Tupac Shakur

Tupac

Tupac Shakur once said, “I don’t see myself being special; I just see myself having more responsibilities than the next man. People look to me to do things for them, to have answers.” To me, my hero is someone who will never give up, even when times are hard. A hero is someone who keeps his head up high, stands up for what he believes in, who is not selfish, who helps others without being asked. The person that completes this definition is Tupac Shakur; he is a great example of a hero to me. Tupac did a lot of things during his short lifetime. He was always brave, and had a positive attitude, even when he was put down a lot of times. He always lived with his head up high, helping and believing in others. This is why Tupac Shakur is my hero.

One thing that makes him stand out for me as a hero is that he always spoke what was on his mind, what he believed in. For instance, he would rap about the social ills facing African Americans. He also rapped about social injustice, poverty, and police brutality. He talked about what actually happened to him when growing up, speaking for the millions of kids who don’t have anything to eat when they get home. Although many people didn’t like what he said, he spoke the truth of his life and his childhood. He fought for the unfortunate, who suffered like him. Tupac overcame a lot of things, but like he said, “I give thanks to God for putting me where I am today, and what I went through, because it only makes me stronger.” This is just one of great qualities.

'Strong' can mean many things, from being strong physically, to being strong in health. To be emotionally strong is hard for some people, but for Tupac it was a way of life. He proved he was strong physically, when he was shot five times but came back stronger, selling over seventy-five million albums. He was then recognized in the Guinness World Records as being the best selling hip-hop artist. He proved tons of times that he was physically strong, but even stronger mentally. To think one of your best friends may have planned to murder you, but staying focused enough to still make music with him without fighting, shows a lot of mental strength. To me, he has and showed that he has courage, and he proved it to all those who doubted him.

Another thing Tupac did to convince me that he is my hero, is that he helped out in the community. Even though rappers had the bad reputation of being bad, and not caring about anyone else, he was the complete opposite. He was not selfish at all. He helped other artists to become well known, and helped them produce music. He showed his compassionate side by singing some inspirational anthems. Before his tragic death, he contributed to a charity to help raise money to keep children away from violence. After his death, he left a foundation with his name, to help students who aspire to enhance their creative talents. Today, there is a foundation called TASF, which stands for Tupac Amaru Shakur Foundation, and seeks to help students. Once again, he shows the best qualities of a hero.

From always speaking up for what he believed and thought, to always being strong physically and mentally, to being helpful and showing his compassionate side, Tupac showed he was a hero. To be a hero is so much more than it sounds; to be a hero you have to be looked up to. You have to be able to say "I helped people with out being asked to," A hero has to make a difference in the world, not make anyone seem smaller then you, but actually put them before you. To me, this is what a hero is, and to me, Tupac Shakur shows all these qualities.