Jada Pinkett Smith Reflects On Her Friendship With Tupac: "I Feel Like He Left Me"

Jada Pinkett Smith opens up about the loss she felt after Tupac's death.

BYMatthew Parizot
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Jada Pinkett Smith, alongside her daughter, Willow Smith, and her mother, Adrienne Banfield-Norris, used this week's episode of their Facebook show, Red Table Talk, to discuss the topic of loss. 

Willow used the opportunity to open up about how she "lost her sanity" at age 10 after the success of "Whip My Hair," causing her to sink into a depression and resort to self-harm. Jada, however, decided to reflect on the loss of her loved ones, but specifically Tupac Shakur. 

The two of them had met the Baltimore School for the Arts, and had become inseparable ever since, even while Tupac became a famous rapper and Jada became an accomplished actor. 

When news hit her that Tupac has succumbed to his wounds after being shot in Las Vegas in 1996, she was in New York about to fly out to go see him. The news hit her so hard that she buckled to her knees. 

"I've had a lot of loss. So many of my close friends gone," said Jada. "They didn't make it to 30. They didn't make it past 25. A lot of people talk about my relationship with Pac and figure that out. That was a huge loss I my life."

Jada continued, "Because he was one of those people I expected to be here. My upset is more anger because I feel like he left me. and I know that's not true and it's a very selfish way to think about it. I really did believe he'd be here for the long run. And when I think about it I still get really mad."

Watch the full episode here.


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