What Was Tupac Like In Real Life?

All the fans around the world recognize Tupac Shakur as the rap icon which he is, the idol of a few generations, the revolutionary, the star, the man with a free, wild and unbreakable mindset. Through his music, Pac delivered a clear image of himself for us to see. He was being real in everything he did and said. But there’s no doubt that at some point, every one of us once wondered what Tupac was like in real life, aside from the media and all the spotlights. 

Since his childhood days, his family was moving a lot and they changed several cities and areas in a short period, which for sure is hard for a kid, but still, Pac was described as a shy, sensitive and also a curious child, called by his friends – “Black Prince”.

His mother, the late Afeni Shakur, knew well that her son was meant for something big. In one of her interviews, she reveals why Pac was renamed shortly after he was born. 

“From childhood, everyone called him the “Black Prince”. I named him Tupac Amaru Shakur (Shining, Serpent, Blessed One). I wanted him to have the name of the revolutionary, indigenous people in the world. I wanted him to know he was part of a world culture and not just from a neighborhood,” Afeni said.

Behind “Holler If Ya Hear Me”, “Hellrazor”, “Hit ‘Em Up” and many more songs that kept Pac’s enemies awake for countless nights, there’s another side of the legendary rap star. A side where his good heart shows up, but not for the media or the news, it shows up for the people.  

On October 14, 1993, a boy named Joshua Torres, who was suffering from Muscular Dystrophy that led to a Cardiomyopathy (Enlargement of the heart) had one wish – to meet Tupac Shakur. In an open letter to Judge G. Wu, Joshua’s parents reveal what Tupac did for their son and their family in a moment that can be hardly described in words. 

Joshua’s mother reached out to the Make-A-Wish Foundation in order to fulfill her dying son’s wish but with no success. The young boy’s parents then called a radio station, which helped them to reach out to Tupac. The letter says that 30 minutes later, Pac called them on the phone and spoke with the young boy for 15 minutes. Later that evening (October 14, 1993) Tupac arrived at the Torres’ home and spend nearly an hour with Joshua.

“Holding him and comforting him as much as possible and expressing lots of sympathy for our son Joshua,” the letter reads. 

Joshua Torres passes away nearly 45 minutes after Tupac left his home. The appreciation and gratitude of the parents is something that can’t be measured but for sure it shows what a big heart Tupac had and it shows the amazing person he was. 

Another amazing story happened In June 1996. After hearing that Lemika (Frank Alexander’s niece) got injured following a car accident, Pac invites her and her family for a 2 days-long visit and lets them join him on the set of “Gridlock’d” movie as well as in the studio for the recording session of “Why U Turn On Me” and “Reincarnation” tracks. 

Having the above mentioned in mind, it’s clear that Tupac was at some point a workaholic in real life. Who else does that really? Recording 2 new tracks in the studio and doing a video shoot for a Hollywood production…in the spawn of just 2 days. 

This example shows Tupac’s real way of work, motivation, and discipline. Dropping a new song seems like a hard job for some of today’s generation rappers. Now imagine how Tupac did around 500 songs in just 4 years (excluding the year he was in prison).   

Despite being on top of the rap game, Tupac was never afraid to show his feelings. From the so-called “real life” he passed those feelings into his art. His love for women is something that really affected his music for good. From his love for his mother and sister to his love for his girlfriends, Pac was inspired by women for some of his greatest songs.

His love for women was expressed through his music, poems and even drawings. Pac loved to spend his time surrounded by women and he didn’t lack attention from women as well. His respect and love for the ladies are well projected into some of his songs.

During his life, which escalated quickly from the ghetto to the top of the hip-hop industry and not only, 2Pac showed us that he didn’t allow all the money, power and fame to make him forget where he was coming from. Because of his loyalty, he never let down on his origins and he never turned back on his friends and family. 

We can say that one of the most important things for the late rap phenomenon in real life was his friends, the people that he really cared for. One of his strongest friendships was with the late Stretch (1968 -1995). However, their friendship didn’t last long. Both met in 1992 forming a strong friendship as they were inseparable until the day of November 30, 1994. 

Pac was a man of his beliefs and one thing couldn’t stand was the betrayal. Shortly after the Quad Studios shooting on November 30, 1994, after putting the puzzle pieces together, Tupac felt like Stretch was aware of the shooting and he (Stretch) knew about the ambush that happened on that night. Feeling betrayed by one of his best friends probably was the thing that hurt Pac the most. That led to them breaking ties and never meeting again.

In conclusion, Tupac’s character was deeper than it shows. In real life, Tupac was not any different from what we heard in his eternal music catalog and that’s because he was being real all the time and his art reflected his incredible personality.