Tupac Shakur Biography Says Rapper Spoke of 'Nothing' but Jada Pinkett Smith After Becoming 'Lifelong Friends' in School

The authorized biography 'Tupac Shakur,' written by Staci Robinson, was published on Oct. 24

Tupac Shakur and Jada Pinkett Smith had a once-in-a-lifetime kind of friendship.

A new authorized biography of the late rapper, Tupac Shakur by Staci Robinson, was released last Tuesday by Penguin Random House. In chronicling the music legend’s life, the book explores how significant his relationship was with Pinkett Smith, 52, whom he met in high school when they were aspiring actors and quickly considered a “lifelong friend.”

Robinson writes in the biography, which was authorized by the star’s mother Afeni Shakur Davis before her death in 2016, that the All Eyez on Me artist met the actress at an assembly at their Maryland high school, Baltimore School for the Arts, for students in the theater department. “We hit it off from that moment on,” Pinkett Smith said in a previous interview reprinted in Tupac Shakur.

The Red Table Talk host explained that the two had “a connection” and were able to talk to each other about their financial struggles and mothers’ substance abuse issues. Quickly, they realized their connection meant that they were to be “lifelong friends.”

Related: All About Jada Pinkett Smith's Close Friendship with Tupac Shakur

“When you have somebody that has your back when you feel like you’re nothing, that’s everything,” the Emmy winner said.

The “California Love” rapper’s sister Sekyiwa Shakur opens up about her brother's relationships with Pinkett Smith and their friend John Cole at the time in the book. “All I remember is John coming over to the house all the time. And nothing else could be talked about but Jada,” she says in Tupac Shakur. “His music changed. This people changed. And Jada came — the entity! The magazine posters had come off his wall and John’s art went up on his wall. And pictures of Jada.”

Robinson also writes of a poem the Grammy-nominated artist wrote to Pinkett Smith after Shakur moved to Marin City, California, in which he called her, “The omega of my Heart” and wrote of how much he admires her.

Related: The Biggest Bombshells from Jada Pinkett Smith's Memoir, from Chris Rock Asking Her Out to the Oscars Slap

Shakur wrote of his friend, “u will never fully understand / How Deeply my Heart Feels 4 u.”

“U R my Heart in Human Form / a Friend I could never replace,” the poem concludes.

Shakur was killed in a drive-by shooting in 1997 at age 25. At the time of his death, he and Pinkett Smith were estranged after she had previously distanced herself from their friendship when she thought his life was becoming dangerous and then a fight led to their separation.

Over the years, the Girls Trip star has spoken out about their relationship, sharing anecdotes in interviews and posting previously unreleased poems of his on social media.

In an October interview with RollingOut, she described their connection as being a "soulmate friendship."

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Related: Arrest Video of Tupac Shakur Murder Suspect Shows Him Saying It's 'Biggest Case in Las Vegas History'

"If there is such a thing as past lives, I definitely think that Pac and I have traveled a few together," she said when asked if she ever regretted that their relationship was never romantic. "It just wasn't possible."

"It was like God made us that way," she continued. “It was like, look, I'm going to put y'all together, right? Y'all are going to be a dynamic duo. But I'm going to tell you right now, I'm going to make it so y'all are not going to be able to get together 'cause that just wasn't the purpose."

In early October, the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department arrested a suspect in connection with the hip-hop star’s 1996 murder, marking the biggest break in the cold case in nearly 27 years.

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