All of this he accomplished before his death at the young age of 25. To comprehend how incredible this is we look at what others have been able to accomplish before the age of 25. At the age of 25: Malcolm X was still in prison; Martin Luther King, Jr. had just become a pastor; George Washington was just an army general; Marie Curie had just began her studies in mathematics, chemistry, and physics in Paris; Abraham Lincoln was 27 years away from his presidency and 29 years from the Emancipation Proclamation; and a fellow by the name of Einstein had yet to write his first paper on relativity. It can only be imagined what was to become of Shakur's life and what he could have achieved had he not died at 25. No other man of the 20th century had spoken more about poverty, justice, equality, and the harsh realities of life. Even after his death, his music and writings continue to influence the youth of America and they will still change the world for years to come.
These accomplishments took root at the young age of twelve when he had already discovered his love for acting, writing love songs, and poetry. His family had to move from New York because his mother was a Black Panther and she wasn't able to keep a job. As a young teen, his family moved to Baltimore, Maryland. "Baltimore has the highest rate of teenage pregnancy, the highest rate of AIDS within the black community, the highest rate of teens killing teens So as soon as I got there being the person I am I said, "No, No I"m changing this." So I started a stop the killing campaign, a safe sex campaign everything" (Thug - Shakur). Certainly a far cry from his image as a thug. To imagine he was still in high school and already his talents as a revolutionary had evolved. He auditioned for and was accepted at the Baltimore School for the Arts. He studied acting and ballet. He majored in acting and had become a model student. He thrived in an educational environment and he left a lasting impression on his teachers and revealed his tremendous potential.
