TUPAC SHAKUR'S, "CHANGES"

In Tupac Shakur’s song “Changes,” he unveils the social issues in the U.S, specifically targeting the struggles of the African American community versus society. Firstly, it is worth mentioning that the song’s title “changes” greatly reflects the meaning of the song as Tupac reveals societies discrimination towards blacks. This can be seen in the first stanza of which he raps, “pull the trigger, kill a nigga, he’s a hero” when talking about cops (also referred to as “devil”), but then only a couple lines down says that “2 shots in the dark, now Huey is dead”. Quoting this, one can see that there is racism directed towards African Americans (particularly in the inner city), and with that comes hypocrisy as his friend Huey, just by defending himself, was shot by the supposed “hero.” Moreover, it is evident that Tupac utilizes imagery in order to pertain his life being raised in the ghetto. The audience, when reading the fifth stanza should mentally highlight the line, “there’s war on the streets and the war in the Middle East” as this hyperbole creates the image of war in the reader’s head, allowing them to come to a realization that war is not distant, but just outside their door. Of course, this underlines the name of the song again, as its purpose is to bring attention to the masses that might be sheltered from knowing this reality. To support this point further, repetitions throughout the song such as “come on”, “each other”, and “change” (which is used excessively in the second-last stanza as a kind-of conclusion), articulate the meaning even more to the point of which the audience cannot help but sympathise for Tupac and his discriminated community. On a less somber note, Tupac’s inclusion of his African American vernacular English (i.e. “ya” for “you”, and “ain’t” for “are not”) allows him to let his pride for his sociolect slightly peak through as he rebels in demonstrating his true self by not conforming to societies “proper English”.  Knowing this, the reader can state that Tupac is attempting to signify that diversity in culture is a positive trait in a community and not something to be prejudice towards. This way of thinking can be seen when the rapper writes, “take the evil out of people…” and then states, “cause both black and white are smokin’ crack tonight.” Additionally, Tupac includes numerous rhetorical questions such as “now tell me what’s a mother to do?” and, “can’t a brother get a little peace?” in order to constantly demand the reader to reflect on their own community in comparison with his, therein re-establishing the feeling of pity (and perhaps guilt) in their hearts. To conclude, “Changes” was, and still is, one of the most influential songs ever made for its ability to invite members of all communities to rethink their notions of the world for the hope that individuals take the initiative to correct injustices.