Tuesday, June 16, 2009
Happy Birthday Tupac
I remember exactly where I was. Chicago. I was in a car with friends. I cried like a relative or close friend died. We had to pull over. We went out and got faded and poured out liquor for him. I still can feel the emptiness I felt whenever I think about that night. He really touched me with his words(very deep)and his delivery. He was much more than a rapper, he was a revolutionist. He probably would have been doing something political now if he was still with us...
California Love and 2 Live And Die In LA is one of the reasons I moved to LA to follow my dreams. I wanted to experience it for myself. He made it look so good. I'm glad I did :) Calfornia Love wasn't one of his deeper songs but it captured his Gemini fun loving free spirit.
R.I.P. PAC. YOU ARE TRULY MISSED.
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7 comments:
OK, So I have a serious question, because on this anniversary, it begs to be asked...
Tupac once performed a song based on a cover of Bruce Hornsby's "That's just the way it is". In that song, he raps about how some things will never change...but in a stark comment about Urban life...
"We ain't ready, to see a black President, uhh
It ain't a secret don't conceal the fact
the penitentiary's packed, and it's filled with blacks
But some things will never change"
Now, it's been 12 years since his death. We celebrate Tupac, as some kind of hero... yet the night he was shot, he, along with Suge Knight, attacked a man and beat him... granted a gang affiliation, but nonetheless a violent act that none of us can condone.
So are we celebrating Tupac the artist? or are we trying to make a larger statement about a conflicted man... Does Tupac epitomize Black America, the frustration, rage, fears?
I love Tupac's music, all the way back to the Digital Underground, which is my all time fav Rap/Hiphop group. but I certainly do not celebrate the Man that is Tupac... no romaticizing a violent man for me, it just doesn't fly. Now I'm not a black man, I'm a hispanic man, so I'm cognizant that I can never truly relate to what makes a man like Tupac act in this manner.... but I want to know, what is it? What does he mean in the bigger sense?
-Todd A.
Todd whenever I write something positive about a black man you always have a problem...
Obviously "we" are not celebrating. I wouldn't include you in it. Like you said you probably can't relate and I don't have the time to explain. Do research maybe? Dig deeper than what the media portrayed him to be maybe? Actually listen to his music maybe?
"Actually listen to his music...."
You know me better than that Isley. You've listened to me play. If I knew that Tupac was part of the Digital Underground, then I've listened... and I'd bet that most people don't even know he got his start there.
Dig deeper? Most definitely. That's why I ask the question - In order to understand, not to break down or reduce.
You see, I question. That does not make me have a "problem"... honestly it does not. I try to live my live based on merit, I truly do not care what color a man's skin is, but I DO care about who that person is, and why others relate. If I was a racist, would I have voted for Obama? Would I have the love of Funk and Soul music?
I can relate to Tupac's Music. He is one of the few Rap artists that I own music of, and would willingly listen to.... I relate to the social commentary within, and the message he sends....but the stark contrast and contradiction in his acts reflect a very different core philosophy, which interests me. We all have that level of contradiction in us, but rarely to the level that we see in Tupac Shakur. Kurt Cobain would really be the only other Musical Artist that I can think of who would be on the same Level.
Isley, take a minute and reflect on what I've said here... and take it a face value, instead of looking at it through the filters of your own experiences. Not everyone who questions a Black man is racist, and nor is everyone who questions having a problem...
There is one thing that you've said here that i think is very telling-
"I don't have time to explain it". If you refuse to explain, then there will never be understanding, and without understanding, how can there be tolerance? I've come right out and said "I don't understand"... that means I have a desire to understand. I want to hear what you have to say, and I'll take the time to listen. If you turn your back on that opportunity, then you only force me, and therefore others, to draw their own conclusions, which IMO, would be a tragedy, as there is obviously something here that's deep, passionate, and meaningful to you and others.
That all being said, if you don't wish me to post, I won't. I won't question what you find sacred if it causes you pain, or hurt. Not my style. I do believe in self destiny, and the right to believe what one believes in. and If I hurt you by questioning, then I apologize.
Peace Out,
Todd
Todd Todd Todd! I never called you a racist, but I find it very odd and I see a pattern with you whenever I speak on black men I look up to. You never comment on anything thing else. Is that a coincidence? Maybe so!
You said you could "relate" to his music but that is apparent to be false because we wouldn't be having this discussion at all. Tupac was a modern day Shakespeare and philosopher of the ghetto. If you really "listen" to his lyrics and not skim through it, you'd get a better sense of who he was as a man or watch old footage of him. That's why I said to go deeper.
He was still young (25) when he died and a product of his environment, so yes he and his crew beat someones ass that they had early problems with. Probably all of your favorite musicians have done something violent at one point in their lives when provoked but it wasn't televised, shit I have too but does that make me a violent person? Hell no! Because I am not 25 anymore. I have grown. Tupac didn't have a chance to grow like so many of our black youth in the hood, then and now. Even in his death he taught the youth what could happen. So his death wasn't in vain it was actually prolific and that is why his writings are taught in some colleges.
Malcolm X changed. Tupac had the intelligence to do the same. He read everything he could get his hands on. So deep down, he was not that "thug" character. It was a persona to keep people interested because society is infatuated with those types and he knew that. He often contradicted himself because he had to do what he had to do to survive. Who can't relate to that?He had bigger plans. That is why he is celebrated because we all felt his greatness was cut short.
You didn't hurt me by your post. Just irritated me a bit that's all. It's not fair to judge a man based on what the media has fed you. Feel free to post anytime. I welcome debates.
Isley -
I was in a rotten mood this AM....right up until i read your post.
I honestly hadn't considered that angle- I felt much of the same way, but looked at it differently, with a more angry eye, perhaps cynical. I've rarely heard such interesting comparisons made to Malcolm X...and you're right, he did change. I actually have a quote from Malcom X on my FB page, "Right is Right..."
And you know what?
Right is Right.
This is what is needed, for communication... Instead of getting irritated with me or others, give the benefit of the doubt when you can...
I comment on what I find remarkable. Sometimes it takes a certain headline to grab me, or other things that stand out. But there's no viciousness in any "pattern" I might be posting in, I promise you that.
The common thread is not so much the Fact that you're posting about a Black person in positive light, but more that there's something in your post that I don't understand or relate to, and I want to. So that I don't misunderstand, so I can grow.
One other thing i want to comment on:
We, as a collective society, have a distinct habit of blaming media coverage for our misconceptions... and that's wrong. The media, which you and I are both a part of, is now spoken of as this giant evil thing that sits out there..
No.
The Media is a tool. Don't make assumptions that someone is only fed by the "media". The "Media" only gives us what we want. Since we're a fast food society, well, it stands to reason that we want fast food. The idea is not the change the media, but to change the demand for what type of media we consume. That starts with us as individuals. The blame rests with us.
Peace,
Todd
lol I guess I am still growing as well because I get irritated easily and that sometimes can be a problem... I'm human :)
As am I. :-)
T
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