Iconic Tupac Shakur inspired countless artists with his flawless raps, dramatic performances and enthralling music. Among his countless admirers was Eminem. When Tupac was an international star, Slim Shady was trying to make a name for himself in the music industry while working in a fast-food restaurant. So years later, when he became a legend among rappers, he penned a heartwarming letter to Tupac’s mother, Afeni Shakur, sometime after Tupac's death from a gunshot in Las Vegas, Nevada, on September 13, 1996.
Image Source: Inductee Eminem performs on stage during the 37th Annual Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame Induction Ceremony at Microsoft Theater on November 05, 2022 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic)
The letter by Eminem, which was originally published in the rapper's 2008 biography "Tupac Remembered," has resurfaced on social media, receiving emotional responses from fans of the duo. In addition to a handwritten letter, the "Killshot" rapper also enclosed a drawing he made of Tupac. He began the letter by modestly calling the drawing “sloppy" and added that he could have drawn a better sketch, given he had a good quality supply of pencils and pens at the time.
“I’ve been drawing since I was 10, and I thought you might like it,” he wrote. “Anyways, thank you for always being so kind to me. You are a true Queen, and I mean that in every sense of the word. I will never forget the opportunities you have given me. You will always be in my heart, my thoughts, and my prayers."
Image Source: Eminem on stage during the 2010 BET Awards Show at The Shrine Auditorium on June 27, 2010 in Los Angeles, California.
The letter continued, “As I have said before, you have no idea how much your son and his music has inspired not only the ‘hip-hop’ world but, speaking for myself, inspired my whole career. He was and still is the true definition of a ‘soldier'." Eminem shared how Tupac gave him the courage to stand up for himself against the world and care the least if people liked him or not. "When I was feeling at my worst (before fame, before Dre), I knew I could put that 'Tupac' tape in and suddenly, things weren't so bad...Thank you for giving us his spirit and yours! God bless you!" Tucked with the letter, he attached Tupac’s signature bandana and signed the note with the initial of his original name, “Love, Marshall.”
Image Source: Reddit | r/Eminem
A screenshot of the letter was also shared on Reddit by r/Eminem, the official subreddit for Eminem records. As per Rolling Stone, the emotional letter was also displayed in an exhibition at the Tupac Amaru Shakur Center for the Arts in Stone Mountain, Georgia. In April 2023, Eminem appeared in a cameo in "Dear Mama: The Saga of Afeni & Tupac Shakur" docuseries and spoke about his deepest feelings for Tupac. “Tupac was the first rapper to me that could make you cry. I felt him that much. He was one year older than me. After he passed, I wrote to Afeni and drew a picture. She understood I was such a huge Tupac fan. She’s like the sweetest lady I’ve ever met.”
This instance, according to Eminem, led him to work as a producer and executive producer with Tupac's mother on the soundtrack for his 2003 documentary “Tupac: Resurrection." Eminem also contributed to the production of Tupac’s fifth posthumous album “Loyal to the Game,” which was released in 2004 and debuted at No.1 on the Billboard 200.
Image Source: Rapper Tupac Shakur poses for photos backstage after his performance at the Regal Theater in Chicago, Illinois in March 1994. (Photo By Raymond Boyd/Getty Images)
Following this heartfelt gesture, Afeni replied to Eminem with a letter where she thanked him. She revealed that though many people had approached her to express their gratefulness and praise for her son, almost always they had some personal agenda hidden behind their compliments. She said that Eminem was the first one who hadn’t asked her anything in return for his love. “Not until now has anyone approached me to give everything they have, and to give it with such integrity,” she wrote.
“This is the spirit that we all need to search our souls for to give to each other, unconditionally, without personal agenda for no reason but that it's the right thing to do,” she said. “I believe this young man has given his spirit to Tupac's project because of what Tupac's spirit gave to him and to all of us, young, old, male, female, black, white, and brown.” She concluded, “I must personally thank Marshall Mathers, for stepping up to the plate and in Tupac's words.... thank him for staying loyal to the game."
Image Source: Afeni Shakur-Davis, mother of the late Tupac Shakur, watches an African drum ceremony on September 9, 2006 in Stone Mountain, Georgia. (Photo by Annette Brown/Getty Images)
This article originally appeared five months ago
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Why do some folks use social media but don't engage?
Psychologist says people who never comment on social media share these 5 positive traits
For over 20 years, social media has developed into a staple in many people’s day-to-day lives. Whether it’s to keep in communication with friends and family, following the thoughts of celebrities, or watching cat videos while sipping your morning coffee, there seem to be two types of social media users: commenters and lurkers.
The term “lurker” sounds equally mysterious and insidious, with some social media users writing them off as non-participants at best or voyeurs at worst. However, mindfulness expert Lachlan Brown believes these non-commenters have some very psychologically positive and healthy traits. Let’s take a look at how each one of these traits could be beneficial and see how fruitful lurking might be even though it can drive content creators crazy.
1. Cautious about vulnerability
Consciously or not, making a post online or commenting on one puts you and your words out there. It’s a statement that everyone can see, even if it’s as simple as clicking “like.” Doing so opens yourself up to judgment, with all the good, bad, and potential misinterpretation that comes with it. Non-commenters would rather not open themselves up to that.
These silent users are connected to a concept of self-protection by simply not engaging. By just scrolling past posts or just reading/watching them without commentary, they’re preventing themselves from any downsides of sharing an opinion such as rejection, misunderstanding, or embarrassment. They also have more control on how much of themselves they’re willing to reveal to the general public, and tend to be more open face-to-face or during one-on-one/one-on-few private chats or DMs. This can be seen as a healthy boundary and prevents unnecessary exposure.
Considering many comment sections, especially involving political topics, are meant to stir negative emotional responses to increase engagement, being extra mindful about where, when, and what you comment might not be a bad idea. They might not even take the engagement bait at all. Or if they see a friend of theirs post something vulnerable, they feel more motivated to engage with them personally one-on-one rather than use social media to publicly check in on them.
2. Analytical and reflective mindset
How many times have you gone onto Reddit, YouTube, or any other site and just skimmed past comments that are just different versions of “yes, and,” “no, but,” or “yes, but”? Or the ever insightful, formerly popular comment “First!” in a thread? These silent browsers lean against adding to such noise unless they have some valid and thoughtful contribution (if they bother to comment period).
These non-posters are likely wired on reflective thinking rather than their initial intuition. Not to say that all those who comment aren’t thoughtful, but many tend to react quickly and comment based on their initial feelings rather than absorbing the information, thinking it over, researching or testing their belief, and then posting it. For "lurkers," it could by their very nature to just do all of that and not post it at all, or share their thoughts and findings privately with a friend. All in all, it’s a preference of substance over speed.
3. High sense of self-awareness
Carried over from the first two listed traits, these silent social media users incorporate their concern over their vulnerability and their reflective mindset into digital self-awareness. They know what triggers responses out of them and what causes them to engage in impulsive behavior. It could be that they have engaged with a troll in the past and felt foolish. Or that they just felt sad after a post or got into an unnecessary argument that impacted them offline. By knowing themselves and seeing what’s being discussed, they choose to weigh their words carefully or just not participate at all. It’s a form of self-preservation through restraint.
4. Prefer to observe rather than perform
Some folks treat social media as information, entertainment, or a mix of both, and commenting can feel like they’re yelling at the TV, clapping alone in a movie theater when the credits roll, or yelling “That’s not true!” to a news anchor that will never hear them. But contrary to that, social media is a place where those yells, claps, and accusations can be seen and get a response. By its design, social media is considered by experts and the media as performative, regardless of whether it is positive or negative. Taking all of the previously mentioned traits into account, one can see why they would prefer to “observe the play” rather than get up on the stage of Facebook or X.
On top of that, these non-commenters could be using social media differently than those who choose to fully engage with it. Using this type of navigation, there may be nothing for them to comment about. Some commenters are even vying for this for their mental health. There are articles about how to better curate your social media feeds and manipulate algorithms to create a better social media experience to avoid unnecessary conflict or mentally tiring debate.
If you go on a blocking spree on all of your accounts and just follow the posters that boost you, it could turn your social media into a nice part of your routine as you mainly engage with others face-to-face or privately. In terms of commenting, if your curated Instagram is just following cute dogs and all you have to offer for a comment is “cute dog,” you might just enjoy the picture and then move on with your day rather than join in the noise. These non-commenters aren’t in the show and they’re fine with it.
5. Less motivated by social validation
The last trait that Brown showcases is that social media users who browse without posting tend to be independent from external validation, at least online. Social media is built to grow through feedback loops such as awarding likes, shares, and reposts of your content along with notifications letting you know that a new person follows you or wants to connect. This can lead many people to connect their activity on social media with their sense of self worth, especially with adolescents who are still figuring out their place in the world and have still-developing brains.
Engaging in social media via likes, shares, comments, and posts rewards our brains by having them release dopamine, which makes us feel good and can easily become addictive. For whatever reason, non-commenters don’t rely on social media as a means to gauge their social capital or self worth. This doesn’t make them better than those who do. While some non-commenters could have healthier ways to boost their self worth or release dopamine into their systems, many get that validation from equally unhealthy sources offline. That said, many non-commenters’ silence could be a display of independence and self confidence.
Whether you frequently comment online or don’t, it’s good to understand why you do or don’t. Analyzing your habits can help you determine whether your online engagement is healthy, or needs to be tweaked. With that information, you can then create a healthy social media experience that works for you.