Tupac ... enough's enough. (2Pac in general)

Member Name: Scrypt

Product:	2Pac in general
Date:	04/09/01 (103 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Great artist who sang from the heart

Disadvantages: No Longer with us, People prospering from his death

Tupac Amaru Shakur was a favourite artist of mine when he was alive and for sometime after his death. But of late I'm starting to think that the buying public is being conned?. And I'm not alone in this sentiment, its one being echoed by many others out there.

Tupac Shakur was a leading light of the West Coast Hip-Hop/Rap fraternity. At the height of his success, he alone was outselling the entire Bad Boy label - which included his archival Biggie Smalls. Much has been made since his death that this rivalry was to ultimately end Tupac's life, and some feel in retribution the life of Biggie Smalls. Whether that's the case or not, both artists have to be admired for the impact they made not only on their genre, but also on music and society the world over.

The records of Tupac show him maturing, starting out rather raw in 2Pacalypse, until his final studio album All Eyez on Me. On a personal level the All Eyez On Me album was nothing short of brilliant and showed Tupac at his lyrical best giving us everything form RnB inspired How Do You Want It featuring the voices of K-Ci and Jojo Hailey (ex Jodeci), to a duet with the much admired producer Dr Dre on California Love. One of the tracks which shows other less turbulent side of Tupac, and the range he had as an artist, was I Aint Mad At'cha. All in all it was a very accomplished album.

Sadly it would prove to be the last he would personally oversee as he was taken away tragically 4 yrs ago this month. The music industry lost someone who still had a lot to give and had probably only shown a minuscule amount of his talent. Indeed a film recorded just prior to his death - Gridlock - showed his potential as an actor.

After the death of Tupac it became apparent that there had been many recordings made whilst he was still alive that had yet to be released. Swiftly following his departure the R U Still Down album was released and boasted some fine tracks, but th
e album itself wasn't a patch on All Eyez. This is where my issues begin. The next album released was a Greatest Hits album and as a discography of an artist its truly a fine example of work. For those looking to invest in a single Tupac album, I would surely point then towards this album as it encompasses most of the major songs that he released during his lifetime.

Following on from this a further 2 double albums have been released bearing even more material from Tupac. This I find hard to believe. I cannot justify in my own mind that any single person would have that much material stored away. Some of the songs coming out are fair, such as the recent Broken Wings cover featuring RL from Next, but a lot seem to be lacking in the presence Tupac gave his songs. Theories I have heard relating to the release of 'his' new music stem from him not being killed and still recording, to someone with a similar voice releasing material under the pretence of being Tupac. Whatever the case, lets not see his memory tarnished as more and more poor quality is released as record companies reap the rewards knowing that anything bearing Tupac's name will sell to his fans.

Let his music be remembered for what it was ? and let it not be a case of commercialism prospering on the death of an individual.

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