Thug Life Army

On September 13, 2005 at 6:00 PM in Atlanta, the newly-opened Tupac Amaru Shakur Center for the Arts (TASCA) will unveil a bronze memorial statue of the late hip-hop rap icon Tupac Shakur. The statue that occupy the center of the six-acre Peace Garden at the TASCA. The unveiling will take place on the same day as the nine-year anniversary of the late rap artists tragic passing.

Designed and created by noted sculptor Tina Allen, the statue of the late rap superstar will stand seven feet tall on a three-foot base, inside a fountain in the shape of the gothic cross universally associated with Tupac.  The sculpture will be surrounded with poetry and quotations written by Tupac over the course of his life.  

The unveiling ceremony will feature a special performance by the Tupac Summer Performing Arts Camp kids, as well as discussions with Ms. Afeni Shakur – Tupac’s mother and founder of the Tupac Amaru Shakur Foundation (TASF) – and Ms. Allen.

“This statue will serve as a reminder to all those who visit the Peace Garden of the love and hope for peace my son always held in his heart.  This sculpture and the Center that surrounds it will carry Tupac’s message on down to our children’s children,” says Ms. Shakur.

Ms. Allen, classically-trained in Florence, Italy, has devoted her life to preserving the positive aspects of African-American culture and has previously created public bronze monuments of historic figures ranging from Nat King Cole to Dr. Martin Luther King. 

 “What a pleasure to create a sculpture for a beautiful charismatic young man who left us too soon.  Now, his legacy is drawing our children to the arts, encouraging them to dream a bigger dream – no matter what their circumstances, Tupac has made it cool to express themselves through the arts.”

While the unveiling ceremony is free for all to attend, tickets for the reception to follow are available for $50 – or, for a donation of $100, one can attend the reception and also purchase a commemorative brick that can be engraved with a name or message.  The bricks will be constructed into the Tupac Center, as part of TASF’s “One Brick at a Time” campaign.  All proceeds will go towards the $3 Million still needed for the Center’s completion.

On September 20, Tupac Shakur’s poetry is celebrated again with the release of The Rose, Vol. 2, a collection of songs that were inspired by the poems Tupac wrote as a teenager.  The tracks on The Rose, Vol. 2 are not spoken word readings like the ones on Vol. 1, but all new original numbers written and performed by an impressive list of guest rap, hip-hop, soul and R&B luminaries – including Bone Thugs ‘N Harmony, Outlawz and Digital Underground’s Shock G (AKA Humpty Hump), the man most responsible for launching 2Pac’s solo career.

For more information or contributions to the Center, please visit:

www.2PAClegacy.com  www.TASF.org