault. One of the victims
stated that he went to the store to get some food when
a fight broke out. He stated that Bruce proceeded to
pull out a box cutter and slashed his stomach and face.
The second victim was slashed in the arm and chest area;
this victim needed 64 stitches to close the wounds.
Bruce was positively identified by the victim and arrested
on these accusations and later charged with aggravated
assault in the third and fourth degree. Washington did
not return to court after making bail. Upon his apprehension
another warrant for bail jumping and failure to appear
were served. However, Hussein Fatal was able to elude
capture for well over three years while out on bail.
He was arrested an additional five times adding eleven
extra charges while out on bail. Each time he was arrested
he managed to post bail using a different bondsman.
On May 15, 2001 Bruce Washington was released to a NJ
half way house. Upon his release he will drop his second
solo album which is dedicated to the memory of Tupac
Shakur. Before his incarceration in December 1999 Hussein
managed to record over 40 songs while on the run. His
album unites all six Outlawz for the first time since
Tupac's death with guest appearances by Scarface, Lil'
Mo, Ja Rule and the newest Outlaw member Newchild (son
of former drug king-pin and NY street ball legend Pee
Wee Kirkland). Fatal is ready to continue what Tupac
started. Hussein said after being locked up for close
to two years of his life, his views have changed about
many things. He feels he is ready to do whatever it
takes to keep Pac's spirit and legacy alive. Fatal's
final comment to me was, "LET NO MAN SEPARATE WHAT
WE CREATE."
WRITTEN BY: TIM ASHLEY (Fatals manager and friend)
Check Fatals official Court Papers below:
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