Dear Mama (TV series)

***Dear Mama: The Saga of Afeni and Tupac Shakur*** is a five-part documentary miniseries directed by Allen Hughes, titled after 2Pac's 1995 single "Dear Mama". It premiered on April 21, 2023, on FX, streaming to Hulu the following day. Formerly titled *Outlaw*, it details the relationship between Tupac and his mother, Afeni Shakur.

Hughes explained, "the title *Dear Mama* means to me what they stood for. I wanted the audience to see why this is a timely, eternal struggle where, even when you get to the mountaintop, you have to stay vigilant to maintain the wins. Tupac's song "Dear Mama" just encapsulated this is about that woman's struggle with those human rights. It's all connected."

According to FX Entertainment's ratings, it was their most watched premiere for an unscripted series ever. The president of FX said in a press statement, "It's only fitting that Allen Hughes definitive piece on Tupac and Afeni Shakur delivered a record performance for us and it speaks to Tupac's enduring legacy. Allen's examination of Tupac viewed through the prism of his mother Afeni is a fascinating take that really gets beneath the education and experience that shaped his life and inspired him to become one of the greatest artists ever."

## Synopsis

From Allen Hughes, the award-winning director of critically acclaimed The Defiant Ones, comes FX's *Dear Mama*, a deeply personal five-part series that defies the conventions of traditional documentary storytelling to share an illuminating saga of mother and son, Afeni and Tupac Shakur.

Afeni Shakur was a revolutionary, an intellect and a voice for the people. She became a feminist darling of the '70s, a female leader in the movement amidst the macho milieu of the Black Panther Party. Tupac was a rapper and poet, a political visionary and philosopher who became known as one of the greatest rap artists of all time. In addition to becoming a global sex symbol and media favorite for his outspoken and sometimes outrageous antics, he would eventually become the poster child for modern Black activism. Their story chronicles the possibilities and contradictions of the United States from a time of revolutionary fervor to Hip Hop culture's most ostentatious decade.

FX's *Dear Mama* is both an audio and visual experience. Tupac's timeless message is undeniable as beats evaporate into soundscapes and his lyrics revealed to be mantras of passion and politics. It eschews strict chronology for a style that slides back and forth in time, finding linkages between mother and son, 1970s and 1990s, black activism and hip hop, that highlight how much has and has not changed in the struggle for human rights. Through this technique, the eras speak to each other and melt time away, shifting the dual narratives into one definitive portrait of a global superstar and the woman who shaped him, forever linked by love and fate.

## Cast

* Tupac Shakur (archival footage)
* Afeni Shakur (archival footage)
* Joanna Gentry as Afeni Shakur
* Mimi Fletcher as Gloria Cox
* Snoop Dogg
* Eminem
* Mike Tyson
* Dr. Dre
* Gobi M. Rahimi
* E.D.I. Mean
* Chopmaster-J
* Atron Gregory

## Background

Hughes was approached of doing the project by the request of Shakur's family and estate, but was initially hesitant. He began to do research, and was able to have access to all of Shakur's writings, recordings, and diaries. He explained to *Deadline*, "The one thing I need people to understand about this piece is, I didn't want to do this is because there are rabid fans of Tupac out there, and I didn't know if I wanted to emotionally re-litigate the past. [...] I wanted to understand Tupac. I wanted to find the meaning in his journey. I didn't want it to be just chaos. [...] We've all heard about the way Tupac tragically died, but what we don't know was what he was born into. That there was an expectation from the Black Panther Party and his family. They had an expectation. I didn't know any of that. What does that burden mean? What does that trauma mean?" The first episode was screened at the Toronto Film Festival on September 15, 2022, in Canada.

The project was first teased in 2019, followed by a teaser clip released on May 8, 2022, to coincide with Mother's Day in the United States. It was declared to be released in the fall, though was pushed back to the Spring of 2023 instead. The third official teaser dropped to FX's YouTube channel on December 25, 2022. Hughes revealed that there will be never-seen-before footage, including audio. The first two episodes of the series debuted on April 21, subsequently followed by an episode each week.

To *Billboard*, Hughes explained of focusing "through the eyes of" those who were close to 2Pac or there at the time, as well as its connection to his relationship with his mother. In a 2023 interview with *The Associated Press*, Hughes said of the social injustices:

>
> Tupac really moved me when he says "We're poor because our ideals always got in the way." Principles don't pay. There's not big bucks in morals. But to see that woman so ahead of her time. Her main focus was equipping this young Black boy to protect himself here first with his mind, with the knowledge of self. When you hear in the first episode why she named him Tupac, it's because she wanted to make sure he knew Black people weren't the only people that were made to suffer like this in the world. This is a global. This is a human condition. He was named after a famous South American martyr. That tells you how worldwide she was and curious. I think that's inspiring to anyone from our generation: white, Black and Asian, whatever.
>
>
>
>

## Episodes

 2
 3
 4
 5
 After attending a Tyson fight in Las Vegas, Tupac is shot and killed; Afeni is paralyzed with grief after the death of her son; she manages to secure Tupac's legacy.

## Reception

### Critical response

*Dear Mama* received highly positive reviews from critics. On the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film has a 100% approval rating from critics based on 7 reviews. On Metacritic, the film had an average score of 78 out of 100, based on 4 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".

Judy Berman for *Time Magazine* penned, "Paired with intimate reflections and philosophical insights from the Shakurs' closest relatives as well as peers in hip-hop and activism, it adds up to one of the most thorough, sensitive portraits I've seen of an artist who has by now been eulogized for longer than he was alive—and of the remarkable woman who created him." In Joshua Alston's review for *Variety*, he wrote, "The tone is quite different—more elegiac than exhilarating—but fitting for a posthumous celebration of Afeni [...] Beyond its intimate and nuanced portrayal of their relationship, "Dear Mama" miniaturizes a huge swath of Black life without diluting it." *The Hollywood Reporter*'s Daniel Fienberg stated that while the screentime wasn't evenly split between the two, he believed the biopic to be insightful. He observed the challenges for documenting "the violent chapters in Tupac's life" and the quick pacing due to it being non-chronological, but concluded that "the challenges feel right for the subject." Nick Allen from RogerEbert.com opined, "is best looked at as a portrait made of splattered paint and by a seasoned hand, inspired by wisdom mined from hard memories. It is meant to have its flourishes looked at close-up, but also appreciated for the larger shapes that appear when one steps back and sees the full scope."

## Gallery

**@DearMamaFX**: "Congratulations to the cast and crew of Dear Mama: The Saga of Afeni and Tupac Shakur on their Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Series Emmy nomination. #Emmys"
* July 12, 2023
* Twitter

## References

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Fleming Jr., Mike (September 15, 2022). "Allen Hughes on TIFF Premiere of Tupac Shakur Docuseries 'Dear Mama'; How Filmmaker Confronts Own Beat Down at Hands of Tupac & Entourage Onscreen". *Deadline*.
2. ↑ Bell, BreAnna (April 28, 2023). "'Dear Mama' Becomes FX's Most-Watched Premiere Ever for an Unscripted Series". *Variety*.
3. ↑ "Tupac Docuseries 'Dear Mama': Release Date, Plot, Trailer & More". *Capital Xtra*. May 10, 2022.
4. ↑ McClain, Jasmine (December 28, 2022). "'Dear Mama' Docuseries Explores Tupac's Relationship with His Mom". *Rolling Out*.
5. ↑ Cordero, Rosy (January 12, 2023). "'Dear Mama': FX Sets Premiere for Tupac Docuseries, EP Teases Exclusive New Content to Be Featured". *Deadline*.
6. ↑ Rindner, Grant (April 18, 2023). "How 'Dear Mama,' the Best Tupac Doc Yet, Got Made". *Billboard*.
7. ↑ Landrum, Jonathan (April 21, 2023). "Q&A: Why 'Dear Mama' Director Took on Tupac Despite Attack". *ABC News*.
8. ↑ "*Dear Mama*". *Rotten Tomatoes*. Archived from the original on June 2, 2008. Retrieved July 27, 2023.
9. ↑ "*Dear Mama* Critic Reviews". *Metacritic*. Retrieved July 27, 2023.
10. ↑ Berman, Judy (April 28, 2023). "The 6 Best New TV Shows Our Critic Watched in April 2023". *Time*.
11. ↑ Alston, Joshua (April 21, 2023). "FX's 'Dear Mama' Is a Poignant, Passionate Portrait of Tupac and Afeni Shakur from Director Allen Hughes: TV Review". *Variety*.
12. ↑ Fienberg, Daniel (April 20, 2023). "'Dear Mama' Review: Allen Hughes' Docuseries Grapples Admirably with the Complexities of Tupac and Afeni Shakur". *The Hollywood Reporter*.
13. ↑ Allen, Nick (April 22, 2023). "*Dear Mama: The Saga of Afeni and Tupac Shakur*". *RogerEgbert.com*.
14. ↑ Complex, Valeria (June 15, 2023). "Black Reel 7th Annual Television Awards Featuring Gender Neutral Categories Announces Nominations; 'The Best Man: Final Chapters' Leads with 18 Noms". *Deadline*.
15. ↑ Kyles, Yohance (July 13, 2023). "Tupac Shakur Docuseries 'Dear Mama' Scores Two Emmy Nominations". *AllHipHop*.

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