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Tupac
Amaru Shakur was born in 1971 in the Bronx. He moved to Baltimore to
attend its High School for the Performing Arts, where he began writing
rap. He then moved to Marin City, Calif., near Oakland, and continued
to write and record. As a member of the Grammy-nominated group Digital
Underground he appeared in 1991 on the track "Same Song" from "This
is an EP Release" and on the album "Sons Of The P." That same year Shakur
achieved individual recognition with the album "2Pacalypse Now," which
spawned the successful singles "Trapped" and "Brenda's Got A Baby."
The album, with references to police officers being killed, drew notoriety
when a lawyer claimed a man accused of killing a Texas trooper had been
riled up by the record. Then-Vice President Dan Quayle targeted "2Pacalypse
Now" in his 1992 battle with Hollywood over traditional values. Shakur
followed up in 1993 with the strong selling album "Strictly 4 My N.I.G.G.A.Z...,"
which produced the singles "I Get Around," "Keep Ya Head Up," and "Papa'z
Song." That year he was nominated for an American Music Award as best
new rap hip hop artist. The next year he appeared with Thug Life on
the "Above The Rim" soundtrack and on the group's album "Volume 1."
In a photo on the album liner he framed his face between his two extended
middle fingers. While in prison last year he indicated he was rethinking
his lifestyle. "Thug Life to me is dead. If it's real, let somebody
else represent it, because I'm tired of it," Shakur told Vibe magazine.
"I represented it too much. I was Thug Life. While serving his sentence
for sexual abuse, Tupac's third solo release, "Me Against The World,"
spent four weeks at number one.
Life
after Prison
After
eight months, Tupac's case was appealed, and Death Row head Suge Knight
promptly bailed Tupac out of jail, and took the opportunity to sign
him to Death Row Records. Tupac turned his troubles to a career that
was bigger than ever. His double album Death Row debut, "All Eyez On
Me," sold more than 5 million copies, scored a number one single, and
included tracks with new label mate, Snoop Doggy Dogg, and Dr. Dre.
With three years past since Snoop's last solo release, and the departure
of Death Row Co-Founder, Dr. Dre, to start his own label, Tupac became
Death Row's artistic centerpiece, as well as its biggest mouthpiece.
Death Row and Tupac shared a common enemy: the New York-based Bad Boy
Entertainment. Tupac had earlier implicated Bad Boy Producer, Sean "Puffy"
Combs, and star artist, the Notorious B.I.G., in his 1994 shooting.
But despite his taunts, Tupac realized danger could be around the corner.
Back in New York City for this year's Video Music Awards, just three
nights before he was shot in Las Vegas, Tupac surrounded himself with
bodyguards and clutched a walkie talkie throughout the evening as a
security precaution.
Tupac's
Good Side
The media's
portrayal of Tupac Shakur as a tattooed thug has focused public attention
on his alleged crimes instead of his music. In reality, this rapper,
raised in Marin City, California, by a Black Panther mother, is more
complex than his detractors like to admit. Shakur (who performs as 2Pac)
is a talented lyricist with a gift for storytelling. He continues to
grow as a writer on his hard-hitting new album, All Eyez on Me
(Death Row/Interscope), which benefits from West Coast-style production
by such artists as Dr. Dre. Recorded shortly after Shakur was released
on bail from a prison sentence for sexual assault, the double album
shows a relatively contemplative rapper who's ready to make peace with
some of his demons. The following list of positive lyrics from Eyez
and 2Pac's previous albums certainly doesn't make him a saint, but it
does reveal surprising emotional depth:
1. "Life
Goes On," All Eyez on Me (Death Row/Interscope): In one of the
most touching moments on his new album, the rapper with "Thug Life"
tatooed on his chest shows that he isn't insensitive to the loss of
those he loves: "How many brothers fell victim to the streets / Rest
in peace young ni**az / Is there heaven for a G? / Be a lie if I told
ya that I never thought of death / My ni**a, we the last one's left
/ And life goes on."
2. "Dear
Mama," Me Against the World (Interscope): An insightful 2Pac
repents the stress that he's caused his mother: "Mama, I finally understand
/ For a woman it ain't easy trying to raise a man / You always was committed
/ A poor single mother on welfare / Tell me how you did it / There's
no way that I can pay you back / But the plan is to show you that I
understand. / You are appreciated."
3. "Keep
Ya Head Up," Strictly 4 My ni**az (Interscope): With a kind of
compassion that is rare from any performer - let alone a gangsta rapper
- 2Pac advises: "Be real to our women / And if we don't we'll have a
race of babies / Who hate the ladies / That make the babies / And since
a man can't make one / He has no right to tell a woman when and where
to create one." Hard to believe this is the guy who wrote "Wonda Why
They Call U bi**h."
4. "Brenda's
Got a Baby," 2Pacalypse Now (Interscope): This tearjerker from
2Pac's first album tells the story of a 12-year-old trapped in the hopelessness
of ghetto life and a teenage pregnancy. "Now Brenda never really knew
her moms / And her dad was a junkie putting death into his arms / It's
sad because I bet Brenda doesn't know / Just cuz you're in the ghetto
/ Doesn't mean you can't grow."
5. "Can
U Get Away," Me Against the World (Interscope): Playing the knight
in shining armor, 2Pac expresses his love for a woman who is mistreated
by another man: "I refuse to give up / Because I believe in what we
share / You're living in prison / And what he's giving can't compare."
6. "I
Ain't Mad at Cha," All Eyez on Me (Death Row/Interscope): Despite
the "f**k-it-all" persona he often projects, 2Pac shows that he can
also forgive. Over a catchy beat, he raps, "I moved up out of the ghetto
/ So I 'ain't real now' / They got so much to say / But I'm just laughing
at cha / ni**az just don't know / I ain't mad at cha." Pretty charitable
for a guy who has been shot five times.
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