Sharitha Knight

Sharitha Lee was born in 1968 in Los Angeles and grew up in Las Vegas. She attended George Washington Preparatory High School in Los Angeles and graduated in 1986.

In the early 1980s, Sharitha and Suge Knight met at a party. She was then a freshman in high school. They shared phone numbers and dated throughout high school. Suge Knight was three years senior to her. Their relationship was a tumultuous one. In 1987, Suge was arrested and charged with domestic assault for cutting off Sharitha’s ponytail. She also took out a restraining order against him. However, they resolved their differences and stayed together. Both attended the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, where Suge played football. During this time, he also worked as a bodyguard at a Vegas club. In 1989, Suge proposed to her in Las Vegas, and they married the same year. They have a daughter, Arion.

The marriage soured over the years and Sharitha divorced Suge and left the company Death Row. She alleged that Suge’s habit of engaging in extramarital affairs was the reason for the divorce. “It was for the number of women in his life that I divorced him,” Sharitha said in an interview. At the time of their divorce, he was imprisoned.

Death Row Records was co-founded in 1991 by Suge Knight and his associates. Sharitha, who was then married to Suge, joined the company as a producer, and as the company grew, she obtained a percentage of it. Death Row Records became famous when it started signing popular artistes like Snoop Dogg, Tupac Shakur, MC Hammer, and Lady of Rage.

Sharitha contributed to the label’s success by promoting Snoop Dogg and by producing his videos. She worked hard and was described as “extremely professional.” She is credited to have “brought professionalism to Death Row Records.” She also helped Suge manage Tupac’s career.

In 1995, Suge started signing in his own friends. This gave way to controversies and led to arguments between the couple. Soon the other two partners left the label and the company began to crumble. Sharitha also found it difficult to work with her husband, who had by now started using violence to keep his staff from leaving. She eventually left the label.