So, who’s the next Tupac?
I’ve never been one to look for the next anything. Seems a futile mission, especially as nostalgia begins to obscure good sense. But still, where is the next Pac?
I ask that because it hit me a few minutes ago — how influential has Tupac really been?
Who do you hear that just drips with Pac’s influence? I hear him in T.I. I hear him a bit in Weezy.
But when I hear younger cats, I wonder if they’ve listened to a single Pac album.
So really, how influential has Tupac’s music been?
The only thing I hear is the de-emphasis of metaphor. I wish they would have soaked up some other part of Pac’s game.
I’m curious to see if I’m the only person that sees this. Unfortunately, I’m not able to quite explain what I mean. I think you know, though.
4 thoughts on “Have we made too much of Pac?”
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As much as I love/loved Tupac, I find his music pretty overrated. There’s not a single album that I can listen to all the way through. R U Still Down?(Remember Me) is the closest. Disc 1 of that album is his greatest, IMO. Especially Fuck All Y’all. Easily my favorite Pac song. In fact, I’m gonna cue that record up in a few minutes.
To me, Tupac’s biggest legacies were the creation of his persona and media savvy.
It’s hard to argue that the rappers of today didn’t look at Tupac plastered all over the TV screens and magazines and go “I want that.”
In terms of actual emceeing, I dunno. Your point stands.
WHO CARES WHO THE NEXT PAC IS?
Man…I can tell that a lot of kats weren’t really feeling and bumping Pac when he was alive. Most folks started giving Pac a look after his death, which unfortunately were leftovers. Me against the World and Machiavelli were easily two albums that you can bump front to back, in paticular the Me Against the World. Pac’s legacy unfortunately is the whole notion of Thug Life. Before Pac, most rapper fell into 2 categories: gangster or back pack/conscius. Pac was able to meld the two with conscious, yet equally as hardcore topics of discussion. Pac was also the first real “artist”. Pac was a trained thespian who was actually equally gifted as an actor as he was as a musiciian. Granted, he did a couple of crappy movies for the loot when he was first released, but if you watch Poetic Justice and even Juice, you can see his gifts. I think Pac was the victim of the Imperialist conquerer/American/J. Edgar Hoover doctrine of taking out the Black Messiah or indigenous leaders of the people. Pac was taken out before he ever had a real chance to mature as a man. He was only 25 at the time of his death. If you are honest with yourselves how many of you hold true to the same views that you held at the tender age of 25? He accomplished so much in his short life without the guidance of a father, which cannot be discounted. Pac was easily the most influential rapper of our time. You can hear his influence in Jay -Z, 50 Cent, TI, Jeezy, Weezy and any rapper out. The double album, crossing over as an actor, stage name and an alias and his relentless work ethic. Pac easily set the standard and it has yet to be duplicated.
D-Nunn