Shock G of Digital Underground speaks on his time with 2Pac photo credit: ani yapundzhyan
As we look back on the life and times of Tupac Amaru Shakur we decided to dig in the crates and pull out an old interview we did with Shock G of Digital Underground. Here Shock G says his proudest moment was hearing 2 Pac talk about how his fondest years were spent being a part of the DU camp.
In this interview Shock G talks about the importance of 2Pac in Hip Hop culture and why he and his band mates would drop everything to accommodate 2Pac’s needs.
“There’s a time for comedy and being funny and there’s a time to be serious. When it came to 2Pac his message was too important to play around” , Shock G noted “He got the best we had”.
In this interview Shock G loans some keen insight into who 2Pac really was and how they complimented each other. It’s a fitting tribute for someone who meant so much for so many.
R pt1
Shock G of Digital Underground speaks about the first time him and 2Pac met up. He explains why Pac became a member of the group and who was the person most responsible for putting him on..
Shock G talks about the influence Digital Underground had on 2Pac and the influence Pac had on DU. In particular they focus on the way both had multiple personas i.e. Humpty Hump & Makavelli that they build their albums around.
Here Shock G goes in and talks about the influence of the Black Panthers. What many people don’t realize is that DU started out being a militant, Public Enemy type group that was an off shoot of the Black Panthers. The only reason, why they didn’t continue in that vein was because Public Enemy hit the scene first. Shock talks about the ways the Black Panthers shaped 2Pac as both a freedom fighter and a rapper.
We conclude our interview with Shock G talking about why Digital Underground saved their best tracks and hardest efforts for 2Pac. Shock said Pac’s message was too serious to be playing around and so whenever he needed top shelf material he got it.. We talked about 2Pac and political prisoners and what he would be doing to help out his ‘aunt’ exiled political prisoner Assataa Shakur. Shock also goes in and explains what it means to be a revolutionary.
First of all 2 PAC R.I.P Then again, your spirit be alive in everyone of your fans. Been down with the Underground since 1990 and then Pac’s first verse on a major. Shock G iz a legend like George Clinton. He carried on the P Funk vibe and expanded it. This day and age don’t know how to make real music. Alwayz got luv 4 tha DU family…and every album they released.