"WHY?": Tupac is puzzled with the continuous flow of material that keeps getting released under his name.

Rap superstar Tupac Shakur, who was murdered tragically in Las Vegas in 1996, shocked the entertainment world today when he issued a statement from beyond the grave, begging for some relatively obscure material that he recorded before his death more than seven years ago to stop being released on "new" albums.

Tupac said he was speaking out at this point in time because he wants his fans to understand that he has nothing to do with the glut of posthumous music that has been issued under his name in recent years.

"Look, I understand that everyone who had something to do with me has got families to feed and mortgages to pay and all that," Shakur said in a phone interview with Rolling Stone magazine, from an undisclosed location. "But enough is enough. One, even two records of my unreleased stuff being put out after I passed away, that I can understand, but this is a little much. I'm tired of seeing a new Tupac album coming out every other week.

LISTEN HERE TO AN EXCERPT FROM TUPAC ORDERS DA 'ZA

"These songs were unreleased for a reason, people."

Shakur cited his most recently released album as a prime example of his point. Tupac Orders Da 'Za, a 65-minute CD of Tupac ordering pizza from various establishments in Las Vegas, L.A., and New York, was released two weeks ago, and while the record entered the Billboard charts at Number One last week, with sales of 560,000 units in the United States, the rap artist voiced his displeasure with the album.

"Sure, there were some real good pizzas in there, but a full-length album? Maybe an EP at the most," continued Tupac, sounding remarkably alive for a man who has been dead for seven years.

Dead Artist Records, the Las Vegas record label responsible for the newest Tupac material, defended their constant release of "new" work from artists who have gone on to the great recording studio in they sky. Ernie Wheazuhl, the president of the record label, denied that his company is cashing in on Tupac's death.

"Tupac left a large body of work behind before his untimely death, and I feel it is our label's responsibility to get this music out to his fans. We're providing a public service. He should be thanking us. He's worth more now than he ever was alive. Tupac should thank me, dammit."

Look, I'm a businessman. If Christina Aguilera and Charles Manson cut an album of showtunes and it'll sell platinum, we'll put it out. I don't care about no 'artistic merit.' That's for you elbow patch-wearing media types.

But recordings of him ordering take-out? "Look, Tupac’s has loyal fans. They want to know what he put on his pizza. They know what Britney Spears likes on her pizza – it was the lead story on Fox News Channel last night – so why shouldn’t the American people know what Tupac wanted on his pizza? I think Tupac’s being very elitist here."

Wheazuhl then plugged his company's newest release, a re-mix of this summer’s chart-topping Notorious B.I.G. Burps the Alphabet, which is hitting record stores just in time for Christmas.

One music fan (look, we don't have the time to go traipsing around everywhere interviewing two or even three people on the street for every freakin' story, all right? And do you know hard it is coming up with new names and 'funny' quotes all the time?) browsing at a suburban Toronto HMV store were shocked to learn that Tupac was even dead.

"What? That guy's dead? Then how does he keep putting out a new record every month?" asked a puzzled John Nashbrook, 18. "Next thing you're gonna tell me is Celine Dion isn't a robot. That's just crazy talk."