Peak
1
Weeks
24
Score
5,071
Chart Year
1996
Two versions of the music video were filmed. Shakur's longtime friend, actress Jada Pinkett Smith, came up with the concept inspired by the 1985 film Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome.[10] She was expected to direct the video, but she removed herself from the project and was replaced by Hype Williams.[10][11] The video was filmed November 10-13, 1995 in El Mirage, California.[12] It takes place in a desert in the year 2095. The casting includes actor Clifton Powell as the evil tribal chief, actor Chris Tucker (then known for his role in the 1995 film Friday),[13] Tony Cox as the dwarf soldier, and Roger Troutman (formerly with the band Zapp) carrying a talk box. It ends with a cliffhanger cut by a "To Be Continued" closing. An alternative version, featuring the remix song re-cut, removes the final caption and features 2Pac and Dr. Dre naming West Coast towns. The second video is based on the remix version of the song from the album All Eyez on Me and is a continuation of the video's story. The premise is that the desert scenes of the previous videos were merely a nightmare 2Pac was having. When he wakes up, he finds himself in his bed beside a young woman. He calls Dr. Dre on a cordless phone, who tells him to get over to his summer house because he's throwing a house party. The rest of the music video takes place as if it were a home video celebrating 2Pac's welcome to Death Row and features several cameos, notably Roger Troutman who is now playing the piano, and guest appearances from DJ Quik, Big Syke, Deion Sanders, Danny Boy, Nadia Cassini, Jodeci, B-Legit and E-40.[14] The video was shot in Compton, California. The first video can be found on the DualDisc of All Eyez on Me and the second video can be found on Tupac: Live at the House of Blues DVD. It also won the 1996 MOBO Award for Best Video. The music video was released in December 1995.
Produced by Dr. Dre, this track is built on a sample from Joe Cocker's 1972 song "Woman To Woman." It wasn't the first time Cocker's piano-driven song was sampled: The Ultramagnetic MCs used it on their 1988 track "Funky." The song is a celebration of the California hip-hop lifestyle. Tupac and Dre rap about the vibrant activity and creativity they constantly encounter, but also warn about the gang violence, crime and social ills, which they mention with pride. The two rappers were a big part of the West Coast rap scene, with Dre creating innovative beats and setting the scene for gangsta rap, while Tupac led the way as an MC. Tupac was raised in New York, but moved to California with his family. The lifestyle he raps about in this song caught up with him, as he was gunned down the following year. The effected chorus ("California... knows how to party") was performed by Roger Troutman, who was known for creating synthesized vocals using a vocoder. Many West Coast rappers sampled Troutman and emulated his work, and Tupac used Troutman's "Be Alright" as the basis for his 1993 song "Keep Ya Head Up." Troutman died in 1999 when he was shot by his brother after a dispute. This incorporates part of Roger Troutman's "So Ruff, So Tuff," which he wrote with his brother Larry and recorded in 1981. Tupac said in Rolling Stone seven months before he was shot, that he didn't want this song to be about violence, "I want it to be about money." The song's music video was directed by Hype Williams and features funk mastermind George Clinton as the as the evil tribal chief and the actor Chris Tucker as his yes-man. In French MTV's 2006 show 100 Greatest Rap Music Videos, this came #1. It also won the 1996 MOBO Award for Best Video in the UK. Dr. Dre performed this with Snoop Dogg at the 2022 Super Bowl halftime show, changing the line "I been in the game for 10 years makin' rap tunes" to "I been in the game for 30 years makin' rap tunes.
California love California knows how to party California knows how to party In the city of L.A. In the city of good ol' Watts In the city, the city of Compton We keep it rockin', we keep it rockin' Now let me welcome everybody to the Wild Wild West A state that's untouchable like Eliot Ness The track hits your eardrum like a slug to your chest Pack a vest for your Jimmy in the city of sex We in that Sunshine State where the bomb-ass hemp be The state where you never find a dance floor empty And pimps be on a mission for them greens Lean mean money-making-machines servin' fiends I been in the game for ten years makin' rap tunes Ever since honeys was wearin' Sassoon Now it's '95 and they clock me and watch me Diamonds shinin', lookin' like I robbed Liberace It's all good, from Diego to the Bay Your city is the bomb if your city makin' pay (uh) Throw up a finger if you feel the same way Dre puttin' it down for Californ-i-a California (California) knows how to party (knows how to party) California (West Coast) knows how to party (yes, they do, that's right) In the city of L.A. In the city of good ol' Watts (good ol' Watts) In the city, the city of Compton (city of Compton) We keep it rockin' (keep it rockin'), we keep it rockin' (Yeah, now make it shake, c'mon) Shake, shake it, baby Shake, shake it, shake it, baby Shake, shake it, mama Shake it, Cali (Cali) Shake, shake it, baby (that's right) Shake, shake it Shake, shake it, mama Shake it Out on bail, fresh out of jail, California dreamin' Soon as I step on the scene, I'm hearin' hoochies screamin' Fiendin' for money and alcohol, the life of a Westside player Where cowards die and the strong ball Only in Cali where we riot, not rally, to live and die In L.A. we wearin' Chucks, not Ballys (yeah, that's right, uh) Dressed in Locs and Khaki suits, and ride is what we do Flossin' but have caution, we collide with other crews Famous because we throw grams Worldwide, let 'em recognize from Long Beach to Rosecrans Bumpin' and grindin' like a slow jam It's Westside, so you know the Row won't bow down to no man Say what you say, but give me that bomb beat from Dre Let me serenade the streets of L.A. From Oakland to Sac-town, the Bay Area and back down Cali is where they put their mack down, give me love California (California) knows how to party California knows how to party (c'mon, baby) In the city of L.A. (South Central) In the city of good ol' Watts (uh, that's right) In the city, the city of Compton (yup, yup) We keep it rockin' (keep it rockin'), we keep it rockin' (Yeah, yeah, now make it shake, uh) Shake, shake it, baby (uh) Shake, shake it (uh, yeah) Shake, shake it, mama Shake it, Cali (shake it, Cali) Shake, shake it, baby (shake it, Cali) Shake, shake it Shake, shake it, mama (West Coast) Shake it, Cali Uh, yeah, uh, uh, Long Beach in the house Uh, yeah, Oaktown Oakland definitely in the house (hahaha) Frisco (yeah), Frisco And you know L.A. up in this Pasadena, where you at? Yeah, Inglewood Inglewood always up to no good Even Hollywood tryna get a piece, baby Sacramento, Sacramento where you at? Yeah Throw it up, y'all, throw it up, throw it up I can't see ya California love (uh, uh, uh) Let's show these fools how we do it on this Westside
| Week | Chart Date | Position | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jun 15, 1996 | 64 | 62 |
| 2 | Jun 22, 1996 | 6 | 120 |
| 3 | Jun 29, 1996 | 4 | 122 |
| 4 | Jul 6, 1996 | 3 | 123 |
| 5 | Jul 13, 1996 | 1 | 125 |
| 6 | Jul 20, 1996 | 1 | 125 |
| 7 | Jul 27, 1996 | 2 | 124 |
| 8 | Aug 3, 1996 | 3 | 123 |
| 9 | Aug 10, 1996 | 2 | 124 |
| 10 | Aug 17, 1996 | 12 | 114 |
| 11 | Aug 24, 1996 | 14 | 112 |
| 12 | Aug 31, 1996 | 17 | 109 |
| 13 | Sep 7, 1996 | 17 | 109 |
| 14 | Sep 14, 1996 | 11 | 115 |
| 15 | Sep 21, 1996 | 9 | 117 |
| 16 | Sep 28, 1996 | 13 | 113 |
| 17 | Oct 5, 1996 | 19 | 107 |
| 18 | Oct 12, 1996 | 30 | 96 |
| 19 | Oct 19, 1996 | 30 | 96 |
| 20 | Oct 26, 1996 | 47 | 79 |