Rethinking 2Pac...14 Years Later

CLEVELAND - If someone were to study media reports about Tupac Shakur in 1995, they would have found a consistent pattern of negativity. Whether brought on by his own reckless and menacing ways, or just biased and unfair opinions, the man was as repudiated in the press for his behavior as he was revered in hip-hop for his artistry.

And now, in 2010, the man continues to ascend the ladder of legend.

Today marks the 14th anniversary of his game changing death. Yes it is unreal that it took place that long ago. Back in the days of dial-up, ultra basic Internet. During the Clinton administration but before Monica and her stained dress. Way back when LeBron was a poverty stricken 11-year old unknown. Back when no one had ever heard of  DVDs and cell phones were as rare as a bad game by Michael Jordan and as big as a VHS tape.

His death was THAT long ago.

It's interesting that 2Pac's career started off the way it did. In 1990, he seemed as family friendly and non-threatening as Will Smith. That is when he was nothing more than a roadie for the hip-hop group Digital Underground. But in the three years between 1992 and 1995, 2Pac evolved from a young, militant musician to a notoriously brash criminal who often spoke of and epitomized a "thug lifestyle" of deviant and even felonious behavior. Television images of him often depicted him in handcuffs, in courtrooms or speaking in an animated and ruthless fashion about violence and what he felt was his persecution.

He came off as a peerless troublemaker with no intention of slowing down.

His music became more eerie, violent and contradictory. It also became more polished and popular and by the time he was released from a months long prison stint in the fall of 1995, he was one of the top two superstars in hip-hop along with bitter rival The Notorious B.I.G. He spent the first eight months of 1996 atop the world of rap music thanks largely to the February release of his seminal LP, All Eyez On Me. Now a high-profile member of Death Row Records (and a de facto protege of the villainous Suge Knight), 2Pac decided to tamp up his own hubris and cockiness as he openly and shamelessly basked in the glow of his modified image and Death Row allegiance.

When he was murdered in that now infamous September drive-by shooting in Las Vegas, there was a huge feeling of anger and sadness for both a life lost at just 25, and for a brilliant artist who was too caught up in crafting an invincible street image instead of using his obvious intelligence, ideals and talent to ascend to an ever higher, more significant place in the world. 2Pac could have changed the world in amazing ways that had nothing to do with music. The man was an intellect and a visionary, two terms that never would have been used to describe him during his lifetime.

He's celebrated as an important icon nowadays, but in truth...he was bigger than that. It's a shame he tried so hard to hide that from us while he was alive.

Shakur Hid True Brilliance Behind 'Thug' Act

CLEVELAND - Tupac Shakur managed to be a superstar rap artist as well as a highly coveted sex symbol, but never quite understood the power of his true brilliance because he was busy covering it up.

What a shame.

It was 13 years ago today that arguably the most shocking and pivotal moment in hip-hop history took place; Shakur died from wounds he suffered in a rainstorm of gunfire six days earlier in Las Vegas, NV. His death dealt a gigantic blow to both his legion of devoted fans as well as the music industry, particularly urban music. At the time, Shakur (popularly known as 'Pac) was the biggest star in the game. His magnum opus, the sprawling, double CD All Eyez On Me had been released seven months earlier and received massive acclaim. Additionally, 2Pac had been embroiled in a tit-for-tat feud with rival East coast rap star the Notorious B.I.G. and had recently released a vitriolic song entitled, "Hit 'Em Up" in order to publicly humiliate B.I.G.

Shakur had come into national prominence in 1992 when both his debut album 2Pacalypse Now and his feature film debut Juice were released to glowing reviews. From there, the previously introspective, often political 'Pac began to get involved in trouble of all sorts. He began modifying his image and soon became "thugged out" in both appearance and behavior. Brushes with the law and antagonistic lyrics soon became his trademark and ironically, his fame and status grew significantly.

In 1993, Shakur shot two police officers and was accused of sexual assault on a woman. He himself was shot several times in November 1994, and even though he survived the attack, he went to prison for the sex crime. 2Pac wound up spending less than a year incarcerated, but once his $1.4 million bail was posted by music mogul Suge Knight, he was a free man, but indebted to Knight for his generosity. This is when 'Pac signed to Death Row Records and promptly began crafting music for All Eyez On Me. Strangely enough, 2Pac became more brash and pugnacious once he was out of prison. Being in Knight's camp almost seemed to provide him a security blanket and he let his hubris hang out all over the place with "gangsta' posturing" and sharp bravado designed to paint him as a "hardcore thug nigga from the street."

The problem with all of this was simple; 2Pac only hurt his image by cultivating such a negative one. By the time he attended the Mike Tyson/Bruce Seldon prizefight at the MGM Grand on September 7, 1996, he'd completed his 5th solo album, "Makaveli: The Seven Day Theory" which was scheduled for release two months later. He was gunned down in a still-unsolved drive-by shooting on the Vegas strip after the Tyson fight while riding in a BMW with Knight.

Since he had been shot two years prior, many believed that he would again pull through. He also seemed to be, through the mythology of his music, invincible. He wasn't. He received major surgery and lapsed into a coma before finally fading away on that awful Friday the 13th afternoon 13 years ago. Of course, fans were overcome with major grief and disbelief and Shakur became canonized almost immediately. He was now seen less as a troublemaker and more as a martyr who became the voice of a generation.

What is so wasteful to me is that Shakur was amazingly intelligent, philosophical and articulate. There's an interview of him, filmed in 1988 when he was just 17 years old where he poses some very thoughtful observations and questions about politics and the plight of poverty stricken people and how they are overlooked by the "hotshots" in Washington, D.C. That intelligence and analytical ability was on display occasionally, though not nearly enough because he was busy living up to his contrived "thugness."

Don't get me wrong. I'm aware of Shakur's upbringing and his street-side, so there are no false illusions on my part. I'm just disappointed that the man who became an icon in death wasn't more forthcoming with his genius. I always say that if he were around nowadays, he'd be a far more professorial type, maybe in the vein of Michael Eric Dyson; Dr. Tupac Shakur if you will.

Shakur's lyrics were often a work of art -- when he eschewed the violence and mayhem for poetic amelioration. He was an idealist as well as an activist in his own way, but he too often got in his own way and his potentially transformative influence was extinguished.

Looking back on 2Pac's brilliant career from the vantage point of 13 years later, I can't help but wonder how he would have impacted the world in the 21st century. Remember, he was just 25 years old when he was killed so he had so much room for improvement and time to shake off that young ignorance that we're all cursed with initially. Tupac Shakur was so much more than we knew at the time, but if we continue to listen to his music, we'll continue to decipher his true message, not the commercialized one.

Long live Tupac.

2Pac Shooting Was Our JFK Assassination

CLEVELAND - Tupac Shakur was an incendiary star in the world of rap and hip-hop music in the 1990's and, through his timeless music has remained so in the 21st century. He was also a brilliant intellect blessed with the wisdom of a visionary and cursed with a follower's flaw to fit in.

In short, he was hopelessly complicated.

Today is the 13th anniversary of Shakur's shooting on the Las Vegas strip. Though it was the second time he'd been shot in two years, it was far more serious. He died from his injuries six days later, forever changing music history and the landscape of hip-hop.

2Pac's shooting was a huge event. Since it resulted in his death at age 25, it became a flash point for urban America akin to President John F. Kennedy's assassination in 1963. I'm not suggesting that a musician's death was as important or historic as the president of the United States, I'm simply saying that 2Pac had become a major symbol to black youth who emulated his aggressive and emotional lyrics and lifestyle -- for better and worse. Just like JFK's assassination, 2Pac was gunned down without the presence of the news media filming the event. Another JFK parallel is the multitude of conspiracy claims that have swirled around the murder. The Warren Commission concluded that Kennedy was murdered by Lee Harvey Oswald, though many people have never accepted such a simplistic hypothesis. With Shakur, no one has ever been officially named and with the cryptic nature of his first posthumous album (Makaveli: The Don Killuminati), many have suspected that the rap star faked his death just as Italian philosopher Niccolo Machiavelli did.

Shakur has been deified in the 13 years since his demise. He is hip-hop's foremost icon and continues to inspire a new generation of MCs who marvel at his brazen lifestyle and legendary bouts with the law, not to mention his signature lyrical style and subject matter.

In the final estimation, Shakur was a legitimate legend and inspirational force in spite of his flaws and erstwhile belligerence. It is a shame that he apparently felt compelled to kow tow to a "thuggish" image rather than expose the true genius that resided inside him.

He was greater than perhaps even he knew himself.