UB Black Music Spotlight: Celebrating Legendary Tupac Shakur

Today is the late great Tupac Amaru Shakur‘s birthday, known as 2Pac, born June 16th, 1971.

For Black Music Month we celebrate the legendary artist!

The late 2Pacis an internationally recognized artist renowned for his work, defying distinction between art and activism.

Though his career lasted just five years, Tupac Shakur remains one of the most complex and prolific artists of his generation with over 75 million records sold worldwide.

He is one of hip-hop’s most iconic figures, his body of work constantly reminds us of why he is a legacy that continues to be examined and appreciated for generations.

Both 1996’s “All Eyez on Me” and his “Greatest Hits” collection have been certified Diamond, surpassing the 10 million mark and placing them among the top-selling albums of all time.

“All good niggers, all the niggers who change the world, die in violence. They don’t die in regular ways.”

An embryo in Prison. Cultivated behind bars. Then on the 16th of June in 1971, ‘Lesane Parish Crooks‘ entered into this world.

Known later as Tupac Amaru Shakur.

Tupac was the son of one of the political organization ‘Black Panther‘, Afeni Shakur.

A movement fighting for the prejudice against Blacks. He was from a single parent family as many at the time were and he would from a very early age ask about his father but the reply from Afeni was vague, “She just told me, ”I don”t know who your daddy is.” It wasn’t like she was a slut or nothin”. It was just some rough times.”

His step father, Mutulu Shakur was sentenced to sixty years for a fatal armored car robbery.

This had a big impact on Tupac‘s life, he had no father figure that he could look up to; “How can I be a man if there’s no role model? Striven to save my soul I stay cold drinking a forty bottle.”

The only role models that he had were pimps and hustlers, and this is where he adopted the thug image.

Tupac moved to Baltimore at an early age. He describes those days as “the best days of my life.” He was deeply into the arts, from music, film and poetry.

He enrolled in the Baltimore school for the arts. Even at a young age, Tupac was outspoken on the subject of racial equality. His teachers remembered him as being a very gifted student.

He was an avid reader, delving into books on eastern religions, and even entire encyclopedia sets.

Hiding his love of literature from his peers, he gained the respect of his peers by acting like a tough guy.

Tupac composed his first rap in Baltimore under the name “MC New York.”

Tupac was first inspired to rap when a friend of his was killed while he was playing with a gun. His first rap was about gun control.

From Baltimore, drug-addicted Afeni moved the whole family to Marin City, California; the WESTside.

Tupac quickly moved from the family home and moved in with a friend and began hustling drugs.

This didn’t go to plan by the end of the week Tupac had nearly the same amount of when he started; the pimps and dealers took the drugs back and told Tupac that this wasn’t the game for him and he should pursue his music interests; “they were like my sponsors.”

He quickly gained interest from the ears on the streets, one of these was Ray Luv, and with a mutual friend named DJ Dize (Dizz-ee), they started a rap group called Strictly Dope.

Their recordings were later released in 2001 under “Tupac Shakur: The Lost Tapes.”

Their neighborhood performances brought Tupac enough acclaim to land an audition with Shock G of Digital Underground.

In 1990, Tupac joined as a roadie and dancer for Digital Underground.

His early lyrics were remarkable.

On a song for the “Nothing But Trouble” film soundtrack, “Same Song“, Tupac was given his first opportunity to rap on a big-time record.

In 1991, Tupac had trouble shopping his demo for, “2Pacalypse Now.”

Eventually, Interscope Records executives Ted Field and Tom Whalley signed him to the label.

Although produced with the help of his Digital Underground crew, the intent of the album was to showcase his individual talent.

While Tupac claimed his album was aimed at the problems facing young Black males, it was also filled with images of violence by and against police.

Tupac called himself a “souljah,” a pro-Black warrior.

The album track “Wordz Of Windom” is as, Tupac stated at the time to Billboard, “a straight family song. I had to drop that so this country would know I’m not just a Gun-toting, hooligan!”

“2Pacalypse Now” quickly attracted public criticism, especially after a young man who killed a Texas Trooper claimed he was inspired by the album, the case against Tupac was later thrown out of court for Tupac‘s right of freedom of expression.

Former Vice President Dan Quayle publicly denounced the album as having “no place in our society.”

The album did not do as well as Tupac had hoped on the charts, sparking #1 hits.

The gold debut featured the hits “If My Homie Calls,” Trapped” and the fan-favorite “Brenda’s Got a Baby.” Reaching #3 on Billboard’s Hot Rap Songs chart.

His stunning talent also got him a role in the motion picture, “Juice.”

His sophomore album, “Strictly 4 My N.I.G.G.A.Z.“, was heavily produced by Stretch and the Live Squad, and spurred two #1 hits: the emotional “Keep Ya Head Up” and the playful “I Get Around.”

Both singles went platinum and reached the top five on the Billboard charts.

The highlight of Tupac‘s acting career came when he appeared in the late John Singleton‘s “Poetic Justice” besides legendary Janet Jackson.

The role made Tupac a household name and showed the world that music wasn’t Tupac‘s only attribute.

Tupac also had co-starring roles in, “Gridlock’d”, “Bullet”, and “Gang Related.”

Along with Tupac‘s rise to fame came a series of altercations with the law that further complicated his public image.

Before he started his recording career, Tupac had no criminal record; “I had to make a record to get a police record” he one stated.

In Oakland in October of 1991, Tupac was stopped by two officers for allegedly jaywalking. When he asked the police why he was being pulled up on such a petty crime, he was choked, beaten, and had his head smashed on the pavement.

He subsequently raised a 10 million dollar lawsuit against the Oakland police department, which was eventually settled for $42,000.

He commented “I could have got more but I was tired of going to court, and thought any money from the police department was good, I got $42,000 for jaywalking!”

In late 1993, he formed the group “Thug Life” with a few of his friends, including Big Syke, Macadoshis, his step-brother Mopreme, and Rated R.

The group released their first album “Thug Life: Volume 1” in 1994 which went gold.

The group subsequently disbanded after Tupac‘s release from prison.

In December 1993, Tupac was charged with sexually abusing a woman in his hotel room.

“I would have never closed my eyes until the girl had left the room,” Tupac stated in an interview.

Shortly before his verdict was announced, Tupac was shot five times in an apparent robbery attempt outside the New York Quad music studio.

Tupac recalled the circumstances shortly afterwards in an interview with Vibe magazine. He was with his close friend, manager, and another friend on the night of November 30, 1994.

In the midst Tupac starred in the movie “Above the Rim.”

Tupac began serving his prison sentence at Clinton Correctional Facility later that February.

The platinum “Me Against The World” arrived on March 14th, 1995, debuting at #1 on the Billboard 200. Making Pac the first artist to have a #1 album on the charts, while serving a jail sentence.

Tupac recorded the album when he was only 23, embedding his lyrics with incisive commentary on poverty, violence and police oppression.

Among the album’s many standout cuts are “Temptations,” “So Many Tears,” and “Dear Mama,” as well as the iconic title track. With Me Against the World nominated for Best Rap Album at the 1996 Grammy Awards, the platinum-selling, chart-topping “Dear Mama” earned a nomination for Best Rap Solo Performance.

Tupac has the distinction of being the only artist with an album at #1 on the charts while serving a prison sentence. “For me that will always be my favorite album,” Tupac commented in an interview.

The guards would taunt Tupac and say that your not the big man anymore, Tupac just laughed, “actually my album is #1 in the whole country and has just beat Bruce Springsteen to the top of the the Billboard!”

Me Against the World eventually landed on the “Definitive 200 Albums of All Time” list from the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

From jail, he married his long-time girlfriend, Keisha Morris. This marriage was later annulled.

In September of 1995, after almost eleven months in prison, Tupac was released on parole largely due to the help of Suge Knight, the head of “Death Row Records.”

Suge helped get the $1.4 million bail posted for Tupac, and in exchange Tupac was obliged to release three albums under Death Row.

Upon his release from prison, Tupac began work right away on his next album.

In February 1996, he released, the double album “All Eyez on Me.”

It subsequently went on to sell more than 9 million copies and is considered by many to be among the best albums in the genre.

As his career arc began a steep rise toward fame and fortune, Tupac was shot and killed on September 13th, 1996.

Though his death was a jolt to his fans and the music community, Tupac himself once stated, “I know what it’s going to be like when I die, there will not be any noise or bright lights, I’m just going to fade away.”

Tupac’s first posthumous record and the last released with his creative input. Recorded in seven days in August 1996, it was released on November 5th, 1996, almost two months after his tragic death, under the stage name of Makaveli, through Death Row Records, Makaveli Records and Interscope Records.

The cover depicted Tuapc nailed to a cross under a crown of thorns, with a map of the country’s major gang areas superimposed on it.

The album is certified 4x Platinum by the RIAA.

“The Don Killuminati: The 7 Day Theory” debuted at #1.

It is his only album released under the new alternative stage name and features guest appearances from his rap group Outlawz and rapper Bad Azz, as well as R&B singers Aaron Hall, Danny Boy, K-Ci and JoJo, Val Young and Tyrone Wrice, along with uncredited vocal contributions from reggae musician Prince Ital Joe.

Originally intended as an underground release and preceded by the release of “Toss It Up” as the lead single, the album peaked at #1. “To Live & Die in L.A.” and “Hail Mary” were released later as singles and both garnered praise as standout tracks from the album.

All singles charted within the Top 20 of the US and UK Singles chart.

In January of 1997, “Gridlock’d“, was released, followed by his final film, “Gang Related.”

Tupac’s life and legacy continue to impact and influence culture today, from a groundbreaking performance via hologram at the 2012 Coachella Music and Arts Festival.

To a spoken-word appearance on Kendrick Lamar’s 2015 album “To Pimp A Butterfly.”

In 2015, the Grammy Museum opened Tupac’s first museum exhibit, “All Eyez on Me: The Writings of Tupac Shakur.”

In April of 2017, Tupac was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, making him the first solo hip-hop artist to be recognized for inclusion in his first eligible year.

In 2022, “Tupac Shakur: Wake Me When I’m Free,” a fully immersive thought-provoking museum experience exploring the life and legacy of the acclaimed artist and activist, opened in Los Angeles, California.

At the time that Tupac died, there were hundreds of unreleased tracks. Most of these have been released on posthumous albums.

Take A Trip Down Memory Lane with 2Pac!