Tupac Protest

Throughout the song, Tupac gives an inside look on the social problems affecting African-Americans and suggests possible solutions. In the first stanza of the song, Tupac first talks about how certain social issues are linked together; he makes a correlation between his skin color and being poor. Tupac says “I'm tired of bein' poor and even worse I'm black.” Then he explains how poverty causes crime by saying “My stomach hurts, so I'm lookin' for a purse to snatch.” And finally, he demonstrates the relationship between police brutality and race by saying “Cops give a damn about a negro? Pull the trigger, kill a nigga, he's a hero.”

To help understand Tupac’s poem, you must grasp yourself around the image of a very young boy, who has no father, grew up in the rougher parts of New York, and was barely supported by his mother.

Social protest is connected in many songs that people hear today from Hip Hop to R&B music. Social protest is a protest in the world that covers many subjects like from racism to social profiling and many more. Artists tend to make songs with something that have to do with social protest because they will hear something that will actually make them feel some type of way. Many artists explaining their side of the story and how they feel about the chaos that happening in today world through writing music about it.

Rap music has become one of the most distinctive and controversial music genres of the past few decades. A major part of hip hop culture, rap, discusses the experiences and standards of living of people in different situations ranging from racial stereotyping to struggle for survival in poor, violent conditions. Rap music is a vocal protest for the people oppressed by these things. Most people know that rap is not only music to dance and party to, but a significant form of expression. It is a source of information that describes the rage of people facing growing oppression, declining opportunities for advancement, changing moods on the streets, and everyday survival. Its distinct sound, images, and attitude are notorious to people of all

Social Justice is a huge topic in our society. Its touches on important subjects such as labor laws, environmental rights (racism), poverty, etc. These topics are things that many people have views on whether they agree or disagree. Many artist took note of this and made songs about this and voiced what they thought was right or how they saw the act.

To gaze into the lyrics of both Notorious B.I.G. and Tupac Shakur is like living in the ghettos of New York City where violence never stops. Both of these artists grew up seeing and living a life filled with violence. Gunshots and drive-byes, death and murder were a daily occurrence. Although the lyrics of both artists are simply telling their life stories and how hard it was to grow up in their “hoods” they contain vulgar, hateful, and sexual verses that send the wrong message to their listeners. Whether these listeners are teens or adults, white or black, they are continually sending notions of hatred and fear through their lyrics and actions. Ultimately,

Through songs many people express their feelings of the world threw the words they have wrote. Many songs talk about civil rights of the people and how change should be an option. In the world we live in today we have social issues that people have to face such as: police brutality, racial profiling, discrimination etc. Through Kendrick Lamar, Public Enemy, The Game, Bebe Winans, and N.W.A they will use their voice as a weapon for change among all people. Music with a message thrives in a live setting, for obvious reasons, and many politically conscious musicians aim to channel the heightened emotions

Independently, Shakur’s lyrics suggest the inequalities he has experienced throughout his life and of his race in general. In the first verse, Shakur expresses his upbringing without a father and the struggles with the racial tension in his neighborhood. He implies that he has been pushed into a world of violence and crime because of his low socioeconomic status. He states that peace can only be attained if the African Americans are offered a place in the society. The second verse focuses upon the broader oppression of the black body where he addresses the police violence and inequalities of the system. His lyric analyzes the violence in the streets and the fear of police officers that are willing to shoot him because he appears threatening. Finally, the third verse expresses that he is still waiting on things to change, yet the answer is not present. The greater meaning to his

One way that Tupac highlights the issue of poverty in “Changes” is in the 2nd and 3rd line of the song when he states “Is life worth living? Should I blast myself? I’m tired being poor and even worse I’m black”. In these 2 lines 2pac uses a rhetorical question in the 2nd line of the song by questioning the worth of his life due to the poverty that he, like many other African American’s, go through on a day to day basis. By highlighting such a sensitive topic 2pac hopes to have an emotional effect on the listener. As well is this it uses emotive language that is simple to understand namely the phrase “I’m tired of being poor”, this line allows listeners to see the side of Tupac that is fed up with the

One of Eithe Quinn's main points in her essay about Tupac Shakur's paranoid style is the structural oppression against African Americans that Tupac showcases through his music. In 2Pacalypse Now, his first solo album released in 1991, Tupac's lyrics point out "the racist and exploitative social order"-specifically calling out the law enforcement. This is part of what Eithe Quinn deems as Tupac's "paranoid spokesperson phase." Quinn pays special attention to Tupac's single "Trapped," of the aforementioned album, brings up the issue of the increased incarceration of young African American men. The track links psychological entrapment with social entrapment.

This song had a large impact on women in the year of 1993. It talked about the wrongdoings that African American men have done towards women and how we need to stand up and protect our women. This song was very effective, and led to the decrease of violent relationships in black communities. Because of Tupac, people got to see and realize how he felt on the subject of women. Tupac felt that black communities needed to come together to end this in their own community.

Through this verse Tupac highlights the fact that poverty has affected the African American community to the point that it has let some of them to commit illegal acts. He expresses the idea that being

The America in Tupac’s eyes was a nation terrified of changes. In the song, it went “It’s time to fight back, that’s what Huey said, 2 shots in the dark, now Huey’s dead” (2PAC LYRICS). He believed the government assassinated Huey Newton, the leader of the Black Panther Party, a militant group that employed violent means to protect black people from the police. In verse number three, Tupac compared the America’s war in Iraq to war in the high poverty neighborhoods (2PAC LYRICS). He then went on to describe government policies on the “war on drugs” which focuses on the African American population. Which resulted in mandatory arrest policies, harsh drug laws on crack cocaine, and the explosion of the African American population in penitentiaries. The important message Tupac tried to convey to the listeners was that the society must change its ways, but it will most likely change for the worst.

It is a song that spoke not just to me, but every mother that has been in that situation, and there have been millions of us. Tupac recognized our struggle, and he is still our hero.” (La Times Blog). “I think all young black males..especially the men from the ghetto, we have a deep love for our mothers because they usually raise us by they selves” (The Lost Prison

A protest song is a song about creating or spreading awareness about a movement in order to get other people to feel the same way. People who believe strongly about an opinion create protest songs. A protest song is used to enhance the way people feel about an action or movement. I think that Bleed Red by Ronnie Dunn is a protest song because the song is about equal rights and how we don’t treat each other equally. This is related to the issue that is going on everywhere and has always happened.