I'd like to meet:
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Music:
.-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- Tupac Shakur - Thugz Mansion -- Video code provided by KEKAI BOY.Tupac Shakur was more than a musician. He was an artist in the truest sense of the word. While rap is not a mode of expression commonly associated with high art, anyone familiar with the archetypal 'tortured artist' would recognise it in Tupac. He was obsessed with self-analysis and expressed his views on daily life effusively, resulting in a non-stop torrent of poetry, music, acting roles and monologues spoken to anyone who would listen. Tupac Amaru Shakur, also known as 2Pac and Makaveli later in life, was born on 16 June 1971 in the Bronx. His mother, Afeni Shakur, was a member of the Black Panthers, a militant political party which fought to address the inequality of life in White Americaah, to quote Eminem. Young Tupac, a voracious reader, absorbed the attitudes and teachings of his mother, stepfather, and other mentors during his formative years. Fuelled by lofty ambitions, a formidable intellect, natural talent, determination and charisma, Tupac's ascension to Hip Hop royalty was as inevitable as his premature demise.On 7 September 1996, at the age of 25, Tupac was shot four times in the chest after attending a Mike Tyson fight in Las Vegas. He died six days later on September 13, Black Friday. To date, no one has been formally charged with his murder. Slayings that went down just after Tupac was shot could be related.If you want a more thorough biography of Tupac, as told by those who knew and loved him, then grab a copy of this superb DVD. Produced by Quincy Jones' company QD3 for Black Watch Television in the US, Thug Angel - The Life of an Outlaw presents a multi-media tribute to the life and passions of this famous rapper: a man born, raised and killed on the streets of the country he strove to reform.The main footage of Tupac is drawn from one interview recorded at the age of 17, and another taped much later as he fires various automatic weapons at an indoor gun range. The difference between the younger and older Tupac is remarkable. Once articulate and wide-eyed with idealism, Tupac became a reflection of life on poverty row, where potatoes were often cooked as a meat substitute, crime was a hobby and drugs were commonplace. Although outspoken, hard working, generous, and sexually insatiable, Tupac also carried himself like a one-man army: afraid of no-one, suspicious of authority, always looking for a reason to fight. The fires that raged inside Tupac jostled for possession of his mind and spirit. The same man whose favourite piece of music was a passage from Les Miserables also smoked weed constantly and collected AK-47s. It comes as no surprise that he even predicted his own untimely death.Interspersed between Tupac's taped interviews are new testimonials by Karen Lee (family friend, publicist), Dr Mutulu Shakur (step-father), Mopreme Shakur (step-brother), Bobby McCall (former Black Panther), Ray Luv (early rap partner), Leila Steinberg (manager 1989-1992), Greg 'Shock G' Jacobs and Money B (from Digital Underground, Tupac's first official touring gig), Malcomb (one of Pac's loyal Outlaws), Johnny 'J' (record producer), Henry Fayson (bodyguard), Michael Badd (Tupac Historian), Quincy Jones and others.Interestingly, characters from the Death Row Records era, such as Frank Robinson, another of Tupac's bodyguards and the author of Got Your Back (a cool book), and the notorious boss of Death Row himself Suge Knight, are conspicuously absent. It is also worth mentioning that this DVD does not contain any music by Tupac, apart from early footage of him performing in his first live gig. I assume that Death Row own the rights to most of Tupac's back-catalogue; they were not involved with this documentary. Check out Death Row Uncut and The Best of Tupac (R1) for compilations of video clips. For a documentary about Tupac's final year, have a look at Before I Wake, which did involve biographer Frank Robinson. Probably shot on digital betacam and in keeping with its TV origins, Thug Angel - The Life of an Outlaw is composed for and presented at a ratio of 1.33:1. The image is not 16x9 enhanced. Overall the picture quality is excellent, with the usual lapses associated with archival footage edited into the main feature. As expected, sharpness and detail is pleasing. This is a highly professional production, bringing to mind the crisp hyperrealism of latter-day 'adult' videography. Apart from the garishness inherent with shot-on-tape material, the image is easy on the eye and offers an impressive amount of resolution. High contrast transitions betrayed some edge enhancement, and shadow detail is fair. The archival video footage, such as Tupac's 1988 interview and his Strictly Dope gig in 1989, ranges in sharpness from average to poor.Colours are solid and vibrant all round. There are no instances of colour bleed and skin tones are accurate. Saturation tends to be strong; I put that down to being characteristic of the video source used and not a transfer fault.The only artefacts worth mentioning relate to the archival video footage. Video noise, cross-colour artefacts, pixelization, undersaturated colours and other similar grievances affect the image, not to mention the usual menu of amateur camerawork gaffes, such as overexposures and focusing problems. One assumes that QD3 did what they could to make these elements presentable, and considering that this stuff is rarely more than 10 years old, most of it looks quite okay.I noticed no layer change during the feature, so I assume the dual layer formatting contains part or all of the two and a half hour's worth of supplemental video material..Video code provided by KEKAI BOY
Movies:
.Tupac Amaru Shakur was born in Bronx in 1971. He moved to Baltimore where he went into a High School for Performing Arts, where he began writing rap. Then he moved to Marin City, California. As a member of the Grammy-nominated group Digital Underground he appeared in 1991 on the track "Same Song" from "This is an EP Release" and on the album "Sons Of The P." That same year Shakur spawned the successful singles "Trapped" and "Brenda's Got A Baby." The album, with references to police officers being killed, drew notoriety when a lawyer claimed a man accused of killing a Texas trooper had been riled up by the record. Then-Vice President Dan Quayle targeted "2Pacalypse Now" in his 1992 battle with Hollywood over traditional values. Shakur followed up in 1993 with the strong selling album "Strictly 4 My N.I.G.G.A.Z...," which produced the singles "I Get Around," "Keep Ya Head Up," and "Papa'z Song." That year he was nominated for an American Music Award as best new rap hip hop artist. The next year he appeared with Thug Life on the "Above The Rim" soundtrack and on the group's album "Volume 1." In a photo on the album liner he framed his face between his two extended middle fingers. While in prison last year he indicated he was rethinking his lifestyle. "Thug Life to me is dead. If it's real, let somebody else represent it, because I'm tired of it," Shakur told Vibe magazine. "I represented it too much. I was Thug Life. While serving his sentence for sexual abuse, Tupac's third solo release, "Me Against The World," spent four weeks at number one.After eight months, Tupac's case was appealed, and Death Row head Suge Knight promptly bailed Tupac out of jail, and took the opportunity to sign him to Death Row Records. Tupac turned his troubles to a career that was bigger than ever. His double album Death Row debut, "All Eyez On Me," sold more than 5 million copies, scored a number one single, and included tracks with new label mate, Snoop Doggy Dogg, and Dr. Dre. With three years past since Snoop's last solo release, and the departure of Death Row Co-Founder, Dr. Dre, to start his own label, Tupac became Death Row's artistic centerpiece, as well as its biggest mouthpiece. Death Row and Tupac shared a common enemy: the New York-based Bad Boy Entertainment. Tupac had earlier implicated Bad Boy Producer, Sean "Puffy" Combs, and star artist, the Notorious B.I.G., in his 1994 shooting. But despite his taunts, Tupac realized danger could be around the corner. Back in New York City for this year's Video Music Awards, just three nights before he was shot in Las Vegas, Tupac surrounded himself with bodyguards and clutched a walkie talkie throughout the evening as a security precaution.The media's portrayal of Tupac Shakur as a tattooed thug has focused public attention on his alleged crimes instead of his music. In reality, this rapper, raised in Marin City, California, by a Black Panther mother, is more complex than his detractors like to admit. Shakur (who performs as 2Pac) is a talented lyricist with a gift for storytelling. He continues to grow as a writer on his hard-hitting new album, All Eyez on Me (Death Row/Interscope), which benefits from West Coast-style production by such artists as Dr. Dre. Recorded shortly after Shakur was released on bail from a prison sentence for sexual assault, the double album shows a relatively contemplative rapper who's ready to make peace with some of his demons.I thought my father was dead all my life. After I got shot, I looked up there was this nigga that looked just like me. And he was my father; that's when I found out. We still didn't take no blood test but the nigga looked just like me and the other nigga's dead so now I feel that I'm past the father stage. I do want to know him and I do know him we did talk and he did visit and help me when I was locked down, but I'm past that. What I want to do is form a society in which we can raise ourselves; so we can become our own father figures and the big homies can become their father figures and then you grow up then it's your turn to be a father figure to another young brother. That's where I want to start. Nine times out of ten though we would want them to be there, they can't be depended on to be there. Now, some of the mothers can't be there because they doing their thing[working] I can't blame them, they gotta do what they gotta do. So I think the youth should raise themselves since they got lofty ideas about what's theirs and their rights, what they should deserve. Since you can't whup their asses, these muthafuckers should get out and work at fifteen. I want to be apart of the generation that builds the groundwork for us to raise each other.That's so much nonsense, Poppycock! (laughs) It's not a new allegiance to the west coast, I've been on the west coast all this time. Some people, not all, some people on the east coast are on their dicks so hard, they never heard me say that I'm living on the west coast. It's just by me keeping it real, I always said where I come from. I always gave New York their props. On Me Against The World, I took a whole song to give it up. So now on teh next alvum, whin I wanna give it up, for my home, where I'm at, everybody got a problem. Why don't they have a problem with Biggie saying Brooklyn in th e house every fucking show he do. They just did a Sprite commercial with the "Bridge" and KRS, why isn't it hip-hop when I do it? Everybody else can have a beef within the music, talk about differences and it's ok. It's music, it's hip-hop, it's groundbreaking. When I do it, it's war. That's all I'm doin g. All I'm doing is saying that I'm tired of you talking about where you're from; If that's what we're gonna do now. We was doing it like hip-hop was one nation. I have proof to say what I was doing-I've done more for the east coast than the east coast did. I put more guns in east coast niggas hands than east coast niggas did when they came out here. I put them niggas on to more weed gates and weed spots and safe havens and safe spots than the east coast did. I put more rappers on than they did. I gave Biggie his first shows! I was that bridge that niggas used to walk on to get over here. I explained it, I the one that told you. I'm why all these niggas are running around with a gangbanger on their payroll now.LAS VEGAS (AP) - Tupac Shakur, the rapper whose raw lyrics drew on the rage of a coarse urban existence and seemed a blueprint of his own violent life, died Friday from wounds suffered in a drive-by shooting. He was 25. Shakur, known as 2Pac, was one of the most successful - and scorned - "gangsta" rappers. Fans bought millions of records; others denounced him and gangsta rap lyrics for glorifying violence and drugs and degrading women. He was pronounced dead at 4:03 p.m. PDT at University Medical Center of respiratory failure and cardio pulmonary arrest, a hospital spokesman said. Marion "Suge" Knight, chairman of Los Angeles-based Death Row Records, was driving Shakur on East Flamingo Road when a gunman pulled up along side them and emptied a semiautomatic pistol into the passenger side. Shakur was hit four times in the chest and abdomen. Police believe he was the target. Knight was hit by shrapnel but was treated and released from the hospital. It's been six days since Shakur was shot. He underwent surgery twice on Sunday and once on Monday, and his right lung was removed. George Pryce, Death Row Records spokesman, said they were preparing a statement. "Give people a moment to get over the shock"I'm the religion that to me is the realist religion there is. I try to pray to God every night unless I pass out. I learned this in jail, I talked to every God (member of the Five Percent Nation) there was in jail. I think that if you take one of the "O's" out of "Good" it's "God", if you add a "D" to "Evil", it's the "Devil". I think some cool motherfucker sat down a long time ago and said let's figure out a way to control motherfuckers. That's what they came up with-the bible. Cause if God wrote the bible, I'm sure there would have been a revised copy by now. Cause a lot of shit has changed. I've been looking for this revised copy-I still see that same old copy that we had from then. I'm not disrespecting anyone's religion, please forgive me if it comes off that way, I'm just stating my opinion. The bible tells us that all these did this because they suffered so much that's what makes them special people. I got shot five times and I got crucified to the media. And I walked through with the thorns on and I had shit thrown on me and I had the theif at the top; I told that nigga "I'll be back for you. Trust me, is not supposed to be going down, I'll be back. I'm not saying I'm Jesus but I'm saying we go through that type of thing everyday. We don't part the Red Sea but we walk through the hood without getting shot. We don't turn water to wine but we turn dope fiends and dope heads into productive citizens of society. We turn words into money. What greater gift can there be. So I belive God blesses us, I belive God blesses those that hustle. Those that use their minds and those that overall are righteous. I belive that everything you do bad comes back to you. So everything that I do that's bad, I'm going to suffer for it. But in my heart, I belive what I'm doing in my heart is right. So I feel like I'm going to heaven. I think heaven is just when you sleep, you sleep with a good conscience-you don't have nightmares. Hell is when you sleep, the last thing you see is all the fucked up things you did in your life and you just see it over and over again, cause you don't burn. If that's the case, it's hell on earth cause bullets burn. There's people that got burned in fires, does that mean they went to hell already? All that is here. What do you got there that we ain't seen here? What, we're gonna walk around aimlessly like zombies? That's here! You ain't been on the streets lately? Heaven now, look! (reffering to his plush apartment) we're sitting up here in the living room-big screen TV- this is heaven, for the moment. Hell is jail I seen that one. Trust me, this is what's real. And all that other shit is to control you. If the churches took half the money that they was making and gave it back to the community, we'd be alright. If they took half the buildings that they use to "praise God" and gave it to motherfuckers who need God, we'd be alright. Have you seen some of these got damn churches lately? There's one's that take up the whole block in New York. There's homeless people out here. Why ain't God lettin' them stay there? Why these niggas got gold ceilings and shit? Why God need gold ceilings to talk to me? Why does God need colored windows to talk to me? Why God can't come where I'm at where he sent me? If God wanted to talk to me in a pretty spot like that, why the hell he send me here then. That makes ghetto kids not belive in God. Why? So that's wrong religion-I belive in God, I belive God puts us where ever we want to be at. They didn't make sense that God would put us in the ghetto. That means he wants us to work hard to get up out of here. That means he's testing us even more. That makes sense that if you're good in your heart, you're closer to God but if you're evil than your closer to the devil; that makes sense! I see that everyday all that other spooky shit, don't make sense. I don't even belive, I'm not dissin' them but I don't belive in the brothers, I've been in jail with 'em and having conversations with brothers; "I'm God, I'm God." You God, open the gate for me. You know far the sun is and how far the moon is, how the hell do I pop this fuckin' gate? And get me free and up outta here. Then I'll be a Five Percenter for life.
Television:
Stories about Tupac Shakur A routinely updated list of Las Vegas SUN and Associated Press stories about Tupac Shakur, Marion "Suge" Knight and the shooting that occurred in Las Vegas.August 2000Estate of Tupac Shakur settles with another slain man's familyMay 1998Key Figure in Shakur Death KilledMarch 1998Change of Story in Shakur CaseOctober 1997Metro closes probe into leaked Shakur photoSeptember 1997Former Shakur murder suspect files suit against rapper's estate Book publisher defends Shakur photo The death of Tupac Shakur one year later Book chronicling Shakur murder set to hit stores Report: Inmate claims he helped start Death Row RecordsJuly 1997Girlfriend of jailed rap mogul robbed at gunpointApril 1997Nevada resort says no to chance to buy Shakur vehicle No leads, lot of skepticism in rapper's death Rap musicians vow to end violent rivalriesMarch 1997Sales of Biggie album explode on first day Shakur murder witnesses no help to LV police Over 250 tips received after TV show's segment on Shakur Biggie Smalls' last ride to Brooklyn Report: Street gang probed in Shakur, B.I.G. killings Big Brooklyn homecoming awaits slain rapper Behind the scenes of 'Unsolved' Shakur mystery No evidence of link in rapper slayings Investigators interview witnesses, try to compile sketch of killer Murders of rap artists prompt questions about rivalry Notorious B.I.G. lived and died the way he rapped Rap slaying similar to Shakur's Termination delayed for prosecutor who supervised Knight's probation Metro plans to talk to man who says he saw shooting Tupac witnesses' stories conflictingFebruary 1997Judge hears arguments over .Knight's probation violation Police question comments from shooting witnesses Report: Two men say they saw rapper's assailants Cops: Knight just filing legal moves Shakur's mother rips Metro PoliceJanuary 1997Lack of a witness aids Tupac's killerDecember 1996Judge says Knight can have visitors in jailNovember 1996Judges Says No to Defense Use of Video Re-Enactment Attorney General Investigates Prosecutor with Ties to Knight With Album Soaring, Hollywood Bio-Pics in Sights People in the news for Nov. 14, 1996 Suspects Arrested In Killing Of Shakur Murder Witness Teen nabbed in death of Shakur witness Shakur shooting witness found dead in N.J. Singer Says She Had Deal At Death Row Records Crowds turn out to buy Shakur album MGM tape used to hold KnightOctober 1996Police to interview gang members about Shakur death Arrest made in connection to Shakur killingSeptember 1996Tupac's final music video eerily foreshadowed death of rapper Rapper arrested on drug charges in New York City Vegas Police Consult with L.A. Officers in Shooting Nation of Islam plans rap summit Shakur mourned, retribution hinted at Rap exec mum about shooting Media, fans seek clues to reason for shooting Rapper on way to charitable event Tupac seen in fight on video Fan calls flood UMC's switchboard Tupac Shakur's friends, Metro square off at UMC Former coaches portray Knight in positive light 4 sought in Shakur shooting.
Books:
“The Heart of a soldier, with the brain to teach a whole nation" 2 pac 'no more pain'Some compare him to a modern day Billy the Kid. He considered himself an outlaw, like Billy. In fact, some of his songs verbalize it in the saying: "I'll make you famous." This line is rumored to be a statement that Billy used before dueling. Whether or not he actually used the words or not, the comparison is still there. Tupac Shakur is an American legend.2pac's short life has a huge impact on anyone who comes in contact with him or his music. Shakur, aptly nicknamed 'Thug Angel,' was raised out of the ghetto, rising to poetic superstardom. Too often his poetry is misunderstood and misquoted. During his career there were even crusades against him and his music by misinformed 'soccer moms' and power hungry congressmen, attempting to censor his storytelling. But his voice and message perservered beyond the persecution in songs like 'Only God Can Judge Me,' 'Keep ya Head Up,' 'Can't C Me' and countless others.Tupac's poetic rap continues to bring inspiration and hope to the struggles of the inner city. His struggle became a portrait of many of the problems of ghetto life, all for the entire listening public to witness. People loved him wherever he went, but there were people always gunning after him, wanting a piece of him, also like Billy the Kid.There were numerous attempts to end his life, this comes with the territory of being a famous thug. Consequently, he was shot on a several occassions, one which eventually took his life in a Las Vegas hospital. He was not a perfect man, but he was a leader of men. His words still echoe through ghettos and slums across the world. He lived a dangerous life in the new frontier of the inner city. Rising from the ghetto, to become a spokesman for ghetto life, he touched a great multitude of people.Some may still need convincing that Tupac was a great man, but they need only to listen to his music and read his poetry to find a better understanding of his genius. In this age of information, there are still 'concrete roses' that blossom from even the most dire situations. Tupac is an inspiration to millions, they too can come up and represent truth in our modern world. Out of the hardest struggles come the strongest people.One Love,staticfiends.com'This ghetto life has got me catchin' up to God quicker.''Don't take your life for granted. Put that ass in the dirt. You swear that bitch would plan it, my lyrics motivate the planet.''My lyrics are blue prints for money makin.''Please try to see, there'z a million mutha fuckaz stressin' just like me.''Now they label me a trouble maker, cause I'm a rider: death to you player haterz, don't let me finda ya. Mamma made me rugged, baptize the public, now ya'll are thugs, nigga, don't ya love it?'~ Tupac Amaru Shakur ~
Heroes:
Born Tupac Amaru Shakur in New York City he grew up primarily on the streets of Oakland, California. His first breakthrough in music came in 1991 as a member of the group Digital Underground. In the same year he recieved individual recognition for his album "2Pacalypse Now" - but this album was also the beginning of his notoriety as a leading figure of 'gangsta rap' with references to cop killing and sexual violence. His solo movie career also began in this year with Juice (1992), and in 1992 he co-starred with Janet Jackson in Poetic Justice (1993).But law confrontations were soon to come; a 15 day jail term in 1994 for assault and battery, and in 1995 a conviction for sexual assault of a female fan. He was released after serving 8 months pending an appeal, but following the Tyson vs Seldon fight in Las Vegas he was hit by four bullets while riding in a car driven by Death Row Records chief executive 'Marion "Suge" Knight' . His right lung was removed in emergency surgery, and after 6 days in a medical coma he died.Notorious 25-year-old gangsta rapper and actor Tupac Shakur was shot and killed before he had a chance to fulfill the promise of a successful career in both fields. He was born in New York City and his mother Afeni Shakur was a member of the Black Panther Party. Shakur spent much of his youth in Oakland, California where he first gained notice as a rapper in 1991 with the group Digital Underground. Later that year, he released a solo album 2Pacalypse Now. Filled with violent lyrics that promoted cop killing and misogyny, it earned both notoriety and acclaim for fans of the genre. Shakur began his acting career in the late '80s with an appearance on the television series A Different World. He made his feature film debut in 1992 with the film Juice and followed it up co-starring with Janet Jackson in Poetic Justice in 1993. Shakur had a certain charisma that always made him stand out in his films. This was especially true in Gridlock'd (1997) which proved that the versatile young artist had the makings of being a major star. Unfortunately, he was murdered during a drive-by shooting outside a Las Vegas hotel a few months before its release.Named after Tupac Amaru, the Inca Indian that was sentenced to death by Spaniards. Tupac Amaru, in the Inca Indian language, means "shining serpent".Wrote a song about his mother called "Dear Mama" while in prison.Son of black panther Afeni Shakur; grew up in Harlem, Baltimore and Marin County CaliforniaHe had the words 'Thug Life' tatooed across his abdomen.Dated Jada Pinkett SmithWas engaged to Kidada JonesWas going to play the role of Malik in Higher Learning (1995)Died on a Friday the 13th.More of his music has been released since his death than was while he was alive.Appeared in the Salt-N-Pepa video, "Whatta Man."Founding Member of the OutlawzUsed the name Makaveli which is an altered spelling of Machiavelli, about whom he read while in prison.In the song "Life Goes On" from the 'All Eyez on me' album, he raps about his own funeral.As a young man, Tupac also studied ballet and danceTupac is listed as the most successful gangsta rapper in 'The Guinness Book Of World Records'.Grew up in Baltimore, MarylandSon of Afeni ShakurJim Carrey was his favorite actor.Was cast in the movie Woo (1998), but was shot five days before principal photography began.He was offered a record contract at the age of 13. However, his mother refused to let him sign anything at such a young age. She felt he had a lot to learn about the world before joining the music industry.