Jada Pinkett Smith commemorated 2Pac Shakur’s 50th birthday by sharing a never-before-seen poem he wrote while incarcerated at Rikers Island.
Pinkett Smith shared a video of the handwritten poem via Instagram on Tuesday night before the late rapper’s birthday on Wednesday, saying in the clip that she “went down memory lane.” She continued, “Pac wrote me many letters and many poems. I don’t think this one has ever been published. I don’t think he would have minded that I shared this with you guys.”
Titled “Lost Soulz,” the poem appears to be about life and death. She read the poem aloud, which includes lines like, “Let me live to see what was gold in me / Before it is all too late.” She also noted that 2Pac had a song called “Lost Souls,” though she thinks this was his “original concept” that he wrote from prison.
“Tupac Amaru Shakur would have been 50 midnight tonight!” She captioned the video. “As we prepare to celebrate his legacy … let’s remember him for that which we loved most … his way with words. Here are a few you may have never heard before.”
Pinkett Smith has talked about her friendship with the rapper on her Facebook Watch series, Red Table Talk, before, explaining three years ago that, “I’ve had a lot of loss. So many of my close friends gone. They didn’t make it to 30. They didn’t make it past 25. A lot of people talk about my relationship with Pac and figure that out. That was a huge loss in my life.”