2pac’s Message to Women and Men
2pac’s Message to Women and Men
Traditionally, the musical genre of Hip-Hop is notoriously known for having crude and obscene lyrics. Generally, this statement is justified; however—like everything else—it has its good aspects. In the song “Keep Ya Head Up” by Tupac Shakur, best known by his stage name 2Pac, he appeals on the most part to females; however, depending on the interpretation of the song, it can affect and influence anyone. As the title suggests, the song refers to women standing tall even though the problems and hardships they face make them weak. To convey his message, he includes experiences he faced growing up with a single mother, who was addicted to crack.
During the nineties, Hip-Hop was better known for its sub-genre “Gangster Rap.” This genre was not solely based on insulting opposing MC’s, but also on referring to women as sexual objects with songs such as “Baby Got Back” by Sir Mix-A-Lot or lines in songs such as: “before me dig out a [girl] I got to find a contraceptive.” (Calvin “Snoop Dogg” Broadus, “Nuttin’ But a ‘G’ Thang”). For 2Pac to write a song that appeals to women in the way that it did, was risky, however, the song was very well-received and is now considered one of the greatest Rap songs of all-time.
The first part of the song has the biggest impact. “Ode to Our Women”, would make for a good title to this first part. In line five, 2Pac says: “When you come around the block brothas clown a lot, But please don’t cry, dry your eyes, never let up, forgive but don’t forget girl, keep ya head up.” He is telling the women, that though they have a reason to feel offended, that they should be stronger than the impact the words have on them and to stay the proud, independent women they are, even when men begin to act like dogs. This relates to when people tell young children to stand up to their bullies because then the bully will show his true colors and back down. He also says: forgive, but don’t forget.” He is
Traditionally, the musical genre of Hip-Hop is notoriously known for having crude and obscene lyrics. Generally, this statement is justified; however—like everything else—it has its good aspects. In the song “Keep Ya Head Up” by Tupac Shakur, best known by his stage name 2Pac, he appeals on the most part to females; however, depending on the interpretation of the song, it can affect and influence anyone. As the title suggests, the song refers to women standing tall even though the problems and hardships they face make them weak. To convey his message, he includes experiences he faced growing up with a single mother, who was addicted to crack.
During the nineties, Hip-Hop was better known for its sub-genre “Gangster Rap.” This genre was not solely based on insulting opposing MC’s, but also on referring to women as sexual objects with songs such as “Baby Got Back” by Sir Mix-A-Lot or lines in songs such as: “before me dig out a [girl] I got to find a contraceptive.” (Calvin “Snoop Dogg” Broadus, “Nuttin’ But a ‘G’ Thang”). For 2Pac to write a song that appeals to women in the way that it did, was risky, however, the song was very well-received and is now considered one of the greatest Rap songs of all-time.
The first part of the song has the biggest impact. “Ode to Our Women”, would make for a good title to this first part. In line five, 2Pac says: “When you come around the block brothas clown a lot, But please don’t cry, dry your eyes, never let up, forgive but don’t forget girl, keep ya head up.” He is telling the women, that though they have a reason to feel offended, that they should be stronger than the impact the words have on them and to stay the proud, independent women they are, even when men begin to act like dogs. This relates to when people tell young children to stand up to their bullies because then the bully will show his true colors and back down. He also says: forgive, but don’t forget.” He is
Cited: Cooley, Jason. "Meaning of 2 Pac Shakur 's "Keep Ya Head Up"" Associated Content from Yahoo! - associatedcontent.com. 25 Oct. 2011 <http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/574773/meaning_of_2_pac_shakurs_keep_ya_head.html>. Shakur, Tupac. "2Pac2K.de - Lyrics Archive." 2Pac2K.de - The #1 2Pac community. 25 Oct. 2011 <http://www.2pac2k.de/cgi-bin/lyrics.pl?album2/11.txt>. Shakur, Tupac. The rose that grew from concrete. New York: Pocket Books, 1999. "SongMeanings | Lyrics | Tupac Shakur - Keep Ya Head Up." Lyrics and Song Meanings | SongMeanings | Welcome. 25 Oct. 2011 <http://www.songmeanings.net/songs/view/46548/>.