Tupac Lives Through the Power of Holograms

The Internet is still buzzing about the "return" of Tupac Shakur at the Coachella 2012 music festival. My friends and family, who know how big a fan I am of the artist who was sadly gunned down in 1996, called me, texted me, and emailed me the news as soon as they heard. It was a pretty amazing use of special effects to make it seem as if 2Pac was performing on stage with Snoop Dogg and Dr. Dre. The technology has come a long way. The video looks pretty amazing, I can only image what the pumped up live audience of over 75,000 people must have experienced.

The gimmick has been used in 2008 by CNN for an interview with singer Will.i.am, beamed from miles away to a studio with Anderson Cooper, and by ABC for its Academy Awards in 2011 when it brought back former host Bob Hope for a holographic cameo with Billy Crystal.

I first saw the potential for the technology during a trip to Walt Disney World in the mid-1990s. I was amazed by a laser-light show at Epcot Center as a hologram of Poseidon emerged from the water to spectacular effect. 

Who knows what else the whiz kids of show biz can come up with next? Of course, some conspiracy theorists probably think its just another trick by the still alive master rapper. If only that were true. Instead we are left with Shakur's legacy and a nice dramatic moment that is sure to be a harbinger of creative things to come.