Tupac Shakur would have been 37 today. His music and heartfelt lyrics touched so many fans around the world. This monument was erected in Tupac Shakur’s memory in front of the MARTA Herford in Herford, Germany.

The artist is Paola Chiasera.

banks said:

for some reason, the images aren't showing.
As always, I bet there are homies giving homage to Tupac right now on Greenmount Ave in Baltimore.(as they did every year since his death)

and some people STILL say he alive...maybe he is

Anyway he was a man that was in the middle of a crisis but his music still lives on.

I was just checking out a video by tupac can someone help me with the name of it?

HOOK GOES LIKE THIS: I'm so sooooory, for all this time, for all this time, for all this time.

I think it is papa_____.

thanks

If you can't view the statue... go here

http://sandrarose.com

God bless Tupac.

I have a question, though, and I genuinely ask as much out of ignorance as anything else...

Why exactly is Tupac so worthy of reverence? I don't know his music very well, but what little I do know seems pretty forgettable musically and redundantly nihilistic from a social commentary standpoint. And he always seemed to be -- decidedly -- in the middle of so much crap. What exactly about his work or life is worth revering? What songs of his, or poetry, etc., should I be looking into to find out why he is so adored?

chewwsey said:

Papa'z Song. From the album Strictly 4 My N.I.G.G.A.Z

RIP 'Pac, we miss you and love you.

Lammastide said:

Look for the poetry book entitled The Rose That Grew From Concrete.

I'm slightly biased here as I work with his people and know several of his associates very well, from Leila Steinberg his first manager to Johnny J, one of his main producers.

Pac was a poet, a revolutionary and a genius. His words are resonating, moving, socially relevant and articulate.

Listen to the following songs for a good start:

Brenda's Got A Baby
Part Time Mother
Unconditional Love
Keep Ya Head Up
Baby Don't Cry
Me Against The World
White Man'z World
I Wonder If Heaven Got A Ghetto
Do For Love
Heaven Aint Hard To Find
Ghetto Gospel
My Block - remix
Thugz Mansion
Better Dayz
So Many Tears
Dear Mama

Of course, he had another side to his personality. An angry young mistreated black man who had been discriminated against his whole life, beaten by police, shot, and wrongfully imprisoned for rape when all he wanted to do was make the world a better place. There are many angry songs that were simply him rebelling against the world and the things people blamed him for. In his own words, "Don't blame me, I was given this world, I didn't make it".

I purposely haven't listed any of those type of songs because if you want to know why he is loved and revered, that isn't the best place to start.
[Edited 6/17/08 8:53am]

Militant said:

Good lookin' out. I'll try to check out these things.

R.I.P to one of my greatest influences
and to the person asking about his poetry heres the link to them: http://www.alleyezonme.co...ndex.phtml

unlike rappers of today he showed more to lyrics than sex,drugs and money but the reality of all of those things thats why he was the artist that he is and is respected the way he is.

Militant said:

thing that bothers me was that he knew much better then the lifestyle he led. he was smarter then that and its a shame

motownlover said:

paisleypark4 said:

I know the doctor that did the autopsy. No chance.

Graycap23 said:

Shit... I saw those autopsy pics.... No Chance is right !!!!!

thirty seven, that's so young. He could still be doing a lot.
Love you, Pac.

He had the same weak sounding drum machines, same slow ass tempo and same ignorant thug image as these shit hoppers today. I don't see any difference.

Actually, things would have been much better if he had lived. He would have never become the underserving legend that he became after his death, would have had his little short time in the spotlight and would have faded out in a few years like all the rest of them. Once he faded out, maybe folks would have gotten bored with that whole dull scene and gotten back to throwing down again. I doubt it though, music was already too far gone at the time of his death to bring it back. Hell, I don't know. But what I do know is, a lot of folks talk about these damn thugs and current shit hoppers like a dog but then they turn around and give him a pass. Yeah, it's tragic when someone is killed but that still doesn't change that he was a thug in the first place.

vainandy said:

I KNEW this was coming. I hope you're wearing a flame-retardant suit.

uPtoWnNY said:

I was counting the minutes.

But... I'd like to point out that VAINANDY has said the above. Not Lammastide.

Militant said:

That sounds like some overblown P.R. release overstating what Tupac Shakur really brought to the game. He was an above-average rapper whose album sales not coincidentally increased with every incident, which increased his "street cred." Musically, Tupac just followed whatever style was popular (Public Enemy socio-political introspection, then the West Coast style of gangsta rap) at the time. The reality is his lifestyle and later death led some misguided people to label him as some ghetto version of Marvin Gaye.
[Edited 6/18/08 6:16am]

Chicken.

vainandy said:

While it's easy to dismiss the man, due to the image he portrayed, and the events he got himself into, before judgement gets passed you should really try and understand where he came from. Having no father figure, (as many kids go thru), the only family he had were black panthers. Yet when he grew up in B-More, he attended the school of performing arts and was befriended by all white people. Then as soon as he got comfortable, his mom moved him to California. Tupac was a man of many influences, which caused a split personality of sorts. The only difference is, Tupac's life unfolded in front of the cameras. He was the true definition of "real" And he unfourtunately, he could not escape his demons in time. I cant speak for a generation or anyone else, but I can tell you, for this 29yr old white guy from Indiana, who does not listen to rap, Tupac influenced me in a more positive way then any other male figure in my life, (save my stepfather). I have never been arrested, or touched drugs. I learned responsibility and honesty through his music, and am a better man having listened to him.

Cheers and good day.

Lammastide said:

Pac's first 3 albums:

Anyone that wants to hear THE real 2pac, these are the 3 videos worth watching all over again:

2Pac -- Brenda's Got A Baby


2Pac -- Keep Ya Head Up


2Pac -- Dear Mama

For those who's names we shall not speak....


[Edited 6/19/08 12:20pm]

It's not just the thug thing that people give him a pass for. A lot of the same folks that shit all over shit hop for being a genre stripped of all, or damn near all instruments, and using samples as the basic structure of the songs, they still will turn around and give Tupac a pass and his music was the exact same as these artists of today. As far as lyrics go, I wouldn't care if he recited the ABCs just as long as he recited them over something that sounded good. The main defense for him that I hear coming from people about him is "he was a poet", well I'm looking for music. If I want poetry, I'll go to the library and check out one of those boring books. As for music, I want to be entertained.

All I'm saying is, a lot of folks feel the same way about music as I do, but yet, when it comes to Tupac, they will make an exception and give him a pass. And I know some of the same people that used to talk about Tupac like a dog while he was alive but now that he's dead, all of a sudden, they think he's some sort of a genius. I guess they think they are disrespecting the dead or something. He's been dead for the longest, it's not like he just died and they are shitting on him. Even I wouldn't do that, and I'm a mean ole bitch. The fakeness of people just gets on my nerves because I'm not a fake person. My opinion has always stayed the same whether it's popular or not.
.
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[Edited 6/19/08 14:58pm]

banks said:

I've seen them too.

Funny thing is, unlike other autopsy pics I've seen, and I've seen a lot (don't ask), his aren't at all unsettling or disturbing. Cuts and stitches aside, he just looks like he's sleeping peacefully. That might've been the first he'd ever seen of it.

vainandy said:

Did you ever listen to California Love (featuring Dr. Dre & Roger Troutman)? Even people that weren't 2pac fans from the beginning are able to shake their asses to that track.



Granted, I know you personally wanted to slap Roger for taking part of this song. But at least the talkbox was still in the house!