Tupac Shakur is one of the most successful American rap musicians (also known as 2Pac and Makaveli). During his life, he was also engaged in producing activities and acted in films. Tupac has sold over 75 million records. His name is known to almost every person in the world, because he is the greatest and most influential hip-hop representative in the history of this musical culture.
September 13, 1996 he died in Las Vegas (Nevada) due to gunshot wounds, which he received six days before his death. The album, titled All Eyez on Me (“Everyone Looks at Me”), as well as several others, are on the list of best-selling music albums in the United States. The popular glossy magazine Rolling Stone, in its top 100 Great Performers in World History, placed the American rapper on the 86th line. Tupac Shakur left the greatest musical heritage on the basis of which the work of many modern hip-hop artists (the so-called world rap giants) is formed, such as Eminem, Snoop Dogg, Lil Wayne, Drake, 50 Cent, Wiz Khalifa and many others.
Popular songs
Rapper Tupac is famous for the following songs: California Love, Changes, Ghetto Gospel, I Ain't Mad At You, Brenda's Got a Baby, Hail Mary, Dear Mama, 2 Of Amerikaz Most Wanted.
In his tracks, the performer spoke about the difficult and unfair life in the ghetto, that is, about violence, poverty and racism. In addition, Tupac raised the problems of modern society, thereby becoming a cult orator among representatives of the African American race.
Rapper Tupac: biography and interesting facts
Born June 16, 1971 in East Harlem (New York, Manhattan). His real name at birth was Lesane Parish Crookes, and a year later his parents decided to change the name of their son and named him Tupac Shakur - in honor of the famous South American revolutionary Tupac Amar II (coordinator and leader of the indigenous uprising against the Spanish colonial government in Peru in the 18th century )
His parents were representatives of a radical organization of left-wing political views called Black Panthers. A month after the birth of Tupac, all charges against anti-American propaganda were dropped from his mother (Panther 21 case). The mother also introduced to her activities her son, who subsequently got a tattoo on his left shoulder with the image of a black panther. In the early biography of Tupac Shakur and his family, there are many stories related to the activities of nationalist militant organizations fighting for freedom and social equality of African-American groups in a wide society. About the same rapper narrates in his musical compositions.
School years
At the age of twelve, on the initiative of his mother, Tupac began to go to the 127th street ensemble in Harlem. Here he participated in various theatrical scenes, and even played the role of Travis in a popular play called A Raisin in the Sun (Lauren Hansberry's "Raisins in the Sun" play). In 1986, the family of the future rapper moved to the city of Baltimore in Maryland. Here he began to study at the school of acting, studied poetry, as well as the art of jazz and ballet. The guy was very fond of creativity and fully developed himself - he played in the popular Shakespeare plays, also danced in the ballet based on the fairy tale The Nutcracker (Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky).
In his school years, Tupac Shakur was fond of rap, like many other boys. Often the guys organized rap battles in the backyard of the school, then this culture was only in its infancy in the states. Tupac was the best butler, and part-time and the best rapper at school. The guy could non-stop freestyle and always get into the topic, as well as mix sparkling humor in his text, which ensured him victory in such an uncomplicated competition. He could start a pleasant conversation with any person, for this he was loved and respected.
In 1988, the Shakur family moved to Martin City, California. Here he enrolled in the new Tamalpeys school, where he became an active cultural figure - he took part in theatrical performances and poetry evenings. In addition, the future rapper made friends with the writer Leila Steinberg, who taught poetry courses.
American rapper career
The career of rapper Tupac Shakur dates back to 1987. At this time, the guy is recording underground tracks and gaining local popularity. In 1990, he became a member of a band called Digital Underground, where he recorded the track Same Song (the first official music rap song in Tupac’s career), which became the soundtrack to the film “Troubles”. In parallel with the creativity in the group, the guy was engaged in creating his own tracks. In 1991, his debut solo album, 2Pacalypse Now, was released. The creation of the rapper caused a lot of resonance from society and authorities. The content of his songs reveals the meaning of modern society, filled with a mountain of injustice and subjectivity.
Often the rapper Tupac (photo below) used far from censored words, which further exaggerated the colors of the songs. Despite the constant indignation and criticism from the authorities, the album fell in love with the public and eventually acquired the status of “golden”.
Movie debut
In 1992, rapper Tupac made his film debut. He played the role of a gangster in the movie "Authority", which shows the realities of lawlessness and social chaos. After the release of the film, many critics and fans of the rapper began to argue that Tupac allegedly began to identify his person with his hero of the film. And this is not strange, because along the trajectory to his fame, the rapper more than once had problems with the law, and even ended up behind bars several times. In 1993, rapper Tupac released his second solo studio album, entitled Strictly 4 My NIGGAZ, which made a big splash on the public. The number of copies sold exceeded one million in the first year from the date of release. After that, the rapper became a star.
Rapper career: fame and experience in cinema
In 1994, a movie with the participation of Tupac called “Poetic Justice” was released, which became popular around the world. In this film about bright love and ruthless violence, the script provided for a kiss between Shakur and actress Janet Jackson. Having learned about the rapper’s usual lifestyle, Janet Jackson made demands for Makaveli to pre-pass the immunodeficiency virus (HIV) test, because she was cautious about her cleanliness. In turn, the rapper agreed to such a proposal, but he set his condition - he said that he would be checked if Janet slept with him. As a result, the actors kissed without a test.
The filmography of the rapper Tupac Shakur is quite rich. In the period from 1991 to 1994, he starred in 7 films, the cult of which was "Over the Ring". Currently, there are 4 films dedicated to the rapper, released after his death. In 2010, a film was announced entitled “Living to say,” but this work has not yet been released (or is under development) for unclear reasons.
How did rapper Tupac die?
On September 7, 1996, Shakur, in company with his friend and producer Shug Knight, arrived in his black BMW in Las Vegas, for the boxing match between Mike Tyson and Bruce Seldon.
After the battle, which ended in the expected victory of the Iron Mike, on the way to the nightclub of Tupac's car, where Sug was driving, it was shot at by unknown people with a Cadillac car passing by. It was a real assassination attempt on the gangsta rap icon. Four bullets hit Shakur, and Knight escaped with light abrasions from glass fragments. After the arrival of the ambulance, the rapper was immediately hospitalized. For six days, Shakur was in serious condition, subsequently died on September 13.
Who killed Shakur? And who lit him?
On September 14, the rapper's body was cremated. Some sources of information claim that members of the hip-hop group Outlawz, and part-time friends of Shakur, lit a part of his ashes mixed with marijuana. The attempt and murder of rapper 2Pac is still the subject of heated debate, because no criminals were found. According to many, they are representatives from the conflicting East Coast hip hop group, led by the rapper Notorious BIG (on March 9, 1997 he was facing the same fate - he was shot dead in Los Angeles).