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The truth behind the movie. Hidden Figures is based upon a true story.

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Writer and Producer of "Hidden Figures"

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Hidden Figures | Breaking Boundaries | 20th Century FOX

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HIDDEN FIGURES is the incredible untold story of Katherine G. Johnson (Taraji P. Henson), Dorothy Vaughan (Octavia Spencer) and Mary Jackson (Janelle Monáe)-brilliant African-American women working at NASA, who served as the brains behind one of the greatest operations in history: the launch of astronaut John Glenn into orbit, a stunning achievement that restored the nation's confidence, turned around the Space Race, and galvanized the world.

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Freedom Writers is based on a true story.

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Producer and Writer of Freedom Writers

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This clip is from the beginning of the movie.

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Intercultural

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Afeni Shakur "Things I Miss About My Son"

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Tu Pac Shakur and his importance to the world

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Tu Pac Shakur and his importance to the world

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I had a conversation with a couple of people the other day about the importance of Tupac. Somebody told me that Tupac wasn't one of the most globally known, or internationally recognized Black people ever. Another person said that his music wasn't politically or socially relevant; that he wasn't as important to Black music as Bob Marley.

All of this is just a couple of weeks after Blender Magazine said Pac was the most overrated musician of all-time.

So is the world coming to the end? Was Tupac really not that important, then and now?

Tupac was the most important Hip-Hop artist ever. He was important not just for what he did, but for what he said.

Whether it is twelve years after he pasted away, or seven days after the anniversary of his death, we must never forget what Pac contributed to the world in his short time here.

With the amount of books, documentaries, and articles produced on Tupac's life, I never thought I'd be put in a position to have to defend Pac's importance to Black people. I thought the fact that scholars like Michael Eric Dyson and Mark Anthony Neal, and institutions like University of Cal-Berkeley, studied Tupac was enough to justify his significance. I figured the murals of him in Brazil, the respect for him in Cuba, and the people who asked me about him in South Africa was a testament to his global impact. Perhaps being studied in a college classroom isn't enough to show Pac's importance to American history. And maybe Brazil and Cuba don't show his global meaning.

Maybe time makes us forgetful.

But for those of us that love Hip-Hop, and believe in the struggle and glory of Black people in this world, we must always remember and celebrate how important what our prince did (and the message he brought) was to this world.

Tupac was the window to the soul of the first post-Black Power/Civil Rights generation. He is indicative of that generation in so many tangible and intangible ways.

His name shows his ties to the African Diasporic tradition: Pac was named after the Tupac Amaru, the leader of Peru's indigenous rebellion against the Spanish Empire's conquest of the Inca people. His mother (Afeni Shakur) and stepfather (Mutulu Shakur) were Black Panthers, and instilled in him a Black consciousness that showed him the history and power of his people. He enjoyed the best that America had to offer: Pac had a childhood education that allowed him to read Shakespeare, study Theater, and participate in the arts; he was well read, as evident by his reading and studing of political philosopher Niccolò Machiavelli's The Prince leading him to name his last recorded album The Don Killuminati: The 7 Day Theory. His music allowed him to reap the financial benefits our society offers.

Growing up without a father, raised by a mother battling a drug addiction, and living in Harlem, Baltimore, and Oakland, he also saw the dark side of his generation: Drugs, poverty, and broken homes.

Education. Success. Poverty. It's indicative of the struggle; the gift and the curse.

This story, this complexity, came out in the way Pac lived his life and in the music he produced. He wrote about how much he loved his mother despite her addiction ( Dear Mama). He was misogynistic, sexist, and vulgar. He displayed sophistication and militancy in his music ( Rebel of the Underground), while expressing charisma and intellect in his interviews. He crafted stories of urban Black life that was resonating for the time ( Brenda's Got a Baby). He could uplift and inspire ( Keep Ya Head Up). But most importantly, he wasn't afraid to be vulnerable ( So Many Tears, Pain); Pac wasn't afraid to bear his soul as witness to the struggle and pride of being Black in America.

Author, educator, and artist Dax-Devlon Ross gives perhaps one of the most poignant testimonies to what Tupac meant in his book, "The Nightmare and the Dream: Nas, Jay-Z, and the History of Conflict in African-American Culture:"

"I was a 21 year-old college student the night 'Pac died. I wasn't a thug or a gangsta. I hadn't grown up in poverty. My parents hadn't marched with King. I'd never been to jail. I'd never been shot. I'd never sold drugs...Existentially, though, we were kindred spirits. He showed me that I didn't have to be the most intelligent or gifted person to bear my soul on the page...He let me know that it was ok to be vulnerable.

More than any other artist, Tupac explored the tensions stemming from our generation's desire, and in some senses demand, to 'keep it real.' Hip-hop was born and bred by those people and in those communities that were left behind; by the children and grandchildren of those who didn't make it to college and couldn't enter the middle class...For Tupac that cultural experience wasn't embedded in a single community, but in the soul of every community that knew poverty and the chaos it wrought."

It is all these things that endeared Tupac Shakur to a generation, to the public, and to people all over the world.

This is why the life of Tupac Shakur is so important.

Many of us know this; millions of people across the world know this. And that is exactly why we must continue to remember him, and never downplay his significant because he is that important to us...Until The End Of Time.
http://my.rawkus.com/profile/ForeThought
michaelpartis@gmail.com

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The 7 Day Theory: Remembering Why Tupac is Important

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I had a conversation with a couple of people the other day about the importance of Tupac. Somebody told me that Tupac wasn't one of the most globally known, or internationally recognized Black people ever. Another person said that his music wasn't politically or socially relevant; that he wasn't as important to Black music as Bob Marley.

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Lyrics to the song, "Dear Mama"

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Genre: Rap, HipHop
Song: Dear Mama

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Famous quote by the artist himself, Toby Keith

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Pictured is a portion of the chorus to Toby Keith's Patriot song.

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Toby Keith plays "Courtesy of the Red, White, and Blue" and the Trump Inauguration

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Toby Keith Courtesy of the Red White and Blue

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Performed at President Elect, Donald Trump's, "Make America Great Welcome Concert".

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Genre: Country
Song: Courtesy of the Red, White, and Blue

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Alessia Cara shares with ABC news the story behind "Scars to Your Beautiful"

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So it's how may I let up. It's a few weeks ago when you turn twenty years old you released new video your latest wine and the song has scars to your beautiful. When you're going to be Foreman for us later can tell us about what it means let the song is about yak arms so I think you know there are so many ex. Vacations. Placed on women in the song is about for so much about self acceptance mean for. And women in general. Com and there's so many expectations that are placed on us at went on a daily basis whether it's. The way we look the way we dress what size we need to be what color we should be all these expectation that all these molds that we have to fit into. We're that we think we need to fit into your and often times because of this. We feel like we need to go through all the extremes to love ourselves you know whether that's altering our bodies are doing things to ourselves and scarring the beautiful valley RD have. I'm in order to feel beautiful and and I think that's so false and so twisted and I wanted to make a song to remind everybody that. The world needs to change their minds about you but you never need to change for the world because. That I adore and respect about you it is your comfort ability with yourself and the fact that you don't need. A whole bunch of makeup and glitz and glamour to perform on stage however. That also due to backlash on the social media is that because girl I wish I could come out a statement to make a you don't need that no peace. And so maddening to I don't but my eyebrows so. Tell me how you deal with it I'm yeah it hard. Because I'm I'm still I mean I just turned twenty but I'm still really young in in with with young age sometimes comes. I'm self esteem issues and I'm still I'm still dealing with of course you know I still go through these things and when I see things online it does sometimes get to me because I am coming to the industry stuff but. I just. Try to remind myself that I'm here to sing my songs on here to beef lamb and I'm not here to you know impress anybody unsuited to be much. Eighteen herself great model black. Tell a little bit about the video because it's so powerful how did you come up with the concept. Hmmm yeah so what I really I knew when we need the song that I really wanted to be eaten. Just about all kinds of different people I wanted people to be able to tell their stories so I didn't want to just be like. He's a bunch of pictures over myself I want people to be able to tell this story so if you see the video I don't think CNET but if you see it yet cool it just about little anecdotes and people. That had whether it's internal scars or external scars visible things at you know they they struggle and just basically just describe how they overcame. Those struggles and how they. Got to the place that they are that the comfortable place that this that there now he wearing now pointer with one of the biggest Willis fate as the meeting began and how did that come about. I'm Maginnis normally play by the Cole. Trade the end there my favorite band to like Chris Martin's. My favorite writers of all time so. I'd freaked out it actually we have the same agent and so apparently. I'm the band asked our agent I was available. To launch around like OK yeah.

This transcript has been automatically generated and may not be 100% accurate.

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Video: Alessia Cara Tells the Story Behind 'Scars To Your Beautiful'

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So it's how may I let up. It's a few weeks ago when you turn twenty years old you released new video your latest wine and the song has scars to your beautiful. When you're going to be Foreman for us later can tell us about what it means let the song is about yak arms so I think you know there are so many ex.

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This is one of my favorite lyrics to this song. This song is such an inspiration to women dealing with insecurities.

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Alessia Cara - Scars To Your Beautiful (Official Video)

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Genre: R&B
Song: Scars to Your Beautifu