"I Get Around" is a song by American rapper
2Pac
Tupac Amaru Shakur (; born Lesane Parish Crooks; June 16, 1971 – September 13, 1996), also known by his stage names 2Pac and Makaveli, was an American rapper and actor, regarded as one of the greatest and most influential rappers of all tim ...
from his second studio album, ''
Strictly 4 My N.I.G.G.A.Z...'' (1993). It was released on June 10, 1993, by
Interscope Records
Interscope Records is an American record label based in Santa Monica, California, owned by Universal Music Group through its Interscope Geffen A&M imprint. Founded in late 1990 by Jimmy Iovine and Ted Field as a $20 million joint venture ...
as the album's second single and features Shakur's mentor
Shock G and
Money-B of
Digital Underground
Digital Underground is an American alternative hip hop group from Oakland, California. Its lineup grows with each album and tour.
Digital Underground's leader and mainstay was Gregory "Shock G" Jacobs (also known as Humpty Hump). Shock G forme ...
, Shakur's old group. It was produced by Shock G, who produced it under the alias, The D-Flow Production Squad.
AllMusic
AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...
notes that in the song, Shakur "brags about his sexual conquests".
Chart-wise, it was the album's most successful single, reaching numbers eleven and nine on the US
''Billboard'' Hot 100 and
''Cash Box'' Top 100.
Composition and writing
According to both Money-B and Shock G, the song originated as a sample and was originally intended to be used by Digital Underground. However, after six months the group could not compose lyrics that they felt were worthy of the sample. Shock-G initially offered the sample to bandmate
Saafir when 2Pac began preparing his second studio album and needed material. Shock-G took the sample away from Saafir and gave it to Shakur, inflaming tensions between Shakur and Saafir, who had fallen out previously.
Shakur had asked his former bandmates to guest star on the track, but was concerned that neither of his bandmates would have time to write their own lyrics, so Shakur ghostwrote lyrics for Shock-G and Money-B. Shock-G's verse, as written by Shakur, would appear unaltered on the final version, but Money-B opted to write and perform his own lyrics, which Shock-G produced. The original third verse (sung by Shakur) appears on a remix featured on ''
Death Row Greatest Hits
''Death Row Greatest Hits'' is the first greatest hits album and second double album released by Death Row Records. Issued on November 26, 1996, the 33-track compilation album, compilation features a mix of hits, previously unreleased tracks and ...
''.
Commercial success
"I Get Around" peaked at number 11 on the US
''Billboard'' Hot 100. It spent 25 weeks on the chart, and also peaked at number nine on the
''Cash Box'' Top 100 and number five on the ''Billboard'' R&B chart. The single was certified
gold
Gold is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol Au (from Latin ) and atomic number 79. In its pure form, it is a brightness, bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile metal. Chemically, gold is a transition metal ...
by the
Recording Industry Association of America
The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...
(RIAA) on December 7, 1993 and sold 700,000 copies.
The song was then certified
platinum
Platinum is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol Pt and atomic number 78. It is a density, dense, malleable, ductility, ductile, highly unreactive, precious metal, precious, silverish-white transition metal. Its name origina ...
on March 31, 2021.
Music video
The accompanying music video for "I Get Around" was directed by American director, producer and screenwriter
David Dobkin and filmed in
Malibu, California
Malibu ( ; ; ) is a beach city in the Santa Monica Mountains region of Los Angeles County, California, about west of downtown Los Angeles. It is known for its Mediterranean climate, its strip of beaches stretching along the Pacific Ocean coa ...
on March 19, 1993.
Live performances
Shakur performed the song live on
The Arsenio Hall Show
''The Arsenio Hall Show'' is an American syndicated late-night talk show created by and starring comedian Arsenio Hall.
There have been two different incarnations of ''The Arsenio Hall Show''. The original series premiered on January 3, 1989 ...
on July 19, 1993. He performed it on MTV Jams on July 28, 1993. He also performed the song live on January 4, 1996 at
Gund Arena in
Cleveland
Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located along the southern shore of Lake Erie, it is situated across the Canada–U.S. maritime border and approximately west of the Ohio-Pennsylvania st ...
during the Tribute to
Eazy-E
Eric Lynn Wright (September 7, 1964 – March 26, 1995), known professionally as Eazy-E, was an American rapper who propelled West Coast rap and gangsta rap by leading the group N.W.A and its label, Ruthless Records. Eazy-E is often re ...
tour.
Track listing
* 12"
# "I Get Around" (LP version) – 4:19
# "I Get Around" (vocal version) – 6:07
# "Nothing but Love" – 5:04
# "I Get Around" (remix) – 6:06
# "I Get Around" (remix instrumental) – 6:04
# "I Get Around" (7" remix) – 3:36
* 12"
# "I Get Around" (remix) – 6:06
# "I Get Around" (7" remix) – 3:36
# "Holler If Ya Hear Me" (Broadway mix) – 4:31
# "Flex" (featuring:
Dramacydal) – 4:19
* 12"
# "I Get Around" (LP version) – 4:19
# "Keep Ya Head Up" (radio version) – 4:25
# "Keep Ya Head Up" (LP version) – 4:25
# "I Get Around" (radio version) – 4:19
* CD
# "I Get Around" (LP version) – 4:19
# "I Get Around" (7" remix) – 3:36
* CD
# "I Get Around" (extra clean version) – 4:19
Charts
Weekly charts
Year-end charts
Certifications
References
External links
Music video
{{Authority control
1992 songs
1993 singles
G-funk songs
Dirty rap songs
Tupac Shakur songs
Songs about casual sex
Songs written by Shock G
Interscope Records singles
Songs written by Tupac Shakur
Songs written by Larry Troutman
Songs written by Shirley Murdock
Music videos directed by David Dobkin