3. “Hypnotize” (1997)
“Hypnotize” was the first single from Life After Death and the last song released in his lifetime, as the rapper was killed in a drive-by shooting a week later. The track made history, being the song by a credited artist to hit number one posthumously and ranking at number 30 on Rolling Stone‘s 50 greatest rap songs of all time. Listen to the track above, and hit the clip below to hear the song it samples, “Rise” by Herb Alpert (1979).