Following in the footsteps of Grandmaster Flash and Public Enemy, 2Pac will become the third Hip Hop icon to have his music preserved by the National Recording Registry. His song “Dear Mama,” off 1995’s Me Against the World, was selected as one of the 25 annual inductees into the Registry for its emotional portrayal of his mother struggling poverty and addiction. Each selection into the Registry must at least ten years old and bear some historical, cultural or aesthetic significance.
The rapper’s mother, Afeni Shakur, for whom the song was written, responded to the news of its selection, saying, “I’m incredibly touched. It could have been any song, but I’m honored they chose ‘Dear Mama’ in particular. It is a song that spoke not just to me, but every mother that has been in that situation, and there have been millions of us. Tupac recognized our struggle, and he is still our hero.”
This is not the first time the west coast legend has been honored in such a fashion. In December 2009, the Vatican selected his song “Changes” as one of their 12 Favorite Songs.
