As I'm sure most of you would agree it's almost impossible to fathom that it has been ten years since the death of Tupac Shakur. I was 16 years old at the time. I had yet to start my path into the entertainment industry and was merely a fan of the music glued to music videos and music magazines. At the time, I wasn't the biggest Tupac Shakur fan. I must admit. I dug him but for me nobody came close to Biggie. I still remember the moment when I had found out Tupac died. I remember because I actually had VIBE open to a page with a brief article on 'Pac. My friend called and told me. Like most of you I was shocked because we had seen Tupac come back from so much before (including gunfire). But it was true. Tupac Shakur was gone.

After his death I began to delve deeper into the life and music of Tupac. To truly understand 'Pac was to understand that he never strived to be the dopest lyricist. He never really strived to become the ultimate Hip-Hop entrepreneur. It was obvious that Tupac felt he had a greater mission on earth, a need to touch the youth, change living conditions for those in the poorest situations, speak from his heart without concern for how it may affect his record sales (although it most always affected them in a positive direction). It's obvious that he knew his days on earth were numbered and made it a point to take advantage of every second of his life (something we all could learn from).

One of my favorite Tupac moments is from the "Tupac: Resurrection" DVD. It's a bonus feature and shows 'Pac being questioned by prison officials over a shooting of a highway patrol officer in which the shooter said 'Pac's music had influenced him to kill the officer. The person questioning 'Pac said "were you trying to get people to do things by listening to your music?" (obviously implying 'Pac was encouraging people to kill police officers through his music) to which he replied "yes". The person questioning said "what were you trying to get them to do?" and Tupac said "think". A truly powerful reply from one of the most influential, engaging and important figures in the history of Hip-Hop and music in general.

Many questions still remain surrounding the fatal night in Las Vegas where Shakur was shot multiple times while being driven down the strip by his label boss Suge Knight. But the most burning question that will never be answered is -- what if Tupac were alive today?


R.I.P. Tupac Amaru Shakur

Adam Aziz
Editor-in-Chief
HHNLive.com