2 Pac And 50 Cent example essay topic

Everybody wants to be a Gangster Hip-Hop is a driving force in today's entertainment and has also become a major influence in American culture. From SportsCenter to Headline News, Hip-Hop has become a part of many Americans' everyday life. Suburban teens especially seem to embrace the hardcore street lyrics coming from urban America. Two of these "Urban Poets", 2 pac and 50 Cent, have captured the imaginations of youths across America. By weaving tales of the harsh reality of Black America, these two rappers in particular, have been able to give an insight into "Ghetto America" that the world has never seen. With often blunt and violent lyrics, 2 pac and 50 Cent have become the voices for frustrated black men who do not have any avenues to express their ideas.

On the surface, the parallels between the two men's careers are striking. However, the difference between the two is that 2 pac almost single-handedly raised the awareness of White America about the plight of African Americans, be it with violent lyrics or by songs about young teenage mothers. While 2 pac and 50 Cent are similar in their childhoods and careers, 2 pac is also celebrated for his accomplishments outside of rap. The most obvious similarities between 2 pac and 50 Cent are their upbringings and styles of rap. Both have the hardcore street lyrics that American youth enjoy. But the comparison between them runs deeper than lyrics.

Both grew up on the mean streets of New York under strenuous circumstances. For example, 2 pac was born to Afe ni Shakur, a Black Panther accused of murder, and 50 Cent was born to a father who was in jail for a drug conviction and to a mother who was known all over New York for her drug connections. Without positive role models, both turned to the streets for the attention that all young black men seek in the ghetto. Before the age of fifteen, both quickly earned felony convictions for possession of crack cocaine. Also with their similar styles of rap it has been argued that 50 Cent is the next 2 pac. With songs that somewhat harshly describe the struggles that young black men go through, whether it is about selling drugs or family members addicted to the drugs that they sold, both have developed a style that the media has coined "Gangsta Rap" but what blacks have termed as "Street Poetry".

Both have become America's worst nightmares: aggressive young black men, with nothing to lose, who aren't afraid to die. Vivica A. Fox, who once dated 2 pac and who is now dating 50 Cent, has been quoted as saying, "Of all the rappers proclaiming to be the next 'Pac, 50 Cent is probably the closest". Both men have incredible work ethics, with 2 pac recording up to twenty songs in one night, and 50 Cent being rumored to record that same amount in one night as well. Each rapper's upbringing helped shape their worlds, so that they could be the voices of young black men everywhere. Both rappers lifestyles reflect the lyrics that they rap about. 2 pac was known for his abrasive attitude towards the law and took the "Thug Life" tattoo on his stomach to heart.

Likewise, 50 Cent is known for wearing a bulletproof vest as a result of numerous attempts on his life. In April of 2000, 50 Cent was shot nine times and left for dead; in the same fashion 2 pac was shot six times in November of 1994. After both shootings, each rappers career began to flourish. Both recovered with a newfound attitude towards the world and worked as if everyday was their last. Shortly after his shooting, 2 pac signed to Death Row Records and quickly released two multi-platinum albums, and more recently 50 Cent released "Get Rich or Die Tryin", which sold 1.5 million records in its first week of release.

Another glaring similarity between the two are their battles with other rappers; 2 pac in his tragic battle with the Notorious B.I. G, which ended in the deaths of both men in 1997, and 50 Cent's current battle with Ja Rule. In both battles, each rapper hurtled insults at the other, often getting personal enough to include their children. These two battles are the most well known battles in Hip Hop, with all of the violence surrounding them, the comparison between 50 Cent and 2 pac was inevitable. In fact 50 Cent and Eminem remixed 2 pac's classic song "Hail Mary" as a diss song towards Ja Rule. The danger of their lyrical battles, brought upon by both men, have left a trail of blood that the rap world is not mentally prepared to witness again. That is why in July of 2003, the Hip-Hop Coalition along with Louis Farrakahn, initiated peace talks between 50 Cent and Ja Rule, to prevent tragic events like the death of 2 pac.

With everyone in the rap world proclaiming to be the next 'Pac, it is as if they have forgotten that he died in a hail of bullets. Arguably the biggest icon in the history of rap music, 2 pac is not only celebrated for his music, like 50 Cent, but also for his wide array of talents. 2 pac is well known for being a versatile actor and poet among his many accomplishments. In fact, he even has classes dedicated to his life and work at such institutions as Harvard and the University of Washington. In addition to the classes, a book of poems, The Rose that Grew from Concrete, released after his death, has been published and became a bestseller around the world.

50 Cent is currently known only for his gritty lyrics, which basically consist of guns and drugs. It has been said that there hasn't been a rapper since the death of 2 pac, to create the media attention that 50 Cent has, not only in the rap industry, but the whole entertainment industry. 50 Cent has not directed two critically acclaimed movies like 2 pac had or even have an Arts and Cultural center named after him either. 2 pac, after his death, has been able to bridge people of all races through his various works. For example, during a rally last year to protest a five billion dollar state budget cut for education in California, students of all nationalities chanted, "they got money for war, but none to feed the poor!" a line from 2 pac's, Thugs Mansion. The legacy of 2 pac that still has him ingrained in our conscious is that he was the voice of millions of black men who grew up in the nation's ghettos.

With songs like Dear Mama, which spoke about his mothers struggle to raise two children on her own, to songs such as Brenda's Got a Baby, which told the story of a twelve year old child who gives birth and was murdered a week later; 'Pac was able to visually narrate to the world the struggles of Black America, that the rest of the country wanted to ignore. The media has only focused on the negative songs that he has made about being promiscuous and carrying a gun. The reality is that young black men in America are calling out for help, and he was able tell the whole world through different forms of expression. Even though the music that 2 pac and 50 Cent have made does include many references to violence, the honest truth is that across America violence is a way of life among African-Americans growing up in the ghetto. Suburban America would rather dismiss these two rappers as delinquent thugs instead of listening to the messages that they are offering. Their music and careers let us know that poverty and drug abuse has gone nowhere and that we just choose to ignore it.

Both of these men have become the voices of a generation of black men across this country. With every year that passes by, 2 pac's legacy continues to grow stronger, even seven years after his death. More and more people are starting to pay attention to the messages that are being brought to us through Hip-Hop, and these two men are the voices that America will continue to listen to..