The 2Pac-centered FX docuseries Dear Mama has gotten a full length trailer ahead of its forthcoming debut, and it shows the powerful connection between the late rapper and his late mother, Afeni Shakur.
In the two-minute clip released on Wednesday (March 22), a 17-year-old ‘Pac discusses life growing up with his mom and the effects of her activism while being a Black Panther had on their relationship.
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“My mother taught me to analyze society and not be quiet,” the young rapper says in the clip. “If there’s something on my mind, speak it. Because – I gotta reiterate it – my mother was a Black Panther and she was very involved in the movement.”
There is audio from Afeni as well in the clip. “It was very difficult for me to be a mom, but I knew very well how to protect my children,” she says.
Dear Mama is set to premiere on April 21, with the first two of five episodes released concurrently. The remaining three parts will then be delivered weekly on the following three Fridays. The show will also stream on Hulu one day after its network broadcast.
Earlier this year, executive producer Allen Hughes — who directed the Dr. Dre and Jimmy Iovine docuseries The Defiant Ones — shared details about the project during a presentation at the Television Critics Awards winter press tour.
During his chat with the media, Hughes explained that he and his team prioritized finding and using previously unreleased audio and video content of Afeni Shakur and her son.
“Wherever possible, we tried to find archival footage that hadn’t been seen so there’s a lot that we have in the five parts,” he explained. “There’s also audio that’s never been heard. And not just some of his acapellas and vocals, there is a lot of stuff of 2Pac from his baby years that had never been seen.”
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“For 2Pac superfans, I believe that two of the most important things in the project is the never seen before [footage],” Hughes continued. “But most importantly, you get to understand why he made certain decisions.”
The new docuseries borrows its name from 2Pac’s 1995 hit single, which hears the late star detail the at-times tumultuous relationship he and his mother shared, highlighting the parts of his childhood that were marked by financial hardship and his mother’s addiction.
