A Hip-Hop Inspiration Music is a cultural Journal that expresses the realities and emotions of life in a poetic way. For the African American culture, music has always been a statement for many controversial topics such as racism, religion, politics, education, crime, and violence. In the sass’s, Hip-Hop became the newest cultural and artistic voice for the African American population. Genres such as Jazz, blues, rock-n-roll, and gospel that once dominated the musical culture of African Americans slipped Into the aground, and HIP-HOP rose to power and defined a generation.
The Inspirational and influential Tuba Shaker stormed onto the rap scene in 1991 with an emotional style that changed the rap game forever. Tuba’s social consciousness morphed him Into an activist and enabled him to Influence American culture along with redefining the hip-hop genre. Tuba Shaker was born in New York City during the year 1971. His mother, Affine Shaker, a member of the Black Panther Party. Was in Jail for bombing charges during her pregnancy. The origin of the name Tuba Muar is Inca and translates to shining serpent,” while Shaker Is Arabic and means “thankful to God. In 1 986, Shaker’s family moved to Baltimore, Maryland, where Tuba enrolled in the Baltimore School for the Arts. At the age of 15, Tuba wrote his first rap song under the name of M. C. New York. The rappers life took a turn for the worse in 1988 when his family moved to a small city outside of Oakland, California. Shortly after moving to the projects, Tuba moved In with a neighbor and started to sell drugs. Later that year, Tuba’s stepfather Mutual Shaker was indicted and sentenced to 60 years in prison or his part in an armored car robbery that took place in 1981.
Despite all of the trouble surrounding him and his family, Tuba Joined the Grammar-nominated rap group ‘Digital underground’ as a dancer and rapper. After touring with the acclaimed group in 1990, Tuba released his first solo album in ’91 . He received immediate recognition for his debut album, apocalypse Now, which graced the world with the successful singles “Trapped” and “Bread’s Got A Baby. ” With the individual success that Tuba had received with his musical talent. He wanted to prove to the world that e was more than just a rapper. In 1992, Tuba appeared in the Earnest Dickerson film “Juice. Within the next two years, Tuba starred in two additional movies: the John Singleton movie, “Poetic Justice”Nanette Jackson co-starred), and “Above The Rim. ” unfortunately, legal Issues slowed the success of the Influential rapper as a result of his 1994 arrest on sexual assault charges in New York. Subsequently, during the same month and in the same city, Tuba was shot in an apparent robbery attempt outside of his recording studio. Shortly after his quick recovery, Tuba was then acquitted of sodomy’s and weapons charges after he was convicted of sexually abusing a woman he had Invited to his hotel room.
Despite the absurd amount of legal problems, Shaker was back in the studio in early ’95 and released the incredible 1 OFF such as “Dear Mama” helped this record surpass 2 million copies sold. In February of the same year, Tuba was sentenced to 4 1/2 years in prison for sex abuse. After serving only eight months, Shaker was released on bail while he appealed the sentence. Still thriving on the success of Me Against The World, Tuba released his Ruth solo album, All Eyes On Me, which topped the ‘Billboard Album Chart’ shortly after it debuted.
Songs such as “Life Goes On” and “l Anti Mad At Chaw” once again demonstrate Tuba’s ability to put every fiber of his being into each one of his songs. The game-changing album went on to sell five million copies. On September 7, 1996, Tuba Muar Shaker was knocked off the top of the world when he was shot in an apparent drive-by in Lass Vegas. Five days later, Tuba was pronounced dead. The controversy surrounding the death of the greatest hip-hop artist of all time remains, o this day, a mystery.
The death of Tuba Shaker may still be a mystery, however his influence on hip-hop music is undeniable. Tuba had a talent for exposing social and economical issues that forced society to face the reality that our nation was still far from perfect. He used his success and lyrics as a medium to speak to the world about important economical, political and social injustices. He quickly became a leader among the African American population, transforming into a voice for his nationality and a source of hope when there was nothing left for his people to believe in.
Tuba was an inspiration to those suffering from poverty or feeling hopeless about the future; his accomplishments proved that even a kid from the ghetto could rise above the hate and despair, achieve any goal, and make a difference in the world. The death of Tuba Shaker and his influence on hip-hop music is an invaluable part of not Just African-American history, but world history. He may have been a criminal that had ‘thug life’ tattooed on his body, but Tuba was a courageous person who not only stood up for what he believed in, but carved his views into the hip-hop genre for enervation to come.
Shaker’s life, legacy, and music career focused on activism so much that I see him as the Martin Luther King of hip-hop. As an avid reader, Shaker absorbed a wealth of knowledge and was eager to share it. Today, you hear a lot of rap and hip-hop music that has no real value. Sadly, most rap lyrics now are focused on material things, money and sex. The emotion in and deeper meaning of rap is dead. Though there are a few exceptions (Mine), hip-hop for the most part has been swallowed by the genre the media is responsible for: pop.
Music nowadays entails repetitive chorus’s and seems to be Just noise. Great music is now a commodity that is hard to come by, especially in hip-hop, which is why I am so thankful for Tuba’s music even though his career was cut short. In a very short time, Tuba managed to address profound social issues while preaching through his lyrics. Not only did Shaker influence the genre of hip-hop and the culture of many Americans, he became a worldwide symbol of change. Tuba Shaker is a martyr, who believed he could make a difference through music, and boy did he ever.