Murdered United States rap artist and actor Tupac Shakur is to find a final resting place in the South African township of Soweto, where his ashes are to be buried as part of a memorial project planned by local authorities and his relatives, it was reported on Wednesday.
Shakur, the world’s biggest-selling rap artist who was gunned down in Las Vegas a decade ago, is somewhat revered by youth in townships across South Africa.
Local authorities, the US-based Tupac Foundation and singer Macy Gray have agreed to a five-phase memorial site in his honour in the Soweto community of Zola where his ashes are to be buried, The Star newspaper said.
Park authorities in Johannesburg have set aside two hectares of undeveloped land in Zola for the development that will include orphanages, a park to encourage environmental education among children, walkways, bridges, a golf range and skateboard ramps, the newspaper said.
Shakur’s mother, Afeni Shakur, Gray and members of the rapper’s former backing band the Outlawz, are expected to arrive for a visit to the country next week and participate in an MTV Base concert in central Johannesburg on September 16.
More than a million people live in Soweto, the country’s largest township that was built a century ago to house local black people and migrants who helped build and run the city.
South Africa’s own socially conscious musician, television presenter and actor Zola, who has modelled himself on Shakur, is reportedly playing a key role in the tribute to Shakur in the township where he was raised and where rap and hip-hop music genres are particularly appreciated.
Shakur’s death spawned a strong legacy with documentaries, a clothing range, conspiracy theories and increased interest in his career and record sales of his albums that included 2Pacalypse Now and All eyez on me. — Sapa-dpa