In this video, Columbia University Professor Jamal Joseph recites and remembers the precocious poetry of his godson, the legendary hip-hop artist Tupac Shakur. He reads from a booklet of Haikus written by Tupac in support of Jamal and other black panthers imprisoned during the early 1980s at Leavenworth Penitentiary. This Haiku booklet, to be offered in Sotheby’s auction The Art and Influence of Hip Hop, is at once a powerful expression of love and solidarity as well as a window into the burgeoning genius of a future superstar.

Past Auction

The Art and Influence of Hip Hop

23–30 March 2022 | 12:00 PM EDT | New York