The community of Hip Hop was in shock,
When we learned that within Sin City somebody shot the beloved Tupac,
Our culture was Gridlock’d,
The scene was more horrific than a tour featuring Slipknot,
And whether you believe it or not in 96 the internet did exist,
I was on AOL asking in the chatrooms A/S/L tryna holla if ya hear me,
At worldwide females, but I digress I’ll spare ya the details,
I could read well so I visited the blogs,
Only to discover something was goin horribly wrong,
I was told that if you hold your ear close to the speaker,
On the intro to Makaveli ya got me?
You’d a hear a mysteriously low voice proclaim “Suge Shot Me”,
That right there stopped me in my tracks,
I didn’t know how to respond or react,
Was something fishy afoot how did Pac predict that?
He must’ve had a premonition, at Spring Lake I would make everybody listen,
I even told the lady at the liquor store she’s forgiven,
She went home, he truly must have deeply felt alone,
I wonder sometimes did his rhymes reach God’s throne?
Was his struggle with right and wrong depicted in every song,
Somethin that grieved God’s Spirit or made Him sing along,
Cause if heaven gotta ghetto best believe Amaru is there,
I Ain’t Mad At Cha hope you got to walk up them golden stairs,
Made me realize as an adolescent that life isn’t fair,
I became aware of a new worldview,
The grass isn’t always greener when you walk a mile in someone else’s shoes,
Honestly your interviews spoke volumes more than your tunes,
And you did more for me than recommend marijuana and Hennessy,
Although fasho, best believe I partook,
Even started rocking bandanas experimenting with a new look,
I’m glad to say that phase slowly passed away,
But my senior class photo is where that nose ring stayed,
Although it looked pretty cool I must say,
Anyway my name is J. and I’m the brain that he sparked,
That will shine light in the dark with wise pearls,
That at some point and time will change the world.
UK label Def Pressé taps legendary New York hip-hop producer Blockhead for the fifth installment of their KPM Crate Diggers series. Bandcamp New & Notable May 5, 2024