Lesane Parish Crooks, commonly known as Tupac Shakur, is hailed as among the greatest rappers of all time in the hip-hop music genre. In a demist gunshot on September 13, 1996, he passed away after attending a Mike Tyson match (Celestina). Most of Tupac’s ardent supporters consider the theory that his assassination was a conspiracy of silence because it was so unexpected and because he was such a famous musician. Numerous speculations about Tupac’s whereabouts and activities are spreading online. These speculations include an effort to conceal Tupac’s sudden demise to leave fame behind, several possible hiding places for Tupac, and buried clues he may have left behind. There are two main conspiracy theories related to the demise of rapper Tupac Shakur: those claim he is already dead, and others contend he is still alive. Conspiracy theories can form a pragmatist belief system that reinforces one another.
It was well understood that Tupac had a brash demeanor and frequently disputed with people. He had many adversaries because he was a part of the East Coast against the West Coast rapping feud in the 1990s (Celestina). He was regarded as a famous hip-hop artist, with many of his songs tackling various social concerns. People feel that his assassination was deliberate because he was an activist with legal issues. This ultimately has led to the formation of different conspiracy theories. A conspiracy theory is a speculative scheme by influential individuals or groups to collaborate covertly to achieve a specific agenda (Douglas et al.). About half of Americans believe one or more of the common ones. Though not limited to them, the belief is more common among the less educated (Douglas et al.). Even knowledgeable people can fall for conspiracy theories if they coincide with their viewpoints.
The first conspiracy theory is the Machiavelli-Kasinova hypothesis, which claims that Tupac staged his assassination. He was influenced by the philosopher Niccolo Machiavelli, who supported the idea of faking one’s demise to achieve a benefit over one’s opponents. This is among the most well-known hypotheses surrounding Tupac’s murder. The musician later switched his nickname to Makaveli, which makes a tribute to the philosopher (Celestina). It was made up by the contemporary rapper Kasinova the Don, whose lyrical style has been compared to that of Tupac. In addition, Kasinova the Don recorded a song titled Mystery with references to Tupac and his staged demise.
However, other conspiracy theories refute one another; many offer conflicting justifications for the same occurrence. The conspiracy theory that Tupac is living in either Malaysia or Cuba is the subject of a different widely accepted hypothesis. This has contributed to various confirmation biases spread online by other celebrities. The propensity for individuals to embrace evidence that supports their preexisting views or assumptions is known as confirmation bias (Ling 3). People exhibit this bias when evidence is preferentially retained, acquired, or perceived in a biased manner. For instance, the owner of Death Row Records, Suge Knight, claims that he was present when Tupac passed away (Knight 3:10 – 4:22). He questions the validity of the allegation since Tupac appeared to be making progress when he was last seen, leading him to speculate that he is currently living on a Cuban beachfront.
Suge Knight’s son claimed that Tupac resides in Malaysia using dubious proof, including snapshots of phone conversations and pictures. Ultimately, Snoop Dogg clarifies in an interview that while the conspiracy theories make for exciting reading and media streams, his close friend is resting in peace (Celestina). The artist thinks that Tupac’s enormous impact encourages people to think he is still living, which is why they keep spreading the rumor even though it has been more than twenty-six years following his demise. This has proven that confirmation bias is an effective information processing method due to the many facts individuals are subjected to online. Since evaluating every fragment of information available critically is impossible, people typically search for the information they need to support their beliefs.
Many psychological aspects support the notion that Tupac is still alive. Generally, most of the hypotheses make use of different assumptions. People often assume that Tupac never really passed away since the assassin has never been proven to be found, which is absurd. Second, there is no actual proof to support the claims that Tupac faked his demise, even though his fixation with Machiavelli and the nickname of Makaveli are presented as justifications. Furthermore, the media is a significant contributor to cognitive bias because they primarily report on content that supports the conspiracy theory since it makes for even more interesting reading (Moravec et al. 3). It is important to support a claim from a contrary assumption because one of the key allegations is that Suge Knight, the person sitting beside Tupac, was not harmed even though Tupac was assassinated. As a result, Tupac might not have died from the attack.
Confirmation bias is resilient, which is another explanation for cognitive dissonance. When an individual maintains two opposing views, cognitive dissonance, a psychological contradiction, arises and stresses the individual immensely. People become accustomed to confirmation bias by suppressing evidence that clashes with their convictions and looking for evidence that backs them to reduce this cognitive dissonance (Ling 5). Problem aversion and validation-seeking adversely affect people’s thinking because encountering unfavorable facts lead to negative feelings, whereas positive feelings are absent when looking for evidentiary support.
Therefore, cognitive dissonance contributes to the persistence of the conspiracy theory since supporters are unwilling to accept the possibility that the famous artist could have probably died. These individuals discover information supporting their belief that Tupac is still alive, which justifies disposing of any suspicions about the integrity of his claimed demise. No substantial forensic proof would enable individuals to reach this judgment. Instead, there are manipulated images, ambiguous parts that are given meaning, and unverified comments made by other entertainers, which proves that all these individuals are misled. Both supporters and conspiracy theorists who desire to believe in something unique make up the society of fundamentalists (Moravec et al. 5). Media platforms and the periodic release of new information help maintain their convictions.
Additionally, individuals are prone to deception and are inclined to accept whatever they read on the internet, including digitally altered pictures. Even though the Tupac conspiracy theory has been around for twenty-six years, there is no solid proof that it is accurate. Due to the controversy that accompanied Tupac throughout his lifespan and the popularity of his core audience. The correlations that suggest anything besides dying might be made, which could be the foundation of the conspiracy hypothesis. Cognitive dissonance and confirmation bias play significant roles in the tale because none of the assumptions have solid bases that contribute to logical deduction.
In conclusion, conspiracy theories could serve particular epistemic objectives at the cost of others, such as protecting ideas from ambiguity despite having a lower probability of being truthful. People who cannot examine them logically need to be aware of conspiracy theories’ epistemic flaws. Conspiracy theory is associated with low analytical thinking and low educational attainment. Additionally, it has been linked to the inclination to overstate the chance of founder occurrences and to assume action and purpose where none reflect reality.
Works Cited
Celestina, Elsa. “Tupac Isn’t Dead!!” The Psychology of Extraordinary Beliefs, 2019, Web.
Douglas, Karen M, et al. “Understanding Conspiracy Theories.” Onlinelibrary.wiley.com, 2019, Web.
Ling, Rich. “Confirmation Bias in the Era of Mobile News Consumption: The Social and Psychological Dimensions.” Taylor & Francis, 2020, Web.
Moravec, Patricia, et al. “Fake News on Social Media: People Believe What They Want to Believe When It Makes No Sense at All.” SSRN, Web.
Knight, Suge, performer. (RARE) Suge Knight Interview. September 19, 1996! #FreeSUGE. YouTube, Web.