Tupac Shakur’s brotherhood anthem “If My Homie Calls” is on his 1991 debut album 2Pacalypse Now. The single was a part of the album’s overall theme, which was focused on what Tupac saw in his immediate world and the community at large. He stated in an interview that he wanted to rap about things that affected young Black males and “Trapped” was a commentary on police brutality. But “Brenda Had A Baby” talked about teen pregnancy. Vice President Dan Quayle admonished the album after the attorney for then-19-year-old Ronald Ray Howard blamed the music for his fatal shooting of a state trooper.
“If My Homie Calls” had no profanity and it represented Tupac’s purest ideals before he became an antagonistic rapper three albums and five years later. The video had several Black men socializing harmoniously together and Tupac alternating between performing on stage and walking the streets. 2Pacalypse Now established the potential of Tupac’s voice transcending a hip-hop audience and possibly captivating the world outside of music. Thirty-two years later Tupac’s debut album still influences artists of multiple genres and gets an intense reaction from cross-generational hip-hop fans. He is still one of the world’s most famous rappers 27 years after his murder. In April of 2023, the Allen Hughes-directed documentary Dear Mama: The Saga Of Afeni and Tupac Shakur premiered on FX. On June 7, 2023, Tupac received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
