What did Tupac Shakur’s friends do with his cremated ashes? Suge Knight makes shocking claim

Former Death Row Records CEO Suge Knight recently shed light on the days following Tupac Shakur's fatal shooting nearly three decades ago. In an interview with People magazine on Tuesday, July 1, 2025, Knight, who is currently incarcerated for an unrelated hit-and-run, recounted an unusual ritual that the rapper's friends carried out.

For context, Pac was gunned down while driving in Las Vegas in September 1996. The rapper took four bullets. Meanwhile, Knight, who was in the vehicle at the time, was also injured. The pair were rushed to a hospital, where Shakur underwent two surgeries but was pronounced dead less than a week later.

 

 

 

 

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Knight told People that the rapper was cremated soon after. That night, Tupac's closest friends and family "rolled" his ashes into a blunt and "smoked him."

"You gotta understand, that’s what made sense. It was symbolic. It’s like… you keep part of him," the former record executive explained.

"I had to go over there bleeding everywhere, take the seat belt off him"—Suge Knight about the fateful night Tupac Shakur was gunned down

On the night of September 7, 1993, Tupac Shakur and Suge Knight attended a Mike Tyson fight in Las Vegas. After leaving the MGM Grand, they were ambushed at a red light, as gunfire tore through their black BMW. A bullet grazed Knight's head, but 2Pac, who was riding shotgun, was shot four times.

The former Death Row executive told People that he immediately took a U-turn and rushed towards Las Vegas Boulevard. Per the outlet, cops who had heard the shots chased them and even flagged an ambulance. A disoriented Knight had to describe the incident to the officers while he was "bleeding everywhere." Knight told People:

"I then was getting Tupac out the car, even when the door was open. I had to go over there bleeding everywhere, take the seat belt off him."

The pair was rushed to the University Medical Center of Southern Nevada to receive treatment. They discharged Suge soon after. However, the I Get Around hitmaker wasn't as lucky. Doctors performed two emergency surgeries, including one to remove one of the rapper's lungs. However, they pronounced Tupac dead on September 13.

 

 

 

 

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According to Suge Knight, the rapper's mother, Afeni Shakur, wanted her son to be cremated immediately, without any delay. Not even a funeral. The former music executive claimed to have "paid a million in cash" to make it happen. That night a group of close family and friends gathered to honor Tupac, where they rolled his cremated remains into a blunt and smoked it.

Knight noted that he was unable to join in the ritual as he was on "probation" and couldn't "smoke." He told the outlet:

"I told his mother, ‘Moms, I’d love to, but if I hit that, I’ll get in trouble," adding, "was probably the only one who didn’t hit him."

Suge Knight co-founded Death Row Records in 1991 alongside Dr. Dre, The D.O.C., and Dick Griffey. The label was a massive success, featuring talents like Snoop Dogg, Dr. Dre, and Shakur. Notably, it was Knight who struck a deal with the latter artist and signed him to the label. The rapper would go on to release his beloved All Eyez on Me through Death Row.

2Pac's murder remained largely unsolved until September 2023, when cops arrested and charged former gang leader Duane "Keefe D" Davis.