By Odeisel
They reminisce over you. Snatched from your fans at the height of your powers. Your greatness is magnified by the fact that their loss was so…final. I remember everything about seeing ODB the last time. Ghostface show, Rakim arrested for child support, and ODB high as hell and incoherent. Last time the entire Wu was together on stage. Crazy night, but it was finite.
A couple of days ago, at Coachella, something happened that may end those memories for millions of fans. Equal parts cool and creepy, A hologram image of Tupac took the stage with Snoop Dogg and Dr. Dre to the amazement of the crowd and performed his hits like it was 1995 again. The movements were similar, the vocals were obviously straight from the records aside from the ad libs. People who frequent haunted houses have sseen this before, but at a rap concert? Amazing.
Now there is word that Phantom ‘Pac is going on the road with Dre and Snoop along will Afeni’s blessing. Problem is, Tupac wasn’t particularly fond of Dr. Dre when he died. Shouldn’t Phantom ‘Pac have the same prejudices? I digress.
What does this mean for other dead artists? At a reported 10 million dollar pricetag, I don’t know that you will get holograms for everyone, but for those iconic acts, you have to wonder whether the sky is the limit for how much money can be made. Imagine how big Sinatra could be. How about Bob Marley or young, virile Elvis (not fat caricature Vegas Elvis). Michael Jackson is already making billions with Cirque du Soliel without a hologram so I won’t even speculate on that.
But what about myth? What about the stories we keep? For every 10,000 people entertained by faux Pac, there is a reporter with a spit covered lens, or a sweat-stained bandanna or an empty, beer-smelling plastic cup that stood as their story of the time they met or saw Tupac before. The humanity of these things and their impenetrable connectivity to our culture far outweigh anything that could ever come from a hologram.
What becomes of legacy if all it takes are bits byte booleans and beans to “recreate” memories? Maybe I’m being too analog about this. All I know is that for as great as all the aforementioned stars were, they grew even more conspicuous in their absence for the same reason our loved ones do when they pass on: we have an emotional attachment to events in life that we connect to these people. I think on a certain level we should honor that. To think that a hologram could truly replace a precious gem is truly outrageous.
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