Abstract
Tupac Shakur was a poet, an actor and the voice of a generation. He was able to make movies and videos, write and record music, and still found time to write remarkable poetry before his untimely death. His poetry was only published after his death in a collection of over 100 poems titled autobiographically 'The Rose That Grew From Concrete.' This paper includes an excerpt of the said poem as well as an analysis of the themes and literary tools used.

From the Paper
" Every era has its classically wonderful artists. Every now and then, there is an artist who truly surprises everyone and breaks barriers for every category of artist that existed before he or she. For our time, that surprisingly (or not so surprisingly to some) talented artist is one Tupac Amaru Shakur. Tupac Amaru are Inca words that mean Shining Serpent. Shakur means thankful to God in Arabic. He was a person who is and was thought of as only an unruly gang-related thug. Although he referred to himself as a thug, he once stated in an interview "you know I'm a business man because you only find me at my places of business." His places of business were the recording studio or on the set of a movie or video."

Tags:artist, humanities, Tupac, Amaru, Shakur, Arabic, poetry, Inca, gang-related, rapper

Abstract
The paper looks at the African American rapper, Tupac Shakur. It gives a critique of the 2003 MTV documentary of his life and premature death and also examines the themes that run through this programme.

From the Paper
"Tupac Resurrection is an MTV funded 2003 documentary in a long line of posthumous examinations of rapper Tupac Shakur, murdered at age 25 in 1996. The documentary is distinctive in that having its subject as the narrator, it provides surprising depth on the topics of Tupac's childhood his upbringing his celebrity his run-ins with the law and his opinions on every topic under the sun."

Tags:tupac, shakur, documentary

Abstract
This paper is a review of "The Rose that Grew from Concrete." The author reviews a collection of poems by Tupak Shakur, the rapper who died young under tragic circumstances. The collection of 100 autobiographical poems are used to demonstrate Skakur's background. This compilation serves as a commentary on the life that he and so many of today's black youth had come from, gangs, drugs and the concrete jungle.

From the Paper
"First, this symbolic and metaphorical poem presents the image of a rose growing from a crack in the concrete, where one would normally see a few stray weeds or on a busy street nothing at all. Everyone has seen little weeds that sprout up between the cracks in the sidewalk, maybe even a dandelion or blade of grass, but this poem depicts an elegant and gorgeous rose, and implied vivid red petals and perhaps thorns, sprouting up from between the cracks, which when taken on face value seems somewhat nonsensical. However, if one carefully examines these first two lines and takes into account the autobiographical nature of this poem they will see that what Tupak is saying is that he is a rose who has not been given the opportunity to grow and in it's beauty is somewhat out of place but, despite that continues to grow from between the cracks in the concrete. With his "thorns" inevitably created as a product of his environment Tupak has been able to flourish where no one else he knew could, as has this exquisite rose. This is a very beautiful line because it shows that in the midst of our forest of stone something beautiful can still strive."

Tags:concrete, gangs, drug, artist, rapper, dreams, rose, poetry, shakur, poetry, violence, death

Abstract
This paper discusses the existentialist tendencies in the music of hip-hop artist Tupac Shakur. A brief biography of Tupac is included here, as well as a discussion on the meaning of existentialism. Several of Tupac's songs are examined for traces of existentialist thought.

Abstract
This paper examines the philosophical, intellectual, and poetic nature of Tupac Shakur's and Bob Marley's work, as well as the political and social influence of their music. The paper describes each artist's background and illustrates how Marley's music expressed the social unrest and the spiritualism of Jamaica, while Shakur's music expressed the social issues and emotions of ghetto life in the United States.

From the Paper
"Music is one of the oldest art forms. Every culture has used music to not only create mood and celebration, but to relate and express feelings and ideas. Most of us can easily strike images of laborers singing while they worked, tribes beating drums before a hunt or battle, bugles sounding as soldiers charge in attack, and love-sick poets declaring their ardor. Music has also been used as an expression of spiritualism, as well as personal ideals. In recent history, beginning in the mid-1960's, music became a voice and spokesman for many to express political views, especially concerning the United States involvement in Vietnam. Folk and rock musicians wrote music and songs protesting the war and politics of the time."

Tags:music, musicians, rap, hip-hop, reggae, rastafarian, jamaica, bronx, ghetto

Abstract
This paper presents a a rhetorical analysis of the documentary "Tupac Resurrection". The paper analyzes the techniques used by the film director, Tupac's mother, Afeni Shakur,in order to make Tupac more of a symbol than a human being.

From the Paper
"The documentary Tupac Resurrection discusses the controversial short-lived life and death of the late rapper Tupac Shakur. His life is notorious due to the drama his music and message has left not only on the hip-hop community, but also the world. The movie also uses instances of how Shakur grew up in hard times and elevated to the role model he was before he passed away. Of course since this documentary hit the box offices and was a feature film, it was targeted to the American people to see a different side of Tupac Shakur. Ironically, Tupac narrates the film with the use of old footage and past interviews to take a first person feel of Tupac's life and death. But more over, since this film was also directed and commentated by Afeni Shakur, Tupac's mother, it is directed to the audience of pro Tupac fans. This also entails that the documentary is somewhat one-sided and missing an outside perspective. With Afeni as the backbone of the project, Tupac as portrayed with the utmost respect and prestige. Through various narrative strategies, patterns, and music the director sets forth a positive outlook on the life of Tupac Shakur."

Tags:gentle, mood, soft, las, vegas, killed, fast, speed, flamingo, koval, streets, car, bullet, shots

Abstract
This research paper focuses on Will Smith and Tupac Shakur's lifestyles of growing up and shows a positive and negative link with the music they produce. It includes certain studies done on the subject and their conclusions. It studies each of these rappers and their historical achievements. It also includes an analysis of their images and the way they have influenced society.

From the Paper
"Interviews with more then 400 blacks between the ages of 13-18 in New York, Washington D.C. and Philadelphia were conducted in 1992. The results were that 97 percent listen to rap and also believe that rap is partly to blame for promiscuity, violence and risk-taking (Williams 1). Will Smith and Tupac Shakur are both well-known rappers, but the two men's childhoods, musical styles and attitudes toward rap are completely different. These points of comparison will show what a positive rapper and a negative rapper are."

Tags:african, american, black, childhood, gangsta, gangster, hood, music, musical, profanity, rap, rapper, thug, violence

Abstract
This paper explains that Assata Shakur's "Assata: An Autobiography" relates her experiences as an activist with the Black Panthers. The author points out her imprisonment as an accomplice to murder. The paper recounts the racism of police officers and cites Assata Shakur's courage.

From the Paper
"In Assata Shakur's "Assata: An Autobiography"-- African American activist and Blank Panther member-- Assata Shakur reveals her involvement with Black nationalist organizers and their leaders. Her experiences leading an activist's life demonstrates courage and determination."

Tags:African Americans, racism, prejudice, Black Panthers, activism, violence, prison

From the Paper
"John Lennon (1940-1980) and Tupac Shakur (1971-1996) had a number of things in common and a comparison of their thought reveals that what appear to be the greatest differences between them are, in fact, rather similar responses to the world's social problems. Both were artists who achieved enormous early success and were murdered when they were quite young. Both protested, to some degree, the conditions of society and urged their legions of fans to look more carefully at what they were being told by the dominant forces in society. But neither man ever achieved his full potential in terms of what he could do to change the world for the better because each was torn by a high level of ambiguity over the possibility of genuine change and because neither saw himself as a leader. Each of these artists became somewhat trapped by his own success and although there was a great deal to.."