Tupac Shakur. (AP Photo/FILE)
The incredible story behind one of hip-hop’s most iconic tracks has been revealed, more than 30 years after its release.
A new biography about late rapper 2Pac has been published, titled Only God Can Judge, detailing the miraculous result after its author, Jeff Pearlman, delved into the inspiration behind the song Brenda’s Got A Baby.
Tupac Shakur – better known as 2Pac – died at the age of 25 after a drive-by shooting in 1996. Just a few years earlier, in 1990, he was on the set of his first movie, Juice, when he read an article in the New York Daily News called “Cries in the Dark”.
It was the harrowing story of a baby born to a 12-year-old girl in public housing in Brooklyn.
“[She] was raped by a cousin, gave birth to the baby on the floor, wrapped the baby in an odd job plastic bag, threw the baby down a trash heap.”
As the article went on to explain, the young mother had inadvertently chosen disposal day – but, fortunately, someone had heard the newborn’s cries and managed to save him.
“They take the baby to the hospital, and they later take the mother to the hospital,” Pearlman told All The Smoke podcast host Matt Barnes while promoting his book.
“2Pac reads this article, and he says to [actor] Omar Epps, his [Juice] co-star, ‘Holy sh**.’ “Goes into his trailer, he says, ‘Leave me alone for a little.’ Comes back out, truly on a piece of paper: ‘Brenda’s Got a baby, Brenda’s barely got a brain / A damn shame the girl can hardly spell her name.’”
Pearlman and Hodge gave a joint interview. Picture: YouTube
While working on the biography, Pearlman decided to try and track down the baby who inspired the song, with the help of genealogist Michele Soulli.
Within a week or so, they were in contact with Davonn Hodge – the now-adult who had been thrown into the garbage as a baby.
“He’s one of the best people you will ever meet,” Pearlman gushed.
Hodges, who appeared alongside Pearlman on the podcast, explained that his adopted parents had passed away less than a year apart, which led to him doing a bit of genetic investigation of his own.
He took a genealogy test and called a relative, who put him in contact with almost a dozen people to help fill in the blanks of his past.
“They’re showing me the newspaper clips of back in the day and was telling me about what happened,” he said. “It would have been hard for them to find me, to be honest with you. My last name changed. … My mum did a good job sheltering me from that exposure.”
Hodges said that he’d discovered he’d been adopted when he was around five months old, and had had sporadic contact with his birth mother during his early years.
“Due to the magnitude of the situation, they wouldn’t let me stay with her,” he explained. “Me and my mum had visitation rights till I was around two.”
He was stunned to discover he was the baby at the centre of the story. Picture: YouTube
Following Pearlman’s meeting with Hodge, he then turned his attention to tracking down his biological mother, who immediately became emotional when they connected on the phone.
She asked, “Do you know where my son is?” Pearlman recalled, adding that she’d told him she’d been searching for him for two decades, and that she was now living in New Jersey.
In an incredible coincidence, she was in Las Vegas at the time for a concert – which was about 20 minutes’ drive from where her long-lost son happened to live.
They reunited that same night.
Reflecting on the incredible – and now, very famous – story of his past, Hodge said he’d “[listened] to the song my whole life” and couldn’t believe his personal link.
When the podcast host joked that they wouldn’t “hold it against him” if he was a Biggie fan – referencing one of rap’s most high-profile rivalries – Hodge laughed.
“You know, I’m from Brooklyn, so Biggie will always be number one to me,” he admitted.
