The Rose That Grew From Concrete by Tupac Shakur

What is it about?

A collection of poems by Tupac Shakur, or 2Pac, which was published a few years after his death.

OK, but what is it really about?

Regarded by some as the most influential rapper of all times, Tupac Shakur’s life was tragically cut short in 1996, when he was shot four times in a drive-by shooting in Las Vegas. Pulitzer Prize-winning music journalist Chuck Philips wrote after his death: “[2Pac] helped elevate rap from a crude street fad to a complex art form, setting the stage for the current global hip-hop phenomenon. (…) The slaying silenced one of modern music’s most eloquent voices - a ghetto poet whose tales of urban alienation captivated young people of all races and backgrounds.”

Tupac was globally known as a hip hop artist, but perhaps lesser so as a poet. This poetry collection was published three years after his death by the Shakur Family Foundation and included never before seen poems, written in his own hand when he was a 19-year-old teenager.

Is it any good?

It was 24 years ago today that Tupac died of the gunshot wounds he had suffered six days earlier in the Las Vegas shooting. He was 25 years old. I was a teenager living in Tokyo back then and absolutely devastated when I heard the news because I had literally just been introduced to his music by my hip hop loving boyfriend, still deliciously oblivious about the East Coast-West Coast hip hop rivalry in the US. Only a couple of weeks before, we had sat together in his bedroom, listening to the album “Me Against The World” on a continuous loop.

I only found out later that Tupac also wrote poetry and was over the moon when I found this collection of his poems at a local bookstore - I regarded it as such a treasure that I took it with me everywhere I went for a while, and I still know a couple of the poems by heart.

Earlier this morning, when I saw on social media that today is the 24th anniversary of Tupac’s death, I picked it up again and began to take another close look at the poems. Some of them read like song lyrics, others feel like a mirror into his soul. Some are full of anger and rage, others convey hope and kindness. Through his poetry, Tupac reveals a raw and vulnerable side, an infectious energy and spirit, and at the same time, his work is a testament this multi-talented artist who would become one of the most successful hip hop stars of the 1990s.

Personally, however, re-reading these poems made me remember what it felt like to be young and rebellious and happy all at the same time. This whirlwind of emotions that can seem so overwhelming as a teenager, but is sorely missed later in life as it represents a period in life that is still filled with hope, naiveté and unparalleled passion.

Most memorable quote?

“The day u chose 2 leave me/ it rained constantly outside/ In truth I swore the rain 2 be/ The tears in Cupid’s eyes.”

Conclusion?

The poems in this collection offer personal thoughts on a myriad of different topics, written by a man who grew up in an environment that was often shattered by hatred and violence - which later led him to become a symbol of resistance against social and racial inequality. Some might argue this is only a book for fans - they may be right. But it could also introduce Tupac to an audience that could perhaps never really connect to the musician or the actor. Here, they have the chance to meet the man through his written honest and meaningful words. Tupac may not be Walt Whitman or Edgar Allan Poe, but his voice is an important one nonetheless.

Rest easy, Tupac.

AT A GLANCE

Title: The Rose That Grew From Concrete

Author: Tupac Shakur

Published by: Pocket Books (1999)

Pages: 156

Language: English