(AllHipHop News) Monday, April 27th, the Democratic Governor of Kentucky, Andy Beshear stopped a bunch of people from getting their unemployment checks because someone had a name that caused shock and alarm throughout his administration.
No… it was not an Islamic name … one found on the American no-fly zone list.
Instead, it was the name of one of Hip-Hop’s most iconic personalities: Tupac Shakur.
Now, why would that cause alarm, so much so, that it would stop the bureaucrats from distributing funds to those in need?
While Kentucky residents were applying for their unemployment, the government got caught up on one man’s name… because it was similar to that on one in their playlist.
Factor this in: Because of the coronavirus, many people lost their jobs. In fact, according to the Department of Labor, 112,726 unemployment claims were filed in Kentucky during the week that ended on March 28th. The week before that, 49,023 unemployment claims were filed.
So even with all that, they stopped the system because they thought someone was using the “All Eyes on Me” rapper’s name to prank the government.
“We had somebody apply for unemployment for Tupac Shakur here in Kentucky,” Beshear said, likely thinking of the rapper who died in the 90s. “And that person may have thought they were being funny, they probably did. Except for the fact that because of them, we had to go through so many other claims.”
However, there actually is a real live person who lives as a cook in the restaurant business that is shut down because of the COVID-19 pandemic named Tupac Shakur (Tupac Malik Shakur), and he applied because he needs his money!
“I’m hurt, I’m really embarrassed and I’m shocked,” Tupac Shakur told the Lexington Herald Ledger. “He needs to apologize. That’s just my name.”
Shakur shared that in the 1990’s he legally changed his name when he became a Muslim. He chose the last name because it means something that spoke to his new faith: in Arabic Shakur means “thankful to God.”
Tupac Shakur applied for unemployment on March 13. He was approved, noted how much he would be receiving and he was waiting to get his dough.
But the red tape held him up. “I’ve been struggling for like the last month to figure out how to pay the bills.”
His boss, Jeb Messer had to be contacted to verify Shakur’s name.
“Something this minor shouldn’t hold up a system that’s ensuring the well-being of this many people right now,” Messer said.
Ridiculous. According to Tupac, Governor Beshear called and apologized earlier today.