Do me a solid and go watch Salt-N-Pepa’s 1994 music video for “Whatta Man.” Around the 1:07 mark, Salt is getting loved on by a faceless gentleman. That faceless gentleman just so happens to be the late Tupac Shakur. Surprise! He appears around the 3:16 mark as well.
During an interview with LL Cool J’s website Rock The Bells released on Wednesday, Salt-N-Pepa discuss why Pac’s face isn’t seen during the video—a crying shame considering how fine he was. As you’d likely guess, it all boils down to his bad boy reputation.
In 1993, Pac and three other men were accused of sexually assaulting a young woman in his hotel room. He was also charged with shooting two Atlanta police officers that same year during a road-rage incident; however, per an MTV News report, prosecutors dropped all charges.
“The record company all panicked and only kept shots where you can’t see him,” Pepa tells the site. “There were some great Tupac shots. And Salt always kicks herself. You can’t fight the record company.”
“[His reputation] was the whole reason,” Salt adds. “I hate that when I watch the video, it really bothers me.”
Salt appeared in Pac’s 1995 music video for “Temptations,” which was released when he was incarcerated. In December 1994, Pac was convicted of first-degree sexual abuse, but was acquitted of associated gun and sodomy charges. He was sentenced to prison in 1995 for the alleged assault. The Los Angeles Times wrote that during the sentencing, New York State Judge Daniel P. Fitzgerald said that Pac’s “arrogant abuse of his victim follows a pattern of escalating violence as his career progressed.”
Nevertheless, the ladies recognized that beyond his headline-making behavior, he was a really magnetic individual.
“Being around him, that guy had charisma,” Salt explains. “He was the most amazing person that walked in the room. When he walked into a room, it was truly all eyes on him.”