So my mind started going in a different direction, firstly, towards all the Biggie tributes on the radio last week marking the 13th anniversary of his murder, (notice how the media always describes it as his 'passing'. Let's be real. Dude was MURDERED!)  Then, inevitably, to 2Pac before him. It's not just the fact that they were both murdered in their prime, depriving the hip hop world of some of its best ever talent, (notice how no one ever does away with Soulja Boy or Flo Rida.)

No, the thing that struck me about both cases, and which is very rarely talked about any more, is that in each and every case, the murderers GOT AWAY WITH IT. Remember that? Nobody has ever been charged with either of these deaths, and it's pretty clear that no-one ever will.

Now, just pause for a second and ask yourself how this is actually possible. What the hell have the police been doing, and why have heads not rolled over their inability catch a single culprit? Amidst accusations that the Five O routinely concoct bogus arrests in order to keep their quota up, how can two high-profile murder cases go completely unsolved?

Right, now think about this. Can you imagine what the effect would have been if, instead of Biggie and 'Pac, it was Elton John and Britney Spears who got shot up in those cars? Seriously, just think about what the media reaction to that would have been. Or even Jedward, come to that. It's a fairly safe bet that the story wouldn't be out of the headlines for at least a week, the entire nation would be talking about nothing else, and if, after even a fortnight, the police had failed to make any arrests, there would be near-riots from an angry public demanding to know just what the fuck they've been doing.

Hell, I can't remember any of the hip hop murders even making the 'also ran' news at the end of the bulletins. The implication of that is clear. To the general public and the media at large, rappers' lives just don't matter.

There are all kinds of JFK-style conspiracy theories about Big and Pac, of course, and there's clearly more to each case than the simple Oswald-esque unknown-assailant-opens-fire-at-random-and-flees story we've been fed. But thinking about the whole scenario again this week made me angry. Angry that our heroes will never be avenged.

So, this Hoof goes out not only to the cowardly murdering scum that pulled the triggers, but also the police chiefs and other shady authority figures that let them get away with it.

As Guru so wisely stated on 'Moment Of Truth.' "Just when you get what's coming to you, everybody else is gonna get theirs too."

Amen to that.