Then they went and confused us today when they posted a second set of pictures of an alleged Tupac, who they're not even sure is the same 'Pac from the day before. To be honest, the second undead Tupac doesn't look as much like the rapper as the first one, though the picture is pretty blurry. And if you look at the additional image of him, he sort of resembles Tim Meadows.

The first guy is convincing and the photo certainly got lots of people talking as far away as Singapore, where The Straits Times weighed in on the matter, and as close to home as the Weekly World News, which did TMZ one better by posting an interview with the alleged zombie rap legend.

According to that, ahem, "newspaper," Shakur's label paid off medical examiners to claim he was dead so the embattled rapper could escape his would-be killers and legal issues, allowing him to retire to a more sedate life under an assumed name in rural Pennsylvania.

Asked how he spends his time now, the rapper explained, "Ya know, same old same old. Shop at the Farmer's Market. Keep my bees, get some honey. Flirt with the girls at Dairy Queen. Nothin' big."

You know, come to think of it, there was a kinda heavy dude in my Pilates class the other day that was a ringer for Biggie Smalls ...

What does it take to own the assets of one of the most notorious gangsta-rap labels of all time? About $24 million, actually.

That may sound like a lot of coin for a label that hasn't had a hit record in more than a decade, but clearly Nashville, Tennessee-based Global Music Group President Susan Berg saw some potential dollar signs in the former rap powerhouse started by oft-imprisoned boss Suge Knight. The assets include hit records by Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Nate Dogg and Tupac Shakur.

Berg won the rights to the label during an auction on Wednesday, with the proceeds going to help Knight pay off his considerable debts, which include a $107 million judgment awarded to a former partner in the label that forced Knight into bankruptcy. Oh, and even though you might think the bottom of the 'Pac barrel had been scraped, chiseled, gouged, ground up and rehydrated more times than anyone could imagine, did we mention that the sale comes with the rights to 20 unreleased Tupac tracks?

That "new" Tupac album could see the light of day as early as this year.

The numbers were more sobering for another former powerhouse indie label, New York's TVT, which was sold off in bankruptcy court last Thursday at the bargain-basement price of $6.05 million to the digital-music label the Orchard.

TVT filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in February, and the sale is expected to close by July 3. Under the terms of the deal, the Orchard will take control of TVT's catalog and artist contracts, which include albums and deals with artists including Lil Jon, Ying Yang Twins, Guided by Voices, the Polyphonic Spree, Pitbull, Paris Bennett and Yo Gotti.

Though the Orchard doesn't expect to sign new artists, it might have some work to do to make peace with the existing roster. Pitbull has been trying to get off TVT's roster for years, and Lil Jon has also expressed displeasure with his label home.

After all the ruckus -- the false allegations, the apologies, the hemming and hawing, and finally the retraction -- Pulitzer Prize-winning Los Angeles Times journalist Chuck Philips will be keeping his job. Hmm.

So after a story accuses Diddy and Biggie of abetting Tupac's murder -- basically hanging one of hip-hop's most infamous slayings on two of its biggest stars -- the journalist responsible is still in business. Never mind that he took his cues from known forger James Sabatino, who's currently in prison.

Then again, these old-school publications are known for firing people the old-fashioned way: moving you to the grandpa beat. Like when they gave McNulty boat duty on “The Wire.” Maybe Phillips is headed for the water?

Actually, speaking of “The Wire,” doesn't this remind you a bit of the final season -- that kid at The Baltimore Sun...?

While Philips defended his methods to MTV News, it seems as if further investigation is called for. After all, as Smoking Gun editor William Bastone pointed out, “In the recent history of journalism, when stories go really bad, the publication often does an explanation of how it happened…I’d like to know: How did [Sabatino] pull this off from behind bars?”

The reporter's situation has some of us making comparisons to The Wire, while others think the poor guy was Dan Rather'd.

What do you think? Was Philips just the unwitting target of a (possibly delusional) conman? Did he see signs of forgery and go ahead with the story anyway? And do you agree with Jimmy Rosemond that Philips should lose his job?

Sound off below!