Notes & Personnel Info |  | Personnel: Dietrice Bolden, Joyce Joseph, Luther Isler, Charles Mack, Jindai Joseph, Diani Eshe Greene, Yvette Bodrick (vocals); Chris Dellosa (keyboards); Joyce Tolbert, Wyann Vaughn (background vocals). |  | Audio Mixers: Claudio Cueni; Kevin Crouse. |  | Liner Note Author: Afeni Shakur. |  | Unknown Contributor Role: Fabrizio Sotti. |  | The packaging of The Rose, Vol. 2 features 2Pac on the front and back cover art, but note the text sidebar on the front cover, which reads "music inspired by Tupac's poetry." Indeed, this is a various-artists collection, featuring a roster of rap artists performing songs inspired by 2Pac, in particular his posthumous book of poetry, The Rose That Grew from Concrete. As such, it's a heartfelt project and features a few engaging performances, the best provided by the thoughtful Talib Kweli, the personable Ludacris, the enigmatic Shock-G, and the fiery Dead Prez. ~ Jason Birchmeier |  | The packaging of The Rose, Vol. 2 features 2Pac on the front and back cover art, but note the text sidebar on the front cover, which reads "music inspired by Tupac's poetry." Indeed, this is a various-artists collection, featuring a roster of rap artists performing songs inspired by 2Pac, in particular his posthumous book of poetry, The Rose That Grew from Concrete. As such, it's a heartfelt project, no doubt, but all the same, it's not a very interesting one, since few of the performances are engaging and few of the featured artists are noteworthy. Exceptions include the thoughtful Talib Kweli, the personable Ludacris, the enigmatic Shock-G, and the fiery Dead Prez. Ultimately, not too many people are going to find this release worthwhile. It's more likely to draw attention because of its misleading packaging than because of its content. Another in a long line of posthumous 2Pac miscellanea, and like many of those posthumous releases, piecemeal and largely unnecessary. ~ Jason Birchmeier |  | The packaging of The Rose, Vol. 2 features 2Pac on the front and back cover art, but note the text sidebar on the front cover, which reads "music inspired by Tupac's poetry." Indeed, this is a various-artists collection, featuring a roster of rap artists performing songs inspired by 2Pac, in particular his posthumous book of poetry, The Rose That Grew from Concrete. As such, it's a heartfelt project, no doubt, but all the same, it's not a very interesting one, since few of the performances are engaging and few of the featured artists are noteworthy. Exceptions include the thoughtful Talib Kweli, the personable Ludacris, the enigmatic Shock-G, and the fiery Dead Prez. Ultimately, not too many people are going to find this release worthwhile. It's more likely to draw attention because of its misleading packaging than because of its content. Another in a long line of posthumous 2Pac miscellanea, and like many of those posthumous releases, piecemeal and largely unnecessary. ~ Jason Birchmeier |  | Fans should be forewarned not to misinterpret the packaging of THE ROSE, VOL. 2, which prominently displays the face of Tupac Shakur. This is not a collection of posthumous Tupac recordings; instead, it features a host of contemporary rappers performing material inspired by Tupac's rhymes and poetry, with particular emphasis on his published book of poems, THE ROSE THAT GREW FROM CONCRETE. Artists like Talib Kweli and Dead Prez make notably strong contributions, and help make this a touching tribute to the legendary rapper. |  | The packaging of The Rose, Vol. 2 features 2Pac on the front and back cover art, but note the text sidebar on the front cover, which reads "music inspired by Tupac's poetry." Indeed, this is a various-artists collection, featuring a roster of rap artists performing songs inspired by 2Pac, in particular his posthumous book of poetry, The Rose That Grew from Concrete. As such, it's a heartfelt project, no doubt, but all the same, it's not a very interesting one, since few of the performances are engaging and few of the featured artists are noteworthy. Exceptions include the thoughtful Talib Kweli, the personable Ludacris, the enigmatic Shock-G, and the fiery Dead Prez. Ultimately, not too many people are going to find this release worthwhile. It's more likely to draw attention because of its misleading packaging than because of its content. Another in a long line of posthumous 2Pac miscellanea, and like many of those posthumous releases, piecemeal and largely unnecessary. ~ Jason Birchmeier | Producer: Raydon Coleman; Charles Mack; Clint "Mister Payback" Sands; Romeo Antonio | Engineer: Kairi Cushine; Sean G Sta Self |
|