"Gay Tupac" Viral Video

About

"Gay Tupac" Viral Video refers to a viral clip of rapper Tupac when he was young (17) in which he speaks with what some viewers perceive as an effeminate tone and mannerism. The interview video led some to push a conspiracy theory that Tupac was gay, as well as imply there was a grander conspiracy regarding homosexuality in the hip-hop or rap scene. In early 2024 following the allegations against Diddy, the clip went viral again online, sparking discourse and debate around Tupac's sexual orientation.

Origin

On June 12th, 2017, Historic Films Stock Footage^[2] published an interview with a teenage Tupac Shakur, gaining over 5.6 million views in seven years (shown below). In the video, Tupac discusses being 17 and speaks at length about responsibilities and his childhood.

Spread

The video has spread online multiple times since its publication and has been used to suggest that Shakur was gay due to what some perceive as his effeminate manner of speaking in the clip, as well as his appearance. For example, on October 26th, 2023, Twitter / X user @MemeticSisyphus^[3] posted the clip in a joke insinuating Tupac was gay, receiving over 10,000 views and 100 likes in seven months (shown below).

On April 15th, 2024, Twitter user @EscanorReloaded^[1] posted the clip of young Tupac, suggesting that the effeminate mannerisms displayed by Tupac were proof of what they call a "ghey rap mafia" in hip-hop. The topic was apparently inspired by rumors surrounding Diddy supposedly having sexual relations with Usher and Meek Mill. The post (seen below) received over 2.5 million views and 4,300 likes in one day.

The tweet led to further arguments about whether Tupac was gay or at the very least not the masculine man he embodied in his public persona. On April 15th, Twitter user @ExcclesiaLatin^[4] posted the clip saying Tupac and Diddy were both gay, as are many rappers, gaining over 3,200 retweets and 16,000 likes in one day (shown below, left).

The same day, Twitter user @AndySwan^[5] said, "An entire culture was led to emulate and embrace violent gang behavior by ballerinas like this," referring to Shakur's history as a dancer, gaining over 1,900 retweets and 8,400 likes in one day (shown below, right).

Various Examples

Search Interest

External References