The Grammy Museum in Los Angelis pays homage to Tupac Amaru Shakur this week. On Monday the museum debuted its latest exhibition, dedicated to the late rap icon, dubbed All Eyez on Me: The Writings of Tupac Shakur. It explores Pac’s undeniable writing talent and manifests his strong legacy.
Bob Santelli, Executive Director of the GRAMMY Museum said:
“ Tupac Shakur was one of the most original and important of all hip hop artists. His writings are both powerful and provocative.
It is an honor to be the first music museum to acknowledge Tupac’s
legacy and to bring context to what was an incredible career.”
The exhibition also features artefacts from both his career breakthrough with Digital Underground and his solo career, such as his handwritten notes, lyrics and poems, the Versace suit worn by Tupac at the 38th Annual Grammy Awards as well as other outfits,
original tape box and studio notes from his first recording after his prison release, and rare interviews and performance footage.
Of course, Tupac’s mother, Afeni Shakur attended the opening:
“It means a lot to me that Bob Santelli and The Grammy Museum have chosen to honor my son with their upcoming exhibit of his works. Tupac’s writings are an honest reflection of his passions for, and about life. His timeless messages have instilled hope
for those who have little, and for others, they serve as a catalyst for change. His words continue to motivate and inspire new generations. The world is a better place because of him,” she said.
Other guests included the likes of Pac’s sister Sekyiwa Shakur, stepbrother Mopreme Shakur, YG and director John Singleton.
Speaking of YG, he also said a few words about Pac’s influence and contribution, explaining once he got old enough to understand his music, he figured out why some people feel like the late rapper was their father figure.
“ He was reading all these books, his raps were like poetry and all that, it makes you want to be better–at every level. Because I didn’t graduate high school, but now it’s like I want to go back to school. [*applause*] I was six when Tupac passed. My momma, she’s from Compton, so I grew up off of West coast music. So, Tupac– I’ve been hearing about Tupac, Snoop Dogg, and everybody but, it was like after he passed, I started seeing more of like the posters and
all that… When I got older, and started really listening to it [Tupac], it was like ‘oh, he’s really talking about stuff that I relate to’. He’s really talking about the black culture, you feel me? Not even about the west coast… Some people don’t have no father figures in their life, some people look at Tupac as their father figure, and they apply that to their life.”
Flip through photos from the exhibition in the gallery below or check it out at The Grammy Museum, LA, now through April 22nd.
