Tupac's memoir

Chapter 10

MY MUSIC

My intention with my music

Mohamed Abousen 11

            “Nigga”. That one word that every white person is afraid of. Most black people are afraid of it to, even im afraid of it. The thing is, that word means everything. That word is what separates our music to the white people music. It’s what revolutionized hip-hop. Even though I am afraid of it, I still use it in my raps because its what connects me with my people. I use AAVE because it how I speak with my brothers and sisters and NOT because I’m a gangster like the media and people who are brainwashed by the media pictures me as. I try to connect to my people and that’s the way I do it. I honestly don’t really care about the media, you learn not to. I do my raps for my brothers and sisters in the everyday struggle and not for the media. This is for the media to read. This is to show the world what I really meant with my music. 

I never started off living the street life. I had a stable life with my mama, which I mention in the song “Dear Mama”. I went lived in Baltimore and went to the Baltimore school of Arts where I studied drama and poetry. The thing is my mama didn’t really have a stable job, and a while later I was kicked out from my house and my mama sent me to go live with my family friend. That’s when I got introduced to the thug life. In my song “Dear Mama” I mention “suspended from school and scared to go home, I was a fool with the big boys breaking all the rules”. What I am trying to say here is that I was in with the wrong crowed. That’s how it all starts for everyone they join the wrong crowd. I used to get into a lot of trouble in school hanging out the street boys. “And who’d thing elementary, hey , id see the penitentiary one day, and running from the police that’s write, mama catch me put a whooping to my backside”. Also recited from “Dear Mama” I explain how I used to live in Baltimore went to the school of arts and I thought I had my life quite set, never had I thought that I would go to jail for a year for sexual assault, which to tell you the truth I wasn’t guilty for, there was no proof of the seamen, not proof of the entry no proof of anything. After I started going out to the streets and experiencing the thug life when I moved in with my family friends. My homie and me used to always be running from the cops. Only bad thing about it is that some times we used to get caught, but of course as they say in the hood, you f*** around you f*** around you f*** around you get burnt. My parents were activists in the Black Panther. Huey P. Newton was the founder of the black panthers. He always used to tell us to fight back and not sit down and watch our brothers get discriminated. 5 years ago Huey got shot by a drug dealer which I mention in my song changes “Its time to fight back that’s what Huey said, two shots in the dark now Huey’s dead”. I love Huey for everything he has done for the black community but I believe that we should learn to live with white people not fight against them.

I got a lot of love for my brothers don’t get me wrong, but the last thing we should do is fix our problems through stealing and taking drugs. That’s what ticks me off is that if  couple of black people steal then all black people steal and do drugs, if a couple of white people steal “its okay they were hungry”. “Changes” was my timely meditation on racism, drugs, class, and politics. Y’all know about the Iran-Contra affair when the police planted drugs on some black homeless lady?? I mention this in the song saying “First ship ‘em dope watch them deal to brothers, Give em guns step back watch em kill each other” The police don’t care if black people kill other black people, its like I said in the song “One less hungry mouth on the welfare”. I wrote changes to show the people what is actually happening in the world. Made this to wake them up, but I guess no body gives a crap ey. One of my other really famous song which is all about my brothers in the hood is “My Block”. I use so many significant lyrics that refer to my brothers in the everyday struggle. (Read full lyrics on this website http://rap.genius.com/2pac-my-block-lyrics) “Tear drops and closed caskets, the three strikes law is drastic, and certain death for us ghetto bastards” What I meant in these couple of lyrics is that many youngsters are dying in the ghetto and mothers are always crying. No mother should be alive to see their kid die. I believe that this three strikes law bull shit is just another way to put us black people and minorities in jail. They basically want all us fatherless black boys of the streets. The thing is its not only cops versus black people but its black on black crime aswell. I mentioned in the song that I fear for my life being black.

All these songs and meaningful lyrics that I wrote for my brothers in the ghetto but you forget all that and look at me in disgust because I smoke weed and got thug life tattooed on my stomach. Shame on all y’all people.

***************

Rational: I chose to make a memoir so that people could see how Tupac influence the hip-hop and black culture from his point of view. My intended audience are Tupac fans and people who criticize Tupac for being a bad role model and accusing him for being a gangster and a thug. My purpose is to teach readers about Tupac’s influence of the black community and hip hop culture from his point of view.  Tupac grew up living in the hard ships of racism, drugs and gang wars. He was even born in jail since his mother was in jail when she gave birth to him. His music reflects on the life he lives and the life of the other African Americans living with the same hard ships. African Americans living in the 90’s lived through the era of when Hip-Hop was at its peek, but so were drug dealing, racism, gang wars/ murder and killing. The text refers to my understanding of culture and Tupac’s influence of the black culture.    

TUPAC MEMOIR

MY MUSIC

Mohamed Abousen 11

            My name is Tupac Shakur. Most of y’all know me as that the gangsta that was shot 5 times and robbed in New York. Or that black man that swears in his music, or even that rapper that talks about money, weed, and women. Well, I just wanted to let you know that…. that’s not me. If there is one thing you have to learn in life and I mention it a lot in my music. It’s that you should never judge anyone before you get to know them or his or her story. You see ladies and gentlemen, only god can judge me, not some man behind a camera. What pisses me off the most is the fact that you think my music is full of hatred and aggression. Aggression maybe, but that is only because I’m sick and tired and angry as hell at you ignorant people. I’m sick of the critics, the lying magazines, and the so-called charities that for some reason you think are going to help our community. Most of all, I am so ticked off at the government. The government is supposed to be helping us, but on the contrary, they are discriminating against us, like we don’t got enough discrimination already. Taxis don’t stop for black people, black people cant really get s real job if you from the hood, if you’re a black man at the grocery you automatically are going to steal something. Black man smoke weed, 2 years , white man smokes weed, probation. Come on man don’t you get bored?? Its getting a bit old don’t you think?? Is been around a hundred years since the civil war and you still don’t get it ?? The thing is, even if I talk about it in my raps for some reason they call me a gangster?? I’m tired , I’m just tired.

I never started off living the street life. I had a stable life with my mama, which I mention in the song “Dear Mama”. I went lived in Baltimore and went to the Baltimore school of Arts where I studied drama and poetry. The thing is my mama didn’t really have a stable job, and a while later I was kicked out from my house and my mama sent me to go live with my family friend. That’s when I got introduced to the thug life. In my song “Dear Mama” I mention “suspended from school and scared to go home, I was a fool with the big boys breaking all the rules”. What I am trying to say here is that I was in with the wrong crowed. That’s how it all starts for everyone they join the wrong crowd. I used to get into a lot of trouble in school hanging out the street boys. “And who’d thing elementary, hey , id see the penitentiary one day, and running from the police that’s write, mama catch me put a whooping to my backside”. Also recited from “Dear Mama” I explain how I used to live in Baltimore went to the school of arts and I thought I had my life quite set, never had I thought that I would go to jail for a year for sexual assault, which to tell you the truth I wasn’t guilty for, there was no proof of the seamen, not proof of the entry no proof of anything. After I started going out to the streets and experiencing the thug life when I moved in with my family friends. My homie and me used to always be running from the cops. Only bad thing about it is that some times we used to get caught, but of course as they say in the hood, you f*** around you f*** around you f*** around you get burnt. My parents were activists in the Black Panther. Huey P. Newton was the founder of the black panthers. He always used to tell us to fight back and not sit down and watch our brothers get discriminated. 5 years ago Huey got shot by a drug dealer which I mention in my song changes “Its time to fight back that’s what Huey said, two shots in the dark now Huey’s dead”. I love Huey for everything he has done for the black community but I believe that we should learn to live with white people not fight against them.

I got a lot of love for my brothers don’t get me wrong, but the last thing we should do is fix our problems through stealing and taking drugs. That’s what ticks me off is that if  couple of black people steal then all black people steal and do drugs, if a couple of white people steal “its okay they were hungry”. “Changes” was my timely meditation on racism, drugs, class, and politics. Y’all know about the Iran-Contra affair when the police planted drugs on some black homeless lady?? I mention this in the song saying “First ship ‘em dope watch them deal to brothers, Give em guns step back watch em kill each other” The police don’t care if black people kill other black people, its like I said in the song “One less hungry mouth on the welfare”. I wrote changes to show the people what is actually happening in the world. Made this to wake them up, but I guess no body gives a crap ey. One of my other really famous song which is all about my brothers in the hood is “My Block”. I use so many significant lyrics that refer to my brothers in the everyday struggle. (Read full lyrics on this website http://rap.genius.com/2pac-my-block-lyrics) “Tear drops and closed caskets, the three strikes law is drastic, and certain death for us ghetto bastards” What I meant in these couple of lyrics is that many youngsters are dying in the ghetto and mothers are always crying. No mother should be alive to see their kid die. I believe that this three strikes law bull shit is just another way to put us black people and minorities in jail. They basically want all us fatherless black boys of the streets. The thing is its not only cops versus black people but its black on black crime aswell. I mentioned in the song that I fear for my life being black.

All these songs and meaningful lyrics that I wrote for my brothers in the ghetto but you forget all that and look at me in disgust because I smoke weed and got thug life tattooed on my stomach. Shame on all y’all people.

***************

Rational: I chose to make a memoir so that people could see how Tupac influence the hip-hop and black culture from his point of view. My intended audience are Tupac fans and and people who criticize Tupac for being a bad role model and accusing him for being a gangster and a thug. My purpose is to teach readers about Tupac’s influence of the black community and hip hop culture from his point of view.  Tupac grew up living in the hard ships of racism, drugs and gang wars. He was even born in jail since his mother was in jail when she gave birth to him. His music reflects on the life he lives and the life of the other African Americans living with the same hard ships. African Americans living in the 90’s lived through the era of when Hip-Hop was at its peek, but so were drug dealing, racism, gang wars/ murder and killing. The text refers to my understanding of culture and Tupac’s influence of the black culture.    

Article Response

Why a Bindi is Not and Example of C.A 

   6 October 2014

 Dear Editor,
I just read your article about why when a white person or white girl wears a Bindi, it is not an example of cultural appropriation. I agree that cultural appropriation is when adopting a specific part of one culture to another cultural group. I disagree though that you think eating sushi or wearing denim jeans or drinking tea is a culture appropriation , because a white girl wearing a bindi at Coachella is different than an arab male wearing denim jeans which is American , or an african american eating sushi for dinner. The reason for that is because a bindi is more of a religious hindu meaning. Its has more of a religious meaning to hindus than wearing denim jeans is to Americans or listening to Brahm's lullaby to Germans.

I actually agree that the big deal with cultural appropriation is when the new adoption is void of the significance that it was supposed to have and that it strips the religious, historical and cultural context of something and makes it mass-marketable. That's pretty offensive. The thing is believe that if and Indian allows another white person to wear the Bindi then its alright and shouldn't be frowned upon. 

For exmaple in this country, the henna tattoo has a cultural significance in the U.A.E. Yet if you go on a desert safari, anyone can get a henna tattoo from a local tattoo artist. The only way a local could get a little bit offensive is if a man gets a henna tattoo.