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<\/p>\nWhen the Baltimore Orioles host the Athletics on May 8, all eyes will be on the Tupac Shakur bobblehead being given away to the first 20,000 fans that arrive at Oriole Park that night.<\/p>\n
Last month the Orioles announced that the Shakur bobblehead, featuring the late rapper and actor in a black Orioles jersey and matching bandana \u2014 holding a baseball bat, would be available early in their 2026 season. Shakur was born in East Harlem, New York, but spent four years of his youth in the mid-\u201980s living in Baltimore while attending various schools there, including the Baltimore School for the Arts. The Shakur bobblehead is inspired by those years he spent in Charm City as a youth.<\/p>\n
Sara Biancosino, the director of promotions and audience development for the Orioles, said the Shakur bobblehead is a collaboration between the team, Shakur\u2019s estate and the Tupac Amaru Shakur Foundation.<\/p>\n
\u201cEach year, year over year, we work internally and externally with partners, with our fans, even just staff in general and try to tap into cultural things that are going on (with) pop culture, celebrities or promotional merchandise. So with (Shakur\u2019s) history to the Baltimore School of the Arts and just that rich hip hop culture, we were trying to tap into that audience,\u201d Biancosino said. \u201cAnd I think through a variety of meetings and conversations over the last few years collectively with some of those vendors, our team internally we were able to come to the idea collectively and really capitalize on a really great moment with the history of the city, as well.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Orioles initially announced that 15,000 Shakur bobbleheads would be available for the game against the Athletics. That number then increased to 20,000 when it became obvious to the team that fan demand would be high.<\/p>\n
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\n Courtesy of the Baltimore Orioles<\/p>\n
Mark Fine, chief marketing officer for the Orioles said that 15,000 is generally the standard number of products the team works with for fan giveaways, but that the overwhelming response from news outlets and social media made the team realize an increase would be necessary.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs we were getting texts from people all over the place in all different areas of the country and the world saying, \u2018I need one of those,\u2019 we made the quick decision to order 5,000 more while we could because they take a while to produce. So it\u2019s unlikely we will be producing any more because we were kind of at our limit in terms of deadlines to be able to produce (Shakur) bobbleheads in a certain amount of time,\u201d Fine said.<\/p>\n
Felt said the Orioles expect those 20,000 Shakur bobbleheads to arrive the week of the May matchup with the Athletics (and the team will have them under \u201clock and key\u201d). He anticipates that there will be long lines outside of Camden Yards before the game begins, similar to other Orioles giveaways that have been popular with fans in Baltimore recently including Hawaiian shirts<\/a>, hockey jerseys<\/a> and a Cal Ripken Jr.\/Iron Man bobblehead<\/a> that was a collaboration with Marvel. The game has a start time of 7:05 and Felt says the gates will open 90 minutes prior.<\/p>\n \u201cIt speaks to the impact that Tupac has had in pop culture and in society just as a world-renowned artist and musician and his connection to Baltimore,\u201d Felt said. \u201cYou\u2019ll see that from a marketing standpoint we\u2019re going to really tell that story through our social channels both on MASN and through our social media channels just to connect him to his time here in Baltimore because it\u2019s pretty special that he had spent time here in Baltimore during his formative years right before he became very famous.\u201d<\/p>\n Biancosino said plans are underway for some \u201creally cool\u201d in-game moments during Shakur\u2019s bobblehead night, including music, and an appearance from Shakur\u2019s sister, Sekyiwa \u201cSet\u201d Shakur, the president of the Tupac Amaru Shakur Foundation, who will throw out the game\u2019s first pitch with members of the foundation present.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ll work really closely with the estate, parts of his family and just overall the different avenues and areas that Tupac touched,\u201d Biancosino said. \u201cOur goal is to be able to tell that story from start to finish because his impact as a visionary and poet and all of the elements that really made him the artist he is today kind of started in Baltimore.\u201d<\/p>\n Even new Orioles manager Craig Albernaz got in on the Tupac\/Orioles news, retweeting the Shakur bobblehead announcement the team posted on social media with a quote from Shakur<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cThat was completely unprompted by the marketing department,\u201d Felt said. \u201cHe got in on it and that was really fun to see from our end. It was cool that Alby quoted him.\u201d<\/p>\n Biancosino thinks when Orioles fans get ahold of the Shakur bobblehead they\u2019ll have one of the more memorable team collectibles in their possession.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is something that fans can only get if they come to the park and it\u2019s truly going to probably sit in that collectable category,\u201d Biancosino said.<\/p>\n Felt went a step further.<\/p>\n \u201cI think it\u2019s fair to say that this (Tupac bobblehead), based on the early ticket sales and buzz that we\u2019ve gotten, that this will be the most anticipated giveaway we\u2019ve ever had.\u201d<\/p>\n The Athletic maintains full editorial independence in all our coverage. When you click or make purchases through our links, we may earn a commission.<\/p>\n