REBEL OF THE UNDERGROUND Essays - Hip Hop, Shakur Family

"REBEL OF THE UNDERGROUND" The Life and Works of Tupac Amaru Shakur Both Tupac and Amaru are words of Inca origin. Together they mean, shining serpent. Shakur means thankful to God, from the Arabic language. Tupac, commonly known as America's most controversial rapper was labeled a gangster rapper and one of the largest figures in the rap community. He was always known for doing what he wanted and not caring what others thought of him. His life symbolized what a lot of people have gone through. Through his music and movies he showed how hard life can be. On June 16, 1971 Tupac was born to Alice Faye Williams in Brooklyn, NY. His mother was a revolutionary as she called herself Afeni Shakur. For many years she associated herself with members of the well-known Black Panther Party. She joined a New York chapter of the Panther Party in 1964 and fell in love with an organizer, Lumumba Abdul Shakur. After four years with Lumumba, Afeni started to see another party member, William Garland who was another activist working with the party members to support their causes. Around this time things were going downhill for Afeni. In 1969 she and other members of the Panther were arrested and charged with several felony counts, including conspiracy to bomb a public place. A well-educated schoolteacher, Afeni decided to defend herself. However, things took a turn for the worst. While out on bail she became pregnant with Tupac. Soon after, her bail was revoked. Afeni recalls: having previously miscarried four or five times, she did not expect to carry him to term. But Tupac, she says, wanted to be in this world. She remembers while in her cell she would pat her belly and say, This is my prince. He is going to save the black nation (Kin 151). Acquitted and released on 156 counts from the Women's House of Detention in Greenwich Village for lack of evidence, she was now out of jail and eight months pregnant with Tupac. By the time Tupac was born, Afeni had already lined up a job as a paralegal and things started looking up. However, soon after his birth, Afeni started snorting cocaine. For a while she was a very loving mother. Afeni started to see a man by the name of Mutulu as she tried to bring a father figure into Tupac's life. He was also a member of the Panther party. Soon after, Afeni was pregnant with her second child, Sekyiwa. A few months before her due date, Mutulu had been sentenced to sixty years for a fatal armored car robbery. Afeni was once again a single mother raising Tupac along with his sister. A couple of years later his mother decided to move her family to Baltimore, Maryland, for a fresh start. While in Maryland the world got its first true taste of the life and works of Tupac Amaru Shakur. By the age of twelve Tupac had already landed his first role with the 127th Street Ensemble, a theater group he attended in the impoverished Harlem section of Manhattan. Having to suddenly leave the group, Tupac wanted to continue studying theater. In Baltimore, Tupac was quickly enrolled in the High School of the Performing Arts. His mother made sure he was well educated, she recalls He was articulate. I trained him. Punishment for him was reading The New York Times. At age fifteen Tupac began to study acting and ballet at the Baltimore School of the Arts. Although mostly white students attended the school, Tupac felt in touch with them. He recalled: Them white kids had things we never seen. That was the first time I saw there was white people who you could get along with. Before that, I just believed what everyone else said: They were devils. But I loved it. I loved going to school. It taught me a lot. I was starting to feel like I really wanted to be an artist. (Tupac) While in the school of Arts, Tupac met a special friend, Jada Pinkett, whom he shared time with and created performances for anyone interested. Most teachers said he looked very promising; unfortunately he never finished school because his mother felt she needed an overall change. Afeni