2Pac + The Outlawz - Still I Rise (Repress) (CD)

Though many critics will remember the late 2Pac as a rapper who lived and died by the guntalk, diehard fans continue to find gems of truth and insightful ghetto reportage in his hardcore rhymes. On his most recent posthumous release, STILL I RISE, the Outlawz, a posse of impossibly hardcore named L.A. rappers -- Kadafi, Hussein Fatal, Kastro, Napoleon, Mussolini, E.D.I., and Kormaini -- use technology to add new music and their own backup rhymes to rare 2Pac lyrics. Like the theme of the Maya Angelou poem that inspires the album title, much of the disc is fueled by 2Pac's street-scarred, survivalist ethos. With song titles like "Hell 4 a Hustler," "Teardrops and Closed Caskets," and "The Good Die Young," the Outlawz take Pac's more reflective verses and blend in their own us-against-the-world thug passion. The results are captivating. On "Black Jesuz," one Outlawz voice rhymes, "Some say/someday/some how/some way/we gon' fail/and it ain't hard to tell we dwell in hell/trapped/Black/scarred and barred/searching for truth where it's hard to find God." Though not Pac's own words, the lyrics speak of what he represented for a generation of disaffected ghetto youth. 2Pac struggled to realize his humanity under the scrutiny of the public eye. He also strove to carve out his legacy in a cruel world. STILL I RISE proves he succeeded.


FORMAT:  Compact Disc
CONDITION:  Brand New
GENRE: Rap / Hip Hop
RECORD LABEL:  Interscope
NO. OF DISCS:  1

Tracklist:
1. Letter to the President

2. Still I Rise

3. Secretz of War

4. Baby Don't Cry (Keep Ya Head Up II)

5. As the World Turns

6. Black Jesuz

7. Homeboyz

8. Hell 4 a Hustler

9. High Speed

10. The Good Die Young

11. Killuminati

12. Teardrops and Closed Caskets

13. Tattoo Tears

14. U Can Be Touched

15. Y'all Don't Know Us