Baptized in Dirty Water P o p o l o g y short theological engagements with popular music Series Editor: Christian Scharen Editorial Committee: Margarita Simon Guillory, Jeff Keuss, Mary McDonough, Myles Werntz, Daniel White Hodge Popology features theologians who have a passion for particular popular artists and who offer robust theological engagements with the work of that artist—engaging a song, an album, or a whole body of work over a career. Books in the series are accessible, yet deep both in their theological and musical engagement. Each book foregrounds ideas of interest in the musician’s work, first, and puts these into conversation with the context and culture, second, and the Christian tradition, third. Each book, therefore, includes analysis of the cultural artifact, cultural context, and the re- lation to Christian tradition. Each book endeavors, as well, to speak with vitality to the challenges of living with God’s mercy and justice in today’s world. Baptized in Dirty Water Reimagining the Gospel according to TUPAC AMARU SHAKUR Daniel White Hodge !! CASCADE Books • Eugene, Oregon BAPTIZED IN DIRTY WATER Reimagining the Gospel according to Tupac Amaru Shakur Popology: Short Theological Engagements with Popular Music Copyright © 2019 Daniel White Hodge. All rights reserved. Except for brief quotations in critical publications or reviews, no part of this book may be reproduced in any manner without prior written permission from the publisher. Write: Permissions, Wipf and Stock Publishers, 199 W. 8th Ave., Suite 3, Eugene, OR 97401. Cascade Books An Imprint of Wipf and Stock Publishers 199 W. 8th Ave., Suite 3 Eugene, OR 97401 www.wipfandstock.com paperback isbn: 978-1-5326-1366-1 hardcover isbn: 978-1-5326-1368-5 ebook isbn: 978-1-5326-1367-8 Cataloguing-in-Publication data: Names:White Hodge, Daniel. Title: Baptized in dirty water : reimagining the gospel according to Tupac Amaru Shakur / by Daniel White Hodge.. Description: Eugene, OR: Cascade Books, 2019 | Series: Popology: Short Theological Engagements with Popular Music | Includes bibliographical references. Identifiers: isbn 978-1-5326-1366-1 (paperback) | isbn 978-1- 5326-1368-5 (hardcover) | isbn 978-1-5326-1367-8 (ebook) Subjects: LCSH: Shakur, Tupac, 1971–1996. | Religion and cuture. | Popular music—Religious aspects. | Rap (music) Classification: ML3930.S48 W55 2019 (paperback) | ML3930.S48 (ebook) Manufactured in the U.S.A. 04/18/19 Contents Tables and Figures vii Introduction: The Hip Hop Theologian and Thinker, Tupac ix 1. Hip Hop Culture and Context in the Post-Civil Rights Era 1 2. Tupac’s Life Eras and Sociotheological Spaces 28 3. A Tupacian Theological Gospel 82 4. A Few Concluding Thoughts 112 Attachment A: Pictorial View of Tupac 117 Attachment B: THUG LIFE Code 122 Attachment C: Black Panther Ten-Point Program and Platform 125 Attachment D: Tupac’s Tattoos 129 Attachment E: Tupac’s Musical Connection to Slave Music 133 Attachment F: Song: “So Many Tears” 136 Attachment G: Material Used in Tupac’s Ethnolifehistory 139 Attachment H: Tupac’s Involvement with the Law 140 Attachment I: Tupac’s Variety of Interviews 142 Bibliography 145 Tables and Figures Table 1: The Differences Between the Soul Era and the Post-Soul Era 29 Table 2: Tupac’s Musical Positions 49 Figure 1: Core Principals of Hip Hop Culture 9 Figure 2: Tupac’s Musical Foundation 51 Figure 3: Tupac’s THUG LIFE Code’s Message 76 vii Introduction The Hip Hop Theologian and Thinker, Tupac I’d be remiss if I didn’t say I wasn’t biased and could ob- jectively explore the topic of Tupac Shakur and his theo- logical pursuits. The academic quest in the West tends to manufacture a sense of disembodiment from research, yet who of us can truly do that with an honest shake? The cur- rent sociopolitical era we find ourselves here in the US, in the early part of the twenty-first century, is a nefarious one and one that pits itself against people of color (PoC)—par- ticularly Black and Latinx bodies. The legacy of Tupac’s ideology, worldview, theology, and even “sins,” have never been needed more. Thus, it is difficult to objectively look at Tupac as an Afro-Latinx male living in the Midwest at a time when I could be killed for simply looking suspicious. Tupac creates a space to lament. Tupac can transcend time and connect with current events. Tupac was prophetic in his approach to life—and not just in his music. Tupac’s vigor and energy for life, especially Black life, is needed and is something that a new ethnic-minority generation, growing up in a post-civil rights context, needs to connect with. Let me situate this in another way. As I sit writing this book, the current time, context, climate, and culture in the United States is fraught with racial, gender, and cultural strain the likes of which have not been seen since the Jim Crow era. It is a time unlike any other. While the ix Introduction period prior to the 1970s was direct and intense racism, the present context utilizes social media, passive- and micro-aggression to create its hegemony and culture of hate. I struggle as a racially Black male living in the US and trying to live out a faith rooted in Christianity—particu- larly when the history of Christianity has been shown to be objectionable to not only the color of my skin, but my narrative, body, and life.1 The events that have taken the main stage in media’s public sphere started to erupt, at least personally, during the Troy Davis campaign. Here, a young Black male, who was convicted of shooting and killing a White police officer, sat on death row. When I began to re- search the issue and Davis’ case, I found that little physical evidence for him was actually found and the “eyewitness” later recanted the story of seeing Davis murder the police officer.2 Amid a strong social media campaign and even phone calls to elected officials, Troy Davis was executed on September 21, 2011. Then came Trayvon Martin and later Michael Brown,3 then both the Ferguson and Baltimore 1. One must consider the use of Christianity as both a racist and violent tool of oppression toward many Africans and African Ameri- cans—not to mention other ethnic-minority groups such as Mexi- cans, Chinese, Japanese, and Native Americans. This will be engaged more later in this text as it relates to missions and colonialization. 2. I do realize this is a controversial case; in fact, most Black and White cases typically are. From my research and investigation, Troy Davis should have had another trial and the new evidence should have been admitted into that trial. I am fully aware that many White evangelicals took issue with the Davis trial and sided with the courts. This is part of the ongoing tensions in the US and especially in Chris- tian evangelical circles. 3. This is in no way minimizing the women and other Black youth who have been murdered and/or killed at the hands of either police officers or “vigilante” White citizens. What I suggest here are the cap- stone events that have shaped both our nation and where I personally stand as a Black Christian male. x