Hip Hop Has Saved My Life

I would like to thank Lupe Fiasco for so eloquently summing up my life story with his hit song "Hip Hop Has Saved My Life" (if you havn't heard the song it is on my playlist). I grew up on the mean streets of Pleasant Grove. However, we couldn't afford walkmans or ghettoblasters so as a youngster I wasn't keen to the hip hop game. This all changed when I was 21 years old and flipping through the channels and came across a Tupac music video for the song Changes.

Tupac's demeanor and words spoke to me, so I went directly to the nearest Circuit City and purchased Tupac's greatest hits (and a $30 VCR which I still own, but I digress). I popped disk one into my Geo Prizm's CD player and started rollin around town with my speakers rattlin. Disk one was a great experience, but then the culmination came on disk two, which is loaded with poignant tracks ranging from Brenda's Got a Baby to Changes to California Love to Picture Me Rollin.

I let the lyrics pour over me as I felt that finally someone could speak to the true pain on the streets on a larger platform.

From that day forward I have embraced the "Thug Life" Code which was created by Tupac and follows:

"I didnt create T.H.U.G. L.I.F.E., I diagnosed it." Tupac Shakur.

In 1992 at the Truc Picnic in Cali, Tupac was instrumental in getting rival members of the Crips and Bloods to sign the Code Of THUG LIFE.

THUG LIFE CODE:

1. All new Jacks to the game must know: a) Hes going to get rich. b) Hes going to jail. c) Hes going to die.

2. Crew Leaders: You are responsible for legal/financial payment commitments to crew members; your word must be your bond.

3. One crews rat is every crews rat. Rats are now like a disease; sooner or later we all get it; and they should too.

4. Crew leader and posse should select a diplomat, and should work ways to settle disputes. In unity, there is strength!

5. Car jacking in our Hood is against the Code.

6. Slinging to children is against the Code.

7. Having children slinging is against the Code.

8. No slinging in schools.

9. Since the rat Nicky Barnes opened his mouth; ratting has become accepted by some. Were not having it.

10. Snitches is outta here.

11. The Boys in Blue dont run nothing; we do. Control the Hood, and make it safe for squares.

12. No slinging to pregnant Sisters. Thats baby killing; thats genocide!

13. Know your target, whos the real enemy.

14. Civilians are not a target and should be spared.

15. Harm to children will not be forgiven.

16. Attacking someones home where their family is known to reside, must be altered or checked.

17. Senseless brutality and rape must stop.

18. Our old folks must not be abused.

19. Respect our Sisters. Respect our Brothers.

20. Sisters in the Life must be respected if they respect themselves.

21. Military disputes concerning business areas within the community must be handled professionally and not on the block.

22. No shooting at parties.

23. Concerts and parties are neutral territories; no shooting!

24. Know the Code; its for everyone.

25. Be a real ruff neck. Be down with the code of the Thug Life.

26. Protect yourself at all times.

I find numbers 4 and 12 to be highly inspirational and thought provoking. If only we would have had a similar code when I was growing up in P.G., perhaps we could have avoided much of the senseless crime that infiltrated our hood.

For those of you who think I may be joking about P.G., I would direct you to the online urban dictionary to look up Pleasant Grove (Advisory the acutal site may contain explicit language), a few snippets:

"Pleasant Grove is, without a doubt, the "krunkest" place"

"Pleasant Grove has 3 times as many murders as Oak Cliff, 12 times as many r****, 5 times as many armed robberies, and is one of the leading problems in America as far as illegall-y exported arms."

"In Pleasant Grove news coverage has stopped depicting violent crimes in its articles because its old news. People die here everyday, it's nothin'."

Also recent news articles:

http://deseretnews.com/dn/view/0,5143,700235373,00.html http://deseretnews.com/dn/view/0,1249,600106573,00.html

Interestingly I have a long history with the officer mentioned in the second link, Cody Cullimore. Surprisingly our relationship is not crime related rather he was my cub scout leader.

"Life in the Hood is all Good for Nobody!" we miss you Tupac, RIP (unless you are really not dead....then I would say keep releasing these excellent albums).