Tupac’s Earliest Recordings to Be Released!
Damn, so they're STILL trying to profit off of this great man's untimely death. However, this seems to be a little different, and perhaps with a little more integrity, than the other posthumous releases thus far. Interestingly enough, these recordings are acapella joints that were recorded in 1988, when a 16-year old Tupac was part of a group called Born Busy and went by the moniker MC New York. The album will be called "Shakurspeare," a reference to Pac's teenage dream of becoming a Shakespearean actor. This is definitively a piece of hip-hop history and will probably be an essential artifact for any collector or avid head. The tracks were recorded in Baltimore with Pac's lifelong friend and collaborator Darrin Keith Bastfield, CEO of Born Busy Records. Now Bastfield has decided to remaster and release the verses, set to contemporary music. Chronicling the process, Bastfield explained, "Through technology the vocals were able be extracted, digitally mastered, and put to contemporary music that was produced in 2008. I wanted to keep the recordings as close to the vein of our ideas from back in the day. As far as new material to assist with the concept of the album as being like an audio documentary, I chose to work with producers and artists in my own backyard which are native of Baltimore, Maryland which includes International Jazz recording artist Maysa. My life and times with Tupac Shakur all happened in Baltimore, so I wanted the spirit of the Shakurspeare album, just as the book, to stay consistent." This looks like it could either be crazy good or a terrible flop. We'll just have to wait and see. Either way it is a testament to the prolific spirit of Pac's legacy.
Darrin Keith Bastfield on Wed, 29th Jul 2009 3:13 pm
I really appreciate the post online here in regards to the Shakurspeare Album. I am the producer Darrin Keith Bastfield. In regards to Shakurspeare being another project making profit, I didn’t do this project for purposes of making profit as it is nothing wrong with making profit with your created works. Shakurspeare is more of my sole commitment to put out something positive about Tupac on the 13th Anniversary of his untimely demise. I did it for spiritual reasons as I know that 13 IS A POWERFUL number dating back to pre-christian times that represents rebirth and renewal. I had to complete this and seriously wasn’t sure of how I was going to do it in a manner that would really open peoples minds to the beauty of brilliant black youth raised in and overcoming unfortunate circumstances. I originally wanted the recordings to be a part of my book “Back in the Day:My life and times with Tupac Shakur.”
The first thing that comes to peoples minds is money which I can understand totally because everything today is about money. Hip Hop didn’t use to be like that as artist today are compromising their art when it comes to money and what sells. That is the thinking that I want to change and show that this project is about the ART and appreciating young artists with dreams of becoming something great. Most artists have had those same desires as a young person and if they didn’t it is a shame and lack of love in direction in their lives. Tupac no matter how poor and what went on in his household still had love and encouragement fed to him and I witnessed it.
I am doing this project independently for I really don’t expect to make a great deal from this project as it is more of a nosatalgic glimspe into our younger years. Tupac’s estate will get what Tupac supposed to get as if he was still alive to further support their efforts. I am using what I make to help fund a Gifted and Talented program for children not just through the musical works, but sales from the artwork “Shakurspeare” as well. If I didn’t take on this project independantly myself, the world would never hear Tupac’s very first recordings that he did with Born Busy. Tupac and I had a vision of how we wanted the feel of the music to be back in the day. Even though there will be outakes of the original recordings we did, I decided to make the quality of the recodings much better than they were being they were on a cassette tape. We added a cross between new school/old school production to compliment the works close to the vein of what Tupac and I envisioned. We have added new material to help tell the story throughout the album to give context and so it also meet the standards of radio to touch new audiences.
I hope that people see what my mission is and appreciate the work that I put together. I remember back in the day when rap artist would make 3 songs and send their demos to New York record companies in hopes of getting a deal. Shakurspeare in the form of an audio documentary reflects that time and 21 years later things are so different.
I actually worked for Columbia Records as a marketing and promotions intern in 1988. I took the very recordings that are on the Shakurspeare Album upstairs from my office to the A&R at Def Jam at the time who had a pile of tapes on his desk. After I played the tape ,he told me “NO” and that we sound to much like L.L. Cool J and Run DMC. He and I had it out real bad and I told him that he didn’t know what he was talking about. Back then they were our influences and they were the true pioneers of bringing rap music to the main stream. I am not trying to compare any rapper today with Tupac, I am simply trying to take us back in history to a time and place outside of New York when rap was fun and we loved it despite critics saying it was a fad.
I want listeners and fans of Hip Hop to open their minds and not just think about the money, or the music, but the spirit behind my message to share the earliest works ever of one of the most talked about Hip Hop Artist of our time.
Best regards,
Darrin Keith Bastfield
Darrin Keith Bastfield on Wed, 29th Jul 2009 3:19 pm
If you all like to know more g to http://www.Shakurspeare.com or just click on my name above.
Jama on Mon, 15th Feb 2010 5:44 am
Is there a way of make a pre-release order for this project? I ‘m dying to live with Pac at 18!