Last week the long awaited bio drama about the life and legacy of Lessane Parrish Crooks, better known as Tupac Shakur, was released in theaters. For nearly two decades Tupac fans and hip hop heads have been clamoring and waiting impatiently for this moment. Given the high level of anticipation it’s hard to imagine how the biopic can live up to expectations. It’s only been a few days since its release and already criticism and praise of the film has come fast and furious.
Film Director John Singleton said “the movie is disrespectful to the legacy of Shakur.” Jada Pickett Smith a longtime friend and romantic partner of Shakur said parts of the film “were deeply hurtful” and rapper 50 cent, never one to hold his tongue, bluntly said the movie “was some bullshit…"
On the other hand, the film “All Eyez on Me”, titled after Shakur’s classic 1996 album, has received a fair amount of praise as well. Hip hop mogul Diddy called the film “moving” and rapper the Game said “the movie is the real deal.” And popular LA radio personality Devi Brown said the film “honors Tupac's legacy perfectly. You can feel God working thru L.T (the film’s producer), Benny (the film’s director) & Demetrius (the actor who plays the role of Tupac) to tell this story in each moment.”
In my opinion, having recently seen the film, I say it is definitely worthy of both celebration and critique. I think critics who say the screenplay could have been better and that the production was basic and at times clumsy have a point. But on the positive side, though I’m not quite with Devi Brown in feeling “God was working thru” the filmmakers. I feel that the biopic creatively told an interesting story about how Tupac saw himself as an entertainer and social prophet of sorts.
Arguably, this is the film’s biggest accomplishment. By depicting Tupac as a highly talented and socially conscious artist with revolutionary inclinations, the filmmakers effectively connected Shakur’s story to many of the social issues challenging Black Americas today. In particular, the life of Tupac as portrayed in the film speaks volumes to the movement to affirm the dignity and worth of black lives that is occurring in our country right now.
As the film shows, before Tupac developed the “thug life” rapper image toward the end of his life, he was a more socially conscious artist poetically speaking to issues of unjust criminalization and resultant anger, depression, and nihilism among the black urban poor. It’s this early Tupac (1987-1993) and his black power movement formation that I think speaks the most to the black lives matter movement today.
Though there are many things we could highlight from the film that relate to the Black lives matter movement I’m particularly interested in two issues:
Assata and Tupac’s Black Power Formation.
It’s strangely ironic that on the day that All Eyez on Me was released President Trump decided to announce his desire that Cuba extradite Assata Shakur (Tupac’s godmother) back to the United States. For those not familiar with Assata’s story she is accused of killing a New Jersey state trooper and escaping prison back in the 70’s; since 1984 she has lived in Cuba with political asylum.
As the film depicts, Tupac grew up around the radical black power movement as a result of his mother Alfeni Shakur’s involvement with the Black Panthers. This association is how Assata Shakur, who was also a Black Panther member, came to be his godmother. Moreover, this black power association is the main reason why Tupac’s earlier music carried a revolutionary, anti-racism and oppositional political tone.
Today, Assata and her black power message still carries a large cultural influence in certain circles within Black America and the BLM movement. Shirts displaying her picture and her name can routinely be seen in urban US cities highly populated with black people. This interest in Assata and the black power movement is due in no small part to the pro-black activist spirit that is growing every day among millennials. As long as this interest continues to grow among Black Americans the story of Tupac will remain alive and his legacy will be relevant to the black freedom struggle.
Tupac’s Opposition to Unjust Policing.
In the film, Tupac intervenes in a dispute where two white off duty cops are beating a black man on the streets of Atlanta. Eventually he is charged with shooting the cops but is later cleared because the cops were carrying illegal guns during the altercation. Also, in another police related controversy the film depicts when Vice President Dan Quayle pushed for Interscope Records to withdraw Tupac’s album "2pacalypse Now" from stores because it allegedly encouraged violence against police.
Both of these police related events from Tupac’s life are more than relevant to conversations happening in the black community today surrounding issues of excessive police force and racist policing. Very possibly, unjust criminalization and policing were the primary social issues raised in Tupac’s lyrics. This is why it could be argued that Tupac’s public stances against unjust policing can be seen a precursor to the current Black Lives Matter movement. Furthermore, this is also why Tupac’s voice has found an audience among many centennials who were born after his death.
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To be sure, the life and legacy of Tupac Shakur will continue to be debated for years to come. Some will celebrate him, some will criticize him and some others will want his memory to be forgotten. As for me, Tupac will always be the enlightened poet of the hood who loved his people enough to tell their story and support their freedom; and given the impunity that police still operate with to unjustly shoot blacks, we desperately need more voices like Tupac.