Insight from 50 Cent has sparked a conversation about Tupac Shakur and Eminem. The two latter artists have catalogs that detail their struggles, including the strife endured during their upbringings. However, the Art of Dialogue recently shared a clip of 50 Cent revisiting two classics from Pac and Em while dissecting what made perspectives so interesting.
Fif noted that these two prolific rappers went through a similar experience but expressed themselves differently. "Eminem's mom, the drug usage was part of it. He did, 'Sorry mama, I never meant to hurt you, I never meant to make you cry. But tonight, I'm cleaning out my closet." This, of course, was in reference to Em's smash hit, "Cleanin' Out My Closet," from 2002's The Eminem Show.
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50 Cent added: "Then, Tupac's mom also had some drug usage involved in her experience. And he said, 'Even though you was a crack fiend, mama, you always was a Black queen, mama." These bars are pulled from Pac's iconic "Dear Mama" from Me Against the World.
"Em's anger is coming from things were supposed to be right. And Tupac's statement is almost like a term of endearment 'cause it's like, it's always still what I had. I think the expectations of things going right from a white American perspective versus accepting the idea of things not going right from an African American perspective are what makes the difference in the tones of those records."
"It's not the same scenario but different ways of expressing the experiences because of the difference in the two artists."
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Tupac and Eminem are vastly different, but their abilities to authentically connect with audiences have been praised. Both rappers have expanded fanbases into other genres, and their lyrics have been studied in academia. 50 Cent's assessment garnered several reactions, so check out a few below and let us know your thoughts.
