he was born as lesane crooks in east harlem, new york. crooks was later renamed tupac amaru shakur after túpac amaru ii, a ruler in peru. his family later moved to marin city, california, when tupac was 17. tupac went to baltimore school for arts, where he found it interesting to read shakespeare's poems. he got very affected by the beauty of rhyming, choosing the word and expression. he studied poetry, acting, jazz, and ballet.