Tupac: Resurrection

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I got shot.

I always felt like I'd be shot.

Somebody was trying

to do me some harm

because a lot of people don't like me.

But I didn't think it was gonna happen

at that particular moment.

I'm surprised, but I'm happy.

I believe that, you know,

this is all in God's hands.

And I'm very appreciative to God

for everything I've gotten to do.

But also, about death, we look at

death from the selfish side, like:

"That guy died. Oh, it's so sad."

Why is it sad?

He's away from all of this

bad stuff that's here on Earth.

I mean, at the worst, he's just

somewhere quiet, no nothing.

At best, he's an angel... or he's

a spirit somewhere.

What is so bad about that?

Throughout my life, I just wanted

to be like an angel for God,

do something

where I could be of some help.

And I can do that.

I mean, I'm an artist.

It's not like I have to tell the truth.

I have to tell a story

and reach you and get

some kind of feeling from you.

And then try to get the moral across.

So this is my story.

A story about ambition,

violence, redemption and love.

In my life, I was different things

for different people.

What's up, nigga?

Don't f*** around with real Gs

Quick to snatch your ugly ass

- Off the streets

- So f*** peace

I let them niggas know

It's on for life

So let the West Side ride tonight

Bad Boy murdered on wax and killed

- F*** with me you'll get your

- Caps peeled

Yeah, my niggas say...

Some people say

I was a thug and a gangsta.

Other people remember me

as a poet and a born leader.

But I'm saying to you

measure a man by his actions fully,

through his whole life,

from the beginning to the end.

Everybody's past

is what made their future.

It's, like, about destiny.

Speak, drums

Tell the real story

My mother was a Black Panther,

and she was really involved

in the movement.

Power! Power!

Power to the people!

Power to the people!

You know, just black people bettering

themselves and things like that.

She had a high position in the Panther

Party, which was unheard of,

because there was sexism,

even in the Panthers.

All of my roots

to the struggle are real deep.

I was named after this Inca chief

from South America

whose name was Tupac Amaru.

And I think the tribal breakdown

means, like, intelligent warrior,

something like that. He's a deep dude.

If I go to South America,

they're gonna love me.

My stepfather at the time,

Mutulu Shakur,

he was also, like,

a well-known revolutionary.

And then my godfather,

Geronimo Pratt,

had a top official rank position

with the Panthers on the West Coast.

You can jail a revolutionary,

but you can't jail a revolution.

I think that my mother,

like Fred Hampton, Mark Clark,

Harriet Tubman, they felt

like they were laying tracks

for a generation to come.

Come in, little brothers, sisters. Y'all

sit down and get something to eat.

There was always

white people around helping out.

But still, you know, there's racism.

So when the Panthers hit,

the government panicked.

And they felt like the Panthers were

detrimental to American society.

Remember, this country had

a man named J. Edgar Hoover,

whose job it was to destroy the

credibility of any black man coming up.

- That's what they did to the Panthers.

- Power to the people.

The government raided every

Panther's house, especially the ones

who they felt like could do the

most damage as an orator.

So they just burst in and put a gun

to my mother's head and said:

"Don't move. You're under arrest."

They treated her

like less than human.

My mother was pregnant

with me while she was in prison.

She was her own attorney,

never been to law school.

She was facing 300

and something odd years.

One black woman,

pregnant, beat the case.

That just goes to show you

the strength of a black woman

and the strength of the oppressed.

And a month after she got out

of prison, she gave birth to me.

So I was cultivated in prison.

My embryo was in prison.

When I was a little baby, I remember

that one moment of calm peace,

and three minutes after that,

it was on.

I rebelled against my mother

because she was in the movement

and we never spent time together. She

was speaking and going to colleges.

I used to feel like she cared more

about the people than her people.

And then after that was over,

it was more time spent with me,

and we were like, "You're my mother."

She was like, "You're my son."

Then she was really close

with me and really strict, almost.

My mother is totally brilliant,

totally understanding and caring.

And she's human. I mean, she'll be

wrong a lot, but we can talk about it.

She taught me how

to be community-oriented,

and to analyze society.

Me and my sister grew up good, and

we have good minds and everything.

But we just didn't have money.

Poverty is...

It's no joke. If there was no money

and everything depended

on your moral standards

and the way you treated people,

we'd be millionaires. We'd be rich.

But, since it's not like that,

then we're stone-broke.

I can't always have what I want

or things that I think I need.

Poverty, if I hated anything,

it would be that.

You and me were born

and raised in Harlem.

And every time you put it down,

you're not only putting us down,

but Mama and Papa.

My real father was a Black Panther,

but when I was growing up, I never

knew who my father was for sure.

My stepfather was a gangster,

a straight-up street hustler.

My mom had a kid,

he didn't even care.

He's like, "That's my son,"

took care of me, gave me money.

He was a criminal too,

out doing his thing.

So he only came,

brought me money and then left.

It's OK to go to Harlem and celebrate

your birthday with your friends,

but I don't think we would really fit in.

I hate saying this because whites

love hearing blacks talk about this.

I know for a fact that,

had I had a father,

I'd have had some discipline,

I'd have had more confidence.

Your mother cannot calm you down

the way a man can.

Your mother can't reassure you

the way a man can.

My mother couldn't show me

where my manhood was.

You need a man to teach you

how to be a man.

When I was young,

I was quiet, withdrawn.

I read a lot. I wrote poetry.

I kept a diary.

I watched TV all the time.

I stayed in front of the television.

And I could see all these people

out there in this pretend world.

And I knew I could be

part of it if I pretended too.

The way Arnold looked

on Diff'rent Strokes,

I used to like the lifestyle,

the way he used to live.

So early on,

I just watched and emulated.

I thought if I can be an actor

and act like those characters,

I could have some of their joy.

Oh, thank you, Mr. D!

If I could act like I had a big family,

I wouldn't feel as lonely.

My first acting job

was at the Apollo Theater

when Jesse Jackson

was running for president in 1984.

It was a fundraiser,

and I was a little kid.

Travis, from Raisin in the Sun.

When the curtain went up,

I just caught that bug

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