New York has always been home of the brightest stars in American culture. Many were either born there or grew up in the city and often both. On June 16th, 1971, another legend would be added to that list, Tupac Shakur, son of Afeni Shakur,who was acquitted from the Panther 21 criminal trial a month earlier. The Panther 21 was a group of 21 members of the Black Panther Partywho were arrested on the accusation that they planned to bomb two New York police stations before being acquitted.
Tupac grew up in New York and moved to Baltimore in his teenage years, where he would attend the Baltimore School for the Arts. In 1988, Tupac would move to California to pursue his career in music, with his debut album being "2pacolypse Now". His album was very successful and made Shakur an icon of the west coast rap scene.
For nearly five years, Tupac Shakur was one of the most popular artists in the United States. His lyrics and viewpoints were controversial due to violent and radical beliefs but that seemed to make people love him more. During this period, Tupac collaborated with fellow west coast artists such as Dr. Dre and Eazy-E and was involved in controversies such as the shooting of two off duty police officers in self-defense and one of the biggest feuds in music.
Tupac Shakur was a focal point of the east/west coast rivalry with friend turned enemy, Christopher Wallace Jr., aka The Notorious B.I.G. The two started off as friends, but quickly became enemies as Wallace was suspected to be involved in the shooting and robbery of Tupac in 1994. Wallace released a diss track on Shakur, "Who Shot Ya?" While Shakur fired back with "Hit ‘Em up". Wallace signed to Bad Boy Records in New York while Shakur signed with Death Row Records in California.
On September 13th, 1996, Tupac Shakur died from gunshot wounds from only six days before. Christopher Wallace Jr. died nearly six months afterwards on March 9th, 1997. Many believed Wallace to have been involved in the death of Shakur, but whether Wallace had anything to do with Shakur’s death or not, Tupac left a legacy unlike any other and was respected by his fellow rappers, even east coast rappers such as Nasir Jones akaNAS, who stopped his concert when the news of Shakur’s death came out. Besides having millions of record sales, Tupac solidified his legacy with his lyrical talent, and his strong views about the global community that he frequently mentioned in his songs.
(Cover Photo via Biography.com)
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