Songoftheday 1/13/19 - 'Cause oh they sweat a brother majorly, and I don't know why your girl keeps paging me...
from the album Strictly 4 My N.I.G.G.A.Z. (1993)
Billboard Hot 100 peak: #11 (two weeks)
Weeks in the Top-40: 15
Today's song of the day comes from rapper Tupac ("2Pac") Shakur, who was born in New York City the son of two members of the radical Black Panther Party activist group in the 1970s. As a teen his family relocated to Baltimore, where he entered and excelled at performance arts school, before again being up heaved to the Northern California suburbs. A mentor hooked him up with the hip-hop group Digital Underground, who took him on as a dancer then a member (originally as MC New York). But it wasn't long for 2Pac to secure a solo recording deal, releasing his debut album 2Pacalypse Now in 1991. The lead single, "Brenda's Got A Baby", was a stunning slice of a poor young girl's tragic life that to this day remains my favorite of his entire work. The song became his first hit, reaching #23 on Billboard magazine's R&B chart and #3 on their Rap Singles chart. Two years later, he returned with his sophomore effort, Strictly 4 My N.I.G.G.A.Z. (the final letters supposedly standing for "Never Ignorant Getting Goals Accomplished"). While the first release from the set, "Holla If Ya Hear Me", was also compellingly topical, it failed to get an audience on urban radio, which was straying to feel-good novelty anthems at that time. That changed with the second release from the set, "I Get Around", which was a lyrical 180 from the lead single. Written by 2Pac over carefully meshed samples of Zapp's "Computer Love" and the Honeydrippers' "Impeach The President", the record was a laid back brag about the good parts of his life, featuring old Digital Underground compadres Shock G and Money B. In going with that spirit, the music video put the trio in a (presumedly rented) mansion where there were no cares but "gettin' down". Hence the mainstream radio pickup on this one was strong...
"I Get Around" became 2Pac's first top-40 pop hit, stopping one notch away from the top ten in October of 1993. The song also climbed to #5 on Billboard's R&B chart, while getting to #8 on their Rap Singles chart.
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Here's 2Pac, Shock G, and Money B appearing live on Arsenio Hall to perform the track...
And lastly, from MTV Jams at a live concert shot...
Up tomorrow: Boston rockers aren't happy at all.
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