Its been 20 years since Tupac’s tragic death. When you think of Tupac, you may think of him as a legendary rapper, actor, poet, and voice for the young, black community. But one title you probably never associated with his name is husband. Yes, Tupac was once married to a woman named Keisha Morris.
It wasn’t a highly publicized marriage, but their union was very much legit. There have been many rumors, myths, and fallacies of what was going on in Tupac’s life while he was alive. Though she’s been out of the spotlight for years and years, Keisha is here to tell her side of the story.
Keisha met Tupac in 1994, when she was 20 years old. At that time, Tupac was on the cusp of his success. He had already released 2Pacalypse Now and Strictly 4 My N.I.G.G.A.Z., and starred in movies Juice and Poetic Justice. He was in the midst of recording Me Against the World and also in the middle of a huge legal situation.
That Night
In an interview with XXL, she recalled the actual night:
“We met when I was 20, at the Capitol [nightclub]… We were dancing, and we spoke briefly. He was going through something legally at the time, and I told him to just be careful of the people he’s around and that I hope everything works out… I saw him a month later at the Tunnel [another nightclub], and…he remembered the whole conversation… He told me he had been looking for me for a month—going to every club. He tried to invite me back to his hotel room. I was like, ‘No, that’s not happening.'”
A Persistent Pac
Keisha’s declining to go back to Pac’s room didn’t stop him from trying to pursue her. In the interview, she continued:
“He gave me his number, and I gave him my house number. It was too expensive to have a cell phone back then, so he gave me his SkyPager. The next day, I had to go work…and he called me when I got home. I was in shock! We started talking from that day on.”
Facing Charges
Keisha revealed why she stayed down for Pac through his issues:
“Because I got to know him. He told me one time, ‘Everything I touch, I damage, I mess up. I don’t want you to be involved in any of this. I don’t wanna hurt you. I don’t want you to be damaged or anything like that.’ And it was hard, because when you care and you love a person, at that point, what do you do? Do you walk away?”
Before Tupac headed to jail, he proposed to Keisha. On April 29, 1995, nearly four months into his sentence, the two got married.
“I just didn’t feel like, Okay, now [that] you might be going to jail, I don’t know if I even want to be a part of you or deal with this,” Keisha said, explaining why she went through with the marriage. “[For him] it was more like, ‘I don’t want you saying you’re my girlfriend. I want people to take you seriously and let them know that you’re my wife.'”
The Wedding
Keisha married Tupac while he was behind bars in N.Y.’s Clinton Correctional Facility. Soon after, Keisha realized how hard it was to be at her husband’s beck and call while he was in jail.
“His thing was he wanted a visit every day, so he could get outta that cell. It was hard. It was such a dramatic process, like, Oh, my God. I dreaded to do it. But, you know, I did it. If I wasn’t able to be there, I would make sure that someone else was there,” she said.
Marriage Annuled
Credit: Photofest
10 months later, not too long after Tupac was released, their marriage was annulled. Keisha credits her feelings of abandonment as the culprit of their divorce:
“I thought that things were changing, that he changed. Things were getting very different once he got bail, and I felt like I wasn’t needed anymore. It wasn’t a good feeling. Like, Okay, of course you don’t know from being so young. But I just felt like, Wow, okay, it was over. Like, Okay, I don’t need you anymore. I’m getting out. That’s it.”
Marriage Annuled
Credit: Photofest
10 months later, not too long after Tupac was released, their marriage was annulled. Keisha credits her feelings of abandonment as the culprit of their divorce:
“I thought that things were changing, that he changed. Things were getting very different once he got bail, and I felt like I wasn’t needed anymore. It wasn’t a good feeling. Like, Okay, of course you don’t know from being so young. But I just felt like, Wow, okay, it was over. Like, Okay, I don’t need you anymore. I’m getting out.
No Conjugal Visits
Keisha also put an end to rumors of consistent conjugal visits and that being the only reason Pac married her:
“You know, looking back now, there was no conjugal visits or things like that. It was just so funny how people have said all different kinds of things—and it’s, like, that didn’t even happen, that’s not even true—and make up all kinds of stories unnecessarily.”
Remaining Friends
After their marriage annulment, the two remained in contact. Keisha said that Tupac
would always call her to play her a song or just ask how she was doing. She even recalled him telling her that she’d understand the mess of their situation real soon.
“I remember him telling me he didn’t want to damage me. He didn’t want me to get hurt in any of whatever was going on with him, so he’d rather leave me alone. Was I hurt? Absolutely. Did I feel like I was used? Absolutely. But I understand now. Am I angry? Absolutely not,” she said before confidently stating, “I knew Tupac. No one can take that away. I really knew him, and he would never hurt me.”
Credit: Photofest
Tupac kept in contact with Keisha up until his untimely death. In fact, she recalled the last time she saw him, just days before the night he tragically lost his life.
“He came into New York. I heard he was here, but I didn’t try to reach him. When I came off of work, he left me a message and was like, ‘Keisha, I’m in New York. Call me. I’m at the Hotel Nikko. I want you to come down here.’ And I was just like, Here we go. We saw each other prior to this, but this was the final time I saw him alive and well. I was like, Oh, no, not again. We were on the phone for half an hour. I was like, ‘But why? We’re divorced. We don’t have anything.’ And he was like, ‘You will always be Mrs. Shakur.’ I was like, ‘Okay.'”
The Last Visit
After finally giving intoher ex-husband, Keshia went to Hotel Nikko.
“After a lot of coaxing, after the award show, it was the MTV Awards, I went to the Hotel Nikko. He opened up the door and was like, ‘Wassup? You look good.’ And we spoke. It was weird. We spoke, but didn’t speak. It was more like he just wanted me to just lay down, and he went to sleep. No intimacy, nothing like that. It was just, like, he just wanted to lay down, and he went to sleep. I got up in the morning; he was still sleeping when I left.”
Click next to see a more recent Keisha…
September 13, 1996
On September 13, 1996, literally days after being in his hotel room, Keisha learned that Tupac was gunned down in Las Vegas. She remembered their last conversation; Pac asked her why she left his room without saying anything.
“He would say, ‘Why didn’t you wake me up before you left?’ And I was like, ‘No, you were sleeping so peacefully, and I wanted you to rest.’ And that was it. But had I known more, I wish I would’ve went to wake him up.”
Keisha Now
Credit: XXLmag.com
When Keisha did the interview with XXL in 2011, the now 44-year-old was a mom of two and an educator with a master’s degree. She hasn’t been heard from since the interview, and there aren’t many photos of her.
She made it very clear that she wants to live her life outside of the shadows of her failed marriage with Pac. But we do have an interview she did back in the day, detailing her love with Tupac—along with his many women.
Keisha Talks Pac
According to Keisha, the ladies loved Tupac and Tupac loved all the ladies. Watch her explain and SHARE this story!
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