Tupac
Familyhttps://www.biography.com/musician/tupac-shakur
Lesane Parish Crooks was born in East Harlem in New York on June 16, 1971, better known as Tupac Shakur. He had a difficult childhood, as he grew up in the hood of criminals. He had been exposed to violence from an early age. His biological parents are Alice Faye Williams, and Billy Garland. Alice was a highschool dropout and became a maid. After she became a Black Panther member. Afeni and twenty fellow-Panthers were arrested on April 2, 1969, and charged with several counts of conspiracy to bomb police stations, department stores, and other public places in New York City. She became pregnant with Tupac in 1970 while on bail after being charged with conspiring to set off a race war. The following year after successfully defending herself in court displaying her ceremony, she changed her name to Afeni Shakur after becoming actively involved with the black panther party. Afeni gave birth to a daughter named Sekiya two years after Tupac, however her father Mutulu Shakur (Sekiya’s father) did not stick around either. Tupac’s father Billy Garland, was also a panther but lost contact with Afeni when Tupac was five years old. He met his father again when he was 23 in the hospital after tupac was shot five times.
Early Life https://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/tupac-amaru-shakur-3096.php
Tupac was 14 when he and his mother moved to the Bronx in 1985. He called himself MC New York and won a rap contest sponsored by the Enoch Pratt Free Library. His mother Afeni was raising two children on her own and struggled for money. The family moved homes often, sometimes staying in shelters. Tupac lived in a Baltimore neighborhood that was heavy with crime. So the family Tupac, his sister, and his mom moved to Marin city, California. Tupac started to realize that he would be stereotyped because of where he grew up and the people he was around, so his love for hip-hop would steer him away from a life of crime for a while at least. Then they moved to Baltimore, where Tupac enrolled at the prestigious Baltimore School for the Arts, at which he felt “the freest I ever felt.”
High School
https://youtu.be/v_XT9-C5Qu8
In school Tupac did performing arts, and that is how he started his love for performing and expressing his emotion through music. The school that tupac went to in 1986 to study at Baltimore School of Performing Arts to become an artist. He already released an album, but went back to study and get more information. He released CD’s in high school just for fun. He did have friends but his main friend that he could always go to was Jada. Jada was a drug dealer until she met tupac. They met at the Baltimore School for the Arts. She was also studying music and theater. They never officially dated. People just know they were best friends. He inspired her to stop drug dealing, and for once jada knew she had someone there for her.
Career https://www.businessinsider.com/tupac-life-story-death-2016-9
After studying poetry, theater, and music in high school, Tupac got his first break when he became a roadie and backup dancer for the rap group Digital Underground in 1990. His first music credit came on a soundtrack single for the 1991 Chevy Chase-led film Nothing But Trouble, which he also appeared in. One of his favorite things to study was poetry. Jada stuck with him for a very long time. They got spaced apart after they got out of high school. He wrote a poem about her. https://genius.com/2pac-jada-lyrics
“U R the omega of my heart
The foundation 4 my conception of Love
When I think of what a black woman should be
Its u that I First think of
U will never fully understand
How Deeply my Heart Feels 4 u
I worry that we’ll grow apart
And I’ll end up losing u
U bring me 2 climax without sex
And u do it all with regal grace
U r my heart in Human Form
A Friend I could never replace”
Crime https://www.crimemuseum.org/crime-library/cold-cases/tupac-shakur/
When Tupac met his Biological father in the hospital after Tupac was shot five times on November 30, 1994. He was shot and seriously wounded during a robbery committed by two armed men in the lobby of Midtown Manhattan office building that had a recording studio where he was working on his third album, me and against the world. He recovered and kept going with his music. When he lived in California he was attacked by jealous youths in Marin city. Tupac drew his pistol but dropped it. Someone picked it up and the gun fired at a six-year-old bystander Qa’id Walker-Teal fell down dead. Well Tupac was not charged for the six-year-old’s death. He put that beside him and kept going with his career. Yes, he did smoke and do some drugs but was never in a gang. He had friends like Snoop Dogg that was, but he did want to be a part of a gang but his mom said no and that she wanted him to do the right thing. The right thing to do was following his dreams and becoming a performer. Tupac did do bad things in his life like go to jail for sex abuse for 18 months. He has been arrested six times. People had enough with him.
Death https://theundefeated.com/features/murder-of-tupac-shakur-not-a-complete-mystery/
When Tupac died he was 25 years old. He died in a drive by. A drive by shooting is a type of assault that usually involves the predator firing a weapon from his/hers car. Then they drive away quickly to escape before the person that they shot died or didn’t respond. The person that shot tupac in a drive by was Orlando Anderson. Orlando was a member of the Los Angeles gang Southside Crips. Before the shooting he was attending a boxing match. The people boxing were Mike Tyson, and Bruce Seldon, they were in a heavyweight fight. Tupac was watching them fight before the shooting. Before the shooting there was an argument, no one knew about it or why. Tupac was shot in Las Vegas, Nevada the time of the incident was 11:15 PM. Tupac was stopped at a red light at E. Flamingo Rd. and Koval Lane. His death was a shock to the music industry. Tupac is buried in Greenwood cemetery. After Tupac‘s death he was entered into the Rock and roll Hall of Fame. People still think tupac is alive to this day. Death Row Records founder Suge Knight’s son has claimed he’s alive and well in Malaysia. If he were alive he would be 49 years old. His friends don’t believe suge. One of them said “he wouldn’t be able to stay quiet for this long.”
Influence https://honeyinmyhair.com/2018/01/24/spotlight-nikki-giovannis-all-eyez-on-u/
People were very inspired by Tupac and his poetry. He inspired people to not be afraid to express themselves. Nikki Giovanni was someone who always will believe in him. She never thought of the bad side of him and I don’t either. I started listening to Tupac and quickly felt connected to his music. His hard work and success inspired me to learn more about him. I learned that he fought the odds and didn’t let his upbringing stop him from chasing his dreams. Many people judged and doubted him. It taught me to not worry about what others think and do what I love.
Works Cited
“2Pac – Jada.” Genius, 1 Nov. 1999, genius.com/2pac-jada-lyrics.
Bumgarner, Hannah Renea, and Wesley Bumgarner says: “Spotlight:
Nikki Giovanni’s ‘All Eyez On U.’” Honey In My Hair, 1 June 2019,
honeyinmyhair.com/2018/01/24/spotlight-nikki-giovannis-all-eyez-on-]
/.
Jessewashington. “The Murder of Tupac Shakur Is a Tragedy - but the Why Is
Not a Complete Mystery.”
The Undefeated, The Undefeated, 16 June 2017,
theundefeated.com/features/murder-of-tupac-shakur-not-a-complete
mystery/.
Lynch, John. “The Incredible Career Rise and Tragic Murder of Tupac Shakur,
Who Died 21 Years Ago.” Business Insider, Business Insider, 13 Sept.
2017, www.businessinsider.com/tupac-life-story-death-2016-9.
“Tupac Shakur.” Crime Museum, 7 Aug. 2018,
www.crimemuseum.org/crime-library/cold-cases/tupac-shakur/.
“Tupac Shakur.” Biography.com, A&E Networks Television, 6 Jan. 2021,
www.biography.com/musician/tupac-shakur.
“TUPAC SHAKUR 1988 HIGH SCHOOL INTERVIEW.” YouTube, 12 June 2017,
youtu.be/v_XT9-C5Qu8.
“Who Was Tupac Shakur? Everything You Need to Know.” Tupac Amaru Shakur
Biography - Facts, Childhood, Family Life, Achievements, Death,
www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/tupac-amaru-shakur-3096.php.
