Better Late Than Never: First Estate Approved Biography of Tupac Shakur To Be Released in October

Fans of West Coast legend Tupac Shakur are finally getting the biography they deserve.

The story of the late rapper’s life, authorized by his estate, will be published later this year. Titled Tupac Shakur: The Authorized Biography, the book is being penned, as reported by Independent, by author and friend of Tupac, Staci Robinson. The book will explore the “controversial” artist who “continues to be one of the most misunderstood, complicated and prolific figures in modern history. Shakur’s mother, Afeni Shakur, entrusted Robinson to write the book.

Starting at the beginning of the civil rights movement, the book follows Shakur’s “awakening” and development through the early 1990s. It takes a deep dive into the rapper’s world-famous music and the messages that continue to touch and inspire past, present, and future generations. “My hope is that this book offers a new lens through which to explore Tupac’s complicated yet beautiful legacy,” Robinson said.

“I wanted to help readers understand him and view him not just as a rap artist and actor and entertainer, but as a human being—a man with a passionate message, a son who listened to his mother, and a loving brother.”

Published by Penguin Random House UK, Tupac Shakur will “peel back the myths and unpack the complexities that have shadowed his existence.” Music and book fans will receive exclusive access to his private notebooks, letters, unpublished lyrics, and uncensored conversations with the rapper’s loved ones. The rapper’s death shocked the world after he was shot in Las Vegas in 1996 at 25.

The life of the deceased rapper is highlighted in more ways than a book. A docuseries on the relationship between Pac and his mother, “Dear Mama,” is set to be released on FX and Hulu on April 21. Director Allen Hughes told GM3 that the series would make the audience feel like they know both Tupac and Afeni. “This is Tupac’s love note to his mother, you know, and the movement and to any Black women in the struggle and men in the struggle.”