Rapper Tupac Shakur “comes to life” through a 3D hologram

The Californian Coachella festival closed with the participation of rappers Snoop Dogg and Dr. Dre in an anthological performance in which the legendary Tupac Shakur - who died in 1996- that “came back to life” through a 3D hologram.

Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg gave an impressive show at the Coachella festival, celebrated in Indio (California, EU), which included a surprise guest: the late rapper Tupac Shakur, who returned to the stage as a hologram. Thanks to hologram technology, a shirtless Tupac seemed to take the stage, sharing greetings with Dre and Snoop before addressing the audience with the phrase, “What the f*** is going on at Coachella?”. The hologram made a surprisingly real, and live, interpretation of Hail Mary, followed by 2 of Amerikaz Most Wanted con Snoop.

The rapper died in September 1996 after being shot several times by an assailant, leaving a legacy of followers who dreamed of seeing him again. Something that technology achieved in an impressive way, through a holographic presentation called Musion, that promises to become a phenomenon, after demonstrating in a massive event that he is capable of taking the image of an artist or person who is not there on stage and getting others to interact with it.

The mirror trick

The system called Musion Eyeliner is based on an old magic trick dating back to the 19th century., llamado Pepper’s Ghost. This used mirrors and a plastic cover to create the illusion of making a person appear and disappear on stage.. It, because in reality what people saw was the projection of the image of the subject. This concept was taken and perfected by the British company Musion, offering a 21st century experience.

In this case, instead of a person, The system has a high definition projector to show whatever. The surface is made of transparent reflective glass and the curtain, made by the same company, It's called Eyeliner Foil, and it is made of a plastic similar to that of bottles, which allows it to be imperceptible to the human eye. The panel must be placed at an angle of 45 degrees to generate the depth effect that, although it makes it look like a hologram, It is not actually an image that can be seen on 360 degrees. The trick, yes indeed, must be appropriate to the environment: the lights must be controlled, the stage background must be black or dark, and the movement of the hologram must be restricted.

In this case, Snoop Dogg positioned himself right behind the screen where Tupac was performing thanks to a projector located at the top of the stage. This projector was pointed at a reflective surface located on the floor of the stage, which resulted in the projection of the deceased rapper before the eyes of the spectators..

Musion was the one who created the projection system, but the content was made by Digital Domain, Oscar winner for the film's effects The curious case of Benjamin Button. They developed a computer-generated model of the late rapper, to whom they applied voices taken from live performances. And since a transparent screen is used, flesh and blood artists were able to interact with him, standing behind the panel, just like Snoop Dogg did in the middle of the presentation. The impact it generated on both those attending the festival and those who saw it online was such that, according to The Wall Street Journal, a tour is planned that will take the idol around the US. O, rather, to your hologram.