August 18, 2005 @ 11:49 am

Tupac Lives On Through New Albums, Sculpture

by: Alyssa Rashbaum

Yet another posthumous release from the late rapper is about to be released this fall. Tupac Shakur: Live at the House of Blues features never-before-seen, uncensored footage. The show took place on July 4, 1996 in Los Angeles, featuring guest appearances by artists including Snoop Dogg, the Outlawz, Nate Dogg, Jodeci, Kurupt and Daz and, according to Eagle Rock Entertainment which is releasing the DVD/UMD (UMD plays on Sony PSP), the footage is believed to be the last available of Tupac before his death that September.

The DVD will also contain several of the rapper's music videos and is slated for an early fall 2005 release.

In other Tupac news, the newly-opened Tupac Amaru Shakur Center for the Arts (TASCA) in Atlanta is preparing to unveil a bronze memorial statue of the Center's namesake rapper on September 13, the nine-year anniversary of his death. The statue, designed and created by sculptor Tina Allen, will be seven feet tall and resting on a three-foot base inside a fountain in the shape of the gothic cross generally associated with the rapper. It will be surrounded with poetry and quotations from Tupac, and will be placed in the center of the six-acre Peace Garden.

At the unveiling ceremony, the Tupac Summer Performing Art Camp kids will perform. The ceremony will also feature discussions with Tupac's mother, Afeni Shakur, and the sculptor. “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," Afeni Shakur said in a statement. "This sculpture and the Center that surrounds it will carry Tupac’s message on down to our children’s children.”

The unveiling ceremony, which begins at 6 p.m., is free and open to the public, while tickets for the reception following the event can be purchased for $50. For a donation of $100, fans can attend the reception and also purchase a commemorative brick that can be engraved, and will eventually be constructed into the Center as part of its "One Brick at a Time" campaign, the proceeds from which will go towards the $3 million the Center needs to be completed.

For more information on the center, check out www.2PAClegacy.com or www.TASF.org.

Finally, on September 20, a collection of songs inspired by poems Tupac wrote as a teenager will be released. The Rose, Vol. 2 features original numbers written and performed by guest rap, hip hop, soul and R&B artists including Bone Thugs 'N Harmony, Outlawz, and Digital Underground's Shock G.

Read more vibe.com news headlines.

Article tags: Tupac, Outlawz, Bone Thugs 'n Harmony, Snoop Dogg, Nate Dogg, Jodeci 

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