Hip-Hop has a higher homicide rate than any other music genre, ranging from five to 32 times greater. The average death age is between 25 and 30 years old.
Some of the causes mentioned for the high homicide rate include many Hip-Hop musicians’ disadvantaged backgrounds, criminal gang participation, drug use, and insufficient pastoral care among artists and record labels.
List of rappers and Hip-Hop performers that have been killed since 1987
| Name | Date of death | Age at death | Location of death | Cause of death | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Scott La Rock | August 27, 1987 | 25 | New York City, New York, U.S. | Shooting | |
| Paul C | July 17, 1989 | 24 | New York City, New York, U.S. | Shooting | |
| Danny “D-Boy” Rodriguez | October 6, 1990 | 22 | Dallas, Texas, U.S. | Shooting | |
| Charizma | December 16, 1993 | 20 | Milpitas, California, U.S. | Shooting | |
| Stretch | November 30, 1995 | 27 | New York City, New York, U.S. | Shooting | |
| Seagram | July 31, 1996 | 26 | Oakland, California, U.S. | Shooting | |
| Tupac Shakur | September 13, 1996 | 25 | Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S. | Drive by shooting | |
| Yaki Kadafi | November 10, 1996 | 19 | Orange, New Jersey, U.S. | Shooting | |
| The Notorious B.I.G. | March 9, 1997 | 24 | Los Angeles, California, U.S. | Drive by shooting | |
| Fat Pat | February 3, 1998 | 27 | Houston, Texas, U.S. | Shooting | |
| Big L | February 15, 1999 | 24 | New York City, New York, U.S. | Shooting | |
| Freaky Tah | March 28, 1999 | 27 | New York City, New York, U.S. | Shooting | |
| DJ Uncle Al | September 10, 2001 | 32 | Miami, Florida, U.S. | Shooting | |
| Jam Master Jay | October 30, 2002 | 37 | New York City, New York, U.S. | Shooting | |
| Sabotage | January 24, 2003 | 29 | São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil | Shooting | |
| Camouflage | May 19, 2003 | 21 | Savannah, Georgia, U.S. | Shooting | |
| Half a Mill | October 24, 2003 | 30 | New York City, New York, U.S. | Shooting | |
| Soulja Slim | November 26, 2003 | 26 | New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S. | Shooting | |
| Mac Dre | November 1, 2004 | 34 | Kansas City, Missouri, U.S. | Shooting | |
| Blade Icewood | April 19, 2005 | 28 | Detroit, Michigan, U.S. | Shooting | |
| Proof | April 11, 2006 | 32 | Detroit, Michigan, U.S. | Shooting | |
| Big Hawk | May 1, 2006 | 36 | Houston, Texas, U.S. | Shooting | |
| VL Mike | April 20, 2008 | 32 | New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S. | Shooting | |
| Dolla | May 18, 2009 | 21 | Los Angeles, California, U.S. | Shooting | |
| Lele | July 1, 2010 | 23 | Trujillo Alto, Puerto Rico | Shooting | |
| Magnolia Shorty | December 20, 2010 | 28 | New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S. | Shooting | |
| Bad News Brown | February 11, 2011 | 33 | Montreal, Quebec, Canada | Unspecified violence | |
| Adán Zapata | June 1, 2012 | 21 | San Nicolás, Nuevo León, Mexico | Shooting | |
| Lil Phat | June 7, 2012 | 19 | Sandy Springs, Georgia, U.S. | Shooting | |
| MC Daleste | July 7, 2013 | 20 | Paulínia, São Paulo, Brazil | Shooting | |
| Pavlos Fyssas | September 18, 2013 | 34 | Keratsini, Athens, Greece | Stabbing | |
| Depzman | September 21, 2013 | 18 | Birmingham, West Midlands, England | Stabbing | |
| Doe B | December 28, 2013 | 22 | Montgomery, Alabama, U.S. | Shooting | |
| The Jacka | February 2, 2015 | 37 | Oakland, California, U.S. | Shooting | |
| Flabba | March 9, 2015 | 37 | Alexandra, Gauteng, South Africa | Stabbing | |
| Chinx Drugz | May 17, 2015 | 31 | New York City, New York, U.S. | Shooting | |
| Bankroll Fresh | March 4, 2016 | 28 | Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. | Shooting | |
| 3-2 | November 10, 2016 | 44 | Houston, Texas, U.S. | Shooting | |
| XXXTentacion | June 18, 2018 | 20 | Deerfield Beach, Florida, U.S. | Shooting | |
| Jimmy Wopo | June 18, 2018 | 21 | Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S. | Shooting | |
| Smoke Dawg | June 30, 2018 | 21 | Toronto, Ontario, Canada | Shooting | |
| Young Greatness | October 29, 2018 | 34 | New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S. | Shooting | |
| Feis | January 1, 2019 | 32 | Rotterdam, Netherlands | Shooting | |
| Kevin Fret | January 10, 2019 | 24 | Río Piedras, San Juan, Puerto Rico | Shooting | |
| Nipsey Hussle | March 31, 2019 | 33 | Los Angeles, California, U.S. | Shooting | |
| Pop Smoke | February 19, 2020 | 20 | Los Angeles, California, U.S. | Shooting during a home invasion | |
| Houdini | May 26, 2020 | 21 | Toronto, Ontario, Canada | Shooting | |
| Huey | June 25, 2020 | 31 | Kinloch, Missouri, U.S. | Shooting | |
| King Von | November 6, 2020 | 26 | Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. | Shooting | |
| MO3 | November 11, 2020 | 28 | Dallas, Texas, U.S. | Shooting | |
| Einár | October 21, 2021 | 19 | Stockholm, Sweden | Shooting | |
| Young Dolph | November 17, 2021 | 36 | Memphis, Tennessee, U.S. | Shooting | |
| Drakeo the Ruler | December 19, 2021 | 28 | Los Angeles, California, U.S. | Stabbing | |
| Snootie Wild | February 27, 2022 | 36 | Houston, Texas, U.S. | Shooting | |
| Archie Eversole | April 5, 2022 | 37 | Decatur, Georgia, U.S. | Shooting | |
| Sidhu Moose Wala | May 29, 2022 | 28 | Mansa, Punjab, India | Shooting | |
| Trouble | June 5, 2022 | 34 | Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. | Shooting during a home invasion | |
| JayDaYoungan | July 27, 2022 | 24 | Bogalusa, Louisiana, U.S. | Shooting | |
| PnB Rock | September 12, 2022 | 30 | Los Angeles, California, U.S. | Shooting | |
| Takeoff | November 1, 2022 | 28 | Houston, Texas, U.S. | Shooting |
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R.I.P To Artists We Lost In 2022
Snootie Wild
Birthdate: April 23, 1985
Died: Feb 25, 2022
Cause of Death: Shot
LePreston Porter, also known as Snootie Wild, passed away after allegedly being shot in Houston. The Houston Police Department reports that Snootie was discovered shot in the neck next to an SUV in a ditch.
When a medic arrived on the scene, Snootie was given CPR before being rushed to a local hospital, where his status was listed as critical. A day later, the 36-year-old rapper would pass away from his wounds. Krystal Meredith, Snootie’s fiancée, told ABC13 that he had died and said that she is unaware of who shot him because he had no known rivals.
Snootie, a Memphis native, signed with Yo Gotti’s CMG label in 2013, and in 2014, he released his debut chart-topping single, “Yayo.” His Go Mode EP featured the gold-selling hit, which was remixed by French Montana, Jadakiss, Fabolous, and YG. Snootie was preparing for a comeback and promoting his single “Respect” off an upcoming album project when he passed away.
Goonew
Birthdate: May 14, 1997
Died: March 18, 2022
Cause of Death: Shot
Goonew was fatally shot in District Heights, Maryland. The 24-year-old Hip-Hop rapper was murdered, according to the Prince George County Police Department. His murder has never been solved. There was a $25,000 prize for information leading to an arrest.
Goonew was a rising rap sensation in the DMV music industry and a native of Washington, D.C. He was known for his monotone rhyme flow and was born Markelle Morrow. The upcoming artist produced works including Certified Goon (2017), Big 64 (2018), Goonwick (2018), Back From Hell (2019), and Short Temper before passing away (2021).
After Goonew’s passing, his mother and sister faced criticism for allowing the rapper’s body to be on display at his farewell party at Washington, D.C.’s Bliss Nightclub. On social media, videos from the event started to go viral. The video depicts the “Life Story” rhymer’s corpse standing erect onstage while sporting sneakers, a crown on his head, jeans, and a hoodie. Goonew’s sister, Ariana Morrow, stated, “My brother was a king and that’s precisely how he wanted to go out.
DJ Kay Slay
Birthdate: Aug 14, 1966
Died: April 17, 2022
Cause of Death: COVID-19
After a four-month struggle with COVID-19, DJ Kay Slay died. The sad news was confirmed by the New York radio station Hot 97, where the well-known Hip-Hop DJ spent 20 years working. A 55-year-old man, he.
Keith Grayson, aka DJ Kay Slay, was a true renaissance figure in Hip-Hop music and culture. Slay, then known as Dezzy Dez, was a well-known graffiti artist in the 1980s. He made an appearance in the vintage Hip-Hop film Style Wars. Slay was released from jail in 1990 after serving time there in the late 1980s, and he then started a career as a DJ.
In 2003, the same year he started his record label, Streetsweepers, which would help launch the careers of lyricists like Papoose, Saigon, and others, he launched his iconic The Streetsweeper album series. Nearly 30 mixtapes were released by Slay, a.k.a. The Drama King, throughout his successful career. The Soul Controller, his most recent studio effort, was released in December 2021. The late DJ from New York will also be known for his epic posse tracks, like his final one, “Rolling 110 Deep,” on which he enlisted 110 rappers in all to spit bars across a 40-minute track.
Lil Keed
Birthdate: March 16, 1998
Died: May 13, 2022
Cause of Death: Unknown
Young Thug’s Young Stoner Life label artist Lil Keed passed away at the age of 24.
The cause of death is still a mystery. Lil Gotit, Keed’s brother, also posted a confirmation of the news of his death on his Instagram page. Gotit posted a picture of himself and Keed on Instagram with the caption, “Can’t believe I saw u die, today bro, I did all my sobs I know what u want me to do and that’s going hard for Mama Daddy Our Brothers Naychur and Whiteboy #ImaHoldthisShitDown.”
Lil Keed, real name Raqhid Jevon Render, was signed to Young Thug’s YSL imprint by 300 Entertainment after growing up in the same Atlanta area. Keed, a member of the 2020 XXL Freshman class, began his rap career in 2016 and quickly gained admirers thanks to his tracks’ unusual flows and Auto-Tuned falsetto.
Keed’s first single, “Nameless,” from his 2018 mixtape Keed Talk to ‘Em, was followed by “Snake” from his 2019 EP Long Live Mexico. Another notable release in the late rapper’s discography is the Trapped on Cleveland mixtape series. The star-studded Slime Language 2 album by Thug, which debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 in April 2021, also included Keed.
Trouble
Birthdate: Nov 4, 1987
Died: June 5, 2022
Cause of Death: Shot
In Conyers, Georgia, Trouble was shot and died. The 34-year-old rapper died from a single gunshot wound to the chest sustained during a purported house invasion while visiting a female acquaintance, according to the Rockdale County Sheriff’s Office.
According to the police, Jamichael Jones, 33, is the main suspect in the shooting. Jones surrendered to authorities on June 7 after dodging them for two days. His arrest had been warranted by the Rockdale County Sheriff’s Office on suspicion of home invasion, felony murder, and aggravated assault.
Trouble, sometimes known as Skoob, was a native of the Edgewood district of East Atlanta and was born Mariel Semonte Orr. Trouble made a breakthrough in Atlanta’s Hip-Hop industry in 2011 after signing with Duct Tape Entertainment with the song “Bussin (Remix)” featuring Waka Flocka, Trae Tha Truth, and Yo Gotti. After that, in 2017, the ATL rhymer joined Mike WiLL Made-Ear It’s Drummer Records. The next year, Trouble released his debut album, entitled Edgewood. City Girls, Jeezy, Quavo, and Boosie BadAzz all had cameo performances on his final album, Thug Luv, which was released in 2020.
The Atlanta Hip-Hop industry was shocked by the news of Trouble’s passing because he was a cherished resident. Trouble had a significant impact on his neighborhood, according to Def Jam, the parent company of Ear Drummer Records, in a statement following the rapper’s tragic death.
In a statement, Def Jam said, “Our thoughts and prayers are with the kids, loved ones, and fans of Trouble. “He was a genuine representative of his community and a voice for his hometown. Farewell, Scoob.”
JayDaYoungan
Birthdate: July 15, 1998
Died: July 27, 2022
Cause of Death: Shot
In a double shooting that also left the Hip-Hop rapper’s father injured on July 27, JayDaYoungan was shot and died in his native Bogalusa, Louisiana. The two men were shot outside of a residence on Superior Avenue, according to a police report. Jay was taken to the hospital, Our Lady of the Angels, where he passed away from his injuries. His father received non-life-threatening medical attention on the spot for his injuries.
With hit songs conveying horrific street tales like “Opps,” “23 Island,” and “Elimination,” JayDaYoungan gained popularity in the late 2010s. In June 2020, he released the album Baby23, one of his 14 projects. In March, he released All Is Well, his most recent EP.
Pat Stay
Birthdate: Dec 9, 1991
Died: Sept 12, 2022
Cause of Death: Stabbing
Pat Stay was stabbed in the early hours of September 4, 2022, in downtown Halifax, Nova Scotia; he died as a result of the stabbing later that morning. Stay was taken to a nearby hospital after the police and emergency workers arrived at the scene of the crime, where he was treated for his injuries but later declared dead. The Halifax Regional Police conducted an inquiry when the Canadian MC’s death was declared a homicide, and on September 11, 2022, Adam Drake, 31, was apprehended in Tantallon, Nova Scotia. Adam Drake was accused of fatally stabbing Stay and was charged with the crime.
Dated October 27, 2022, is his first court appearance. Major rap figures from all around the world were eager to offer their condolences to the late rhymer after Stay’s tragic departure. Along with their condolences, musicians like Drake, Eminem, and R.A. the Rugged Man praised Stay for both his talent on the mic and his character.
Pat Stay was most known for being one of Hip-Hop’s top combat rappers. The “Back to Back” lyricist competed in rap battle circuits around the world for over 15 years, defeating some of the most fierce spitters in the process. At the prestigious battle league’s World Domination 4 competition in 2013, Stay overcame the reigning King of the Dot champion Arcane to win his first championship.
The Sucka-Free Boss successfully defended his KOTD title in three consecutive rap battle competitions by lyrically defeating tough MCs like Dizaster, Daylyt, and Charron. Pat Stay dissed the Game on wax two days before his sad murder with his song “Warm Up,” which featured Kaleb Simmonds. The song was a direct response to “The Black Slim Shady,” the Compton rapper’s recent attempt to engage Eminem in lyrical combat.
PnB Rock
Birthdate: Dec 9, 1991
Died: Sept 12, 2022
Cause of Death: Shot
On September 12, 2022, PnB Rock was shot and died in Los Angeles while having a meal with his girlfriend at Roscoe’s House of Chicken ‘N Waffles in the Inglewood district of California. The Philadelphia native, according to police, was the victim of a robbery where the suspect was after his jewelry. PnB Rock was shot numerous times by the currently unknown suspect after he reportedly demanded that the rapper hand up the jewelry before leaving the establishment with it. The following day, just before 2:00 p.m., PnB Rock passed away at a neighboring hospital after being taken there.
When grisly video footage from inside the restaurant surfaced online, it revealed a seriously injured PnB Rock laying on the floor battling for his life. This is how the Hip-Hop community first learned about the incident.
Real N*ggaz Bangaz, PnB Rock’s debut mixtape, helped him gain initial notoriety in the music industry in 2014. From there, the Philadelphia rap singer obtained a record deal with Atlantic Records thanks to the success of his 2015 single, “Fleek.” PnB’s most well-known song to date, “Selfish,” which peaked at No. 51 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, marked his entry into the mainstream.
PnB Rock was a member of the 2017 XXL Hip-Hop Freshman Class, which also included up-and-coming rappers like Playboi Carti, A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie, and XXXTentacion. Rock most recently transitioned to being a solo artist and issued the single “Luv Me Again” in September 2022, just before his passing.
Coolio
Birthdate: Aug. 1, 1963
Died: Sept 28, 2022
Cause of Death: Suspected cardiac arrest
Artis Ivey, better known by his stage name Coolio, passed away unexpectedly on September 28 at the age of 59. The rapper reportedly died tragically while visiting a pal in Los Angeles. According to reports, Coolio excused himself to go the restroom but never returned. After dispatching the emergency services, he was declared dead there. There were no drugs or evidence of criminal activity at the scene.
The Los Angeles Hip-Hop rapper is best known for two hit singles: “Gangsta’s Paradise,” which appeared on his sophomore album of the same name in 1995 and peaked at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, and “Fantastic Voyage,” which appeared on his debut album It Takes a Thief in 1994 and peaked at No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100. The seasoned MC had been gravitating more toward acting in recent years, playing parts in both television and film.
Takeoff
Birthdate: June 18, 1994
Died: Nov. 1, 2022
Cause of Death: Shot
On November 1, Takeoff, a member of the Atlanta group Migos, was shot and died in Houston. The incident reportedly took place at a bowling alley in Houston called 810 Billiards & Bowling, where a dice game descended into violence. Takeoff was killed when someone started shooting, and two other persons were also hurt. Takeoff suffered a head injury or a head injury close to the head, and paramedics declared him dead at the scene. He was 28.
Takeoff was the youngest member of the Migos, and Quavo and Offset were his relatives. They created countless mixtapes and four albums collectively. The Last Rocket, Takeoff’s only solo album, was released in 2018. In early October, Quavo and Takeoff released their collaborative album Only Built for Infinity Links.