Tupac Shakur was the first artist to have a #1 record while in prison.

He lived a short, tumultuous life in which he became an influential rapper, acted in several feature films, tangled with the law and was killed in 1996 in a still-unsolved drive-by shooting in Las Vegas.

Tupac Amaru Shakur was born in New York on this day in 1971. His parents -- both of whom were members of the Black Panther Party -- separated before he was born, and Shakur spent most of his childhood moving around the U.S. with his mother and sister.

As a teen, Shakur attended the Baltimore School of the Arts, where he began acting and writing rap music. He then moved with his family to Marin City, Calif., before he graduated and hustled for a living.

Shock-G, the leader of the rap troupe Digital Underground, saved Shakur from a life on the streets when he hired him as a dancer and roadie. Shakur's first appearance on record, after honing his songwriting, was his less-than-momentous participation on Digital Underground's 1991 This Is an EP Release.

Shakur's solo debut, 2pacalypse Now, featured the top-30 R&B hit "Brenda's Got a Baby." Conservative politicians, including then-Vice President Dan Quayle, criticized him for his explicit lyrics. Most of the rap world loved his vivid, sometimes thoughtful, portrayals of urban life.

Strictly 4 My N.I.G.G.A.Z. (1993) included "I Get Around," which received airplay on pop radio.

Shakur was soon accused of involvement in the shooting of two police officers and one count of sodomy. He also served jail time for allegedly striking an autograph seeker and was arrested for carrying a weapon and assaulting a driver. Despite this trouble with the law, Shakur ran the Oakland, Calif., program Underground Railroad for troubled teens.

Shakur starred in the high-profile John Singleton-directed film "Poetic Justice" with Janet Jackson. He then got into trouble for fighting with director Allen Hughes, after being removed from the set of "Menace II Society." Shakur's other movie credits included "Juice" and "Above the Rim."

Shakur was behind bars when his next LP was released, having been convicted of sexual assault. The day after the verdict was announced, Shakur was shot by muggers in a Manhattan recording studio. He recovered from the attack.

Me Against the World (1995), featuring prophetically titled cuts such as "Death Around the Corner," entered the Billboard 200 albums chart at #1. All Eyez on Me (1996), the first double disc of original rap music, did the same and sold more than 6 million copies, confirming Shakur's status as the hottest act in rap. He enjoyed a hit single with the album's "California Love," a duet with Dr. Dre.

While serving eight months in jail in 1995, Shakur accused his rival, the Notorious B.I.G. -- as well as Sean "Puffy" Combs, Andre Harrell and Randy "Stretch" Walker -- of engineering his shooting. After being paroled with the help of Suge Knight, the president of Death Row Records, Shakur concentrated on acting. He starred in the movies "Bullet" and "Gridlock'd."

But shortly after the release of All Eyez on Me, Shakur was murdered. He was riding in the passenger seat of Knight's car, after having seen the Mike Tyson/Bruce Seldon fight at Las Vegas' MGM Grand Hotel. Shakur was shot four times and died six days later. Theories proliferated about who could have shot him and why, but the crime has not been solved.

Though some people thought the rap world would become less bloody following Shakur's death, the Notorious B.I.G. was killed six months later.

Also in 1996, came the posthumous Don Killuminati: The 7 Day Theory by Makaveli, an alias for Shakur. Shakur's R U Still Down? (Remember Me), featuring such cuts as "16 on Death Row" (RealAudio excerpt), was issued in 1997. Greatest Hits and the unauthorized, mostly spoken-word In His Own Words, followed in 1998.

"Pac was just more raw than a lot of the other rappers I've worked with," engineer Bob Morse said shortly after the murder. "I can't explain it in words. Just off the top of his head, his emotions weren't controlled or cool."

Other birthdays: Lamont Dozier, 58; Eddie Levert (O'Jays), 57; Ian Matthews, 53.