On this day June 16th, 1971 a force was born in East Harlem, NY. He would grow to call himself Tupac, then Makaveli and live forever on the Mt. Rushmore of a Culture, Music, and voice of a restless generation. He was also a phuckin goofball!
“Thug Life” reppin, Death Row, Bad-Boy-Killin, Outlaw is out with MTV for an on-location interview around Los Angeles. When suddenly he spots danger via a familiar killer mean mug from a… BABY. Can’t blame him, though. Chappelle admitted years later, that you only see this in the worst neighborhoods. Watch his reaction and ensuing plea:
This time shooting a promo-spot for the classic Yo MTV Raps. Host Ed Lover is in the background giving pointers, but Pac believes they’re re-casting Scarface. Fun-Fact: Pac was quite the thespian himself, and went to art school where stage-acting was part of the gig. So, he can’t help himself when its reppin time:
You may know him for the infamous “Practice Rant“. Sure, that might be the defining clip that sports and pop culture has chosen to go with. But, that’s as fitting of a description of the man’s legacy as summing up President Bill Clinton’s two terms in office with the”I did NOT have sexual relations with that woman” clip on loops everytime he’s mentioned. You’re missing why and how significant the man was to his trade at the time he was active, and the impact he left behind.
That impact resonates to this day in how today’s best NBA Player talks about my favorite of all time pictured above. I’m doomed in 6ixers fandom forever, because of that 2001 Playoffs I watched him, Dikembe, and Larry Brown drag scrubs to the finals against Kobe, Shaq, and Big Phil. Feel free to instagram search “Allen Iverson” to see the pop culture impact AI had on the NBA image-wise from the cornrows, to the tattoos that today seem all too much the norm. Watch Russell Westbrook, 2008 Rajon Rondo, and Kyrie Irving (hopefully next season, since he’s out for his first finals) to see guys who have emulated the tenacity, hard-drive, and relentless doggishness of the point guard position. Like AI – but, perhaps not to such a degree – these guys have paid dearly for that hard play with crippling injuries as they put the team on their respective backs.
Before Run The Jewels was tearing up the festival circuit, there was a solo rapper by the name of Killer Mike who ran with the dungeon family (an Atlanta collective including Cee-Lo’s Goodie Mob, Outkast, and the Sleepy Brown amongst others). Before the millenia of Outkast hiatus, they were arguably the best 1-2 punch in Hip Hop History. But long before all that, on this day of May 27th of some year I could easily research but clearly opted not to an ATLien was beamed onto the Southern half of these United States of planet Earth
He had impeccable wit, out of this world 😉 [get it Ben? Coz he’s an Alien in this piece? Ya Get it?] style, and finesse with words that many have wished to emulate, but no mere humans could duplicate or match. He was bequithed an earth name “Andre Benjamin” to be exact, but would opt for 3 stacks (perhaps a clue to him being 3000 years ahead of all of us). The Whole.World.Loves it when you make that sound! May your home-planet leave you among us for a few more moments and a chance at more funky blues and/or whatever you decide to belch out until then. Happy Dre-Day, 3 Stacks!
Ben and Siya Blog Shit 