DJ Quik Blames Death Row’s Demise On Alleged Gang Member

Depending on your point-of-view, the downfall of legendary rap label Death Row Records can be attributed to a confluence of many different factors - diminishing star power, financial mismanagement and the incarceration of key figures. However, Compton rapper/producer DJ Quik blamed the demise of the label to one man, Travon Lane, a Death Row associate and an alleged gang member surrounding the label.

In an interview with AllHipHop.com, Quik blamed Lane for the brawl that occurred at the MGM Grand Hotel after the Mike Tyson-Bruce Seldon fight on the night that Tupac Shakur was murdered.

“It wasn’t Suge that brought down Death Row either. It was Travon Lane, bitch ass,” said DJ Quik. “Scary ass nigga got that chain took and then got Tupac in there fighting. And then that’s how Tupac got shot. Because Travon Lane—he was like the little bully. He was like an instigator. It’s always the one that don’t mean nothing that bring the whole house of cards down. Travon Lane, you ought to be real proud of yourself. You’s a bitch ass nigga. Nigga, you fucked it up for everybody.”

According to reports, two months before Tupac's murder, Travon Lane was approached by several members of the Southside Crips at the Lakewood Mall in Compton where a scuffle ensued and Travon's chain was snatched,. The brawl that occurred at the MGM was the culmination of the feud that ensued when members of Death Row founder's Suge Knight and Tupac's entourage jumped alleged Crip member, Orlando Anderson, in the lobby of the MGM.

While the majority of the attention from that night was justifiably on the murder of Tupac Shakur, the events at the MGM Grand Hotel directly lead to the incarceration of Death Row founder Suge Knight after his role in the beating of Anderson violated the conditions of his parole. Knight was sentenced to 9-years in prison the next year. Many consider Knight's incarceration as the death blow to the record label after the death of Tupac and the departure of Death Row stars Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg from the label.

You can watch DJ Quik's interview with AllHipHop in the video above.

[Via AllHipHop]