Photo: (L-R) Drakeo the Ruler (Walik Goshorn/MediaPunch /IPX), FBG Cash in his video for "YB Flow" (Official FBGCash via YouTube), Young Dolph (mpi04/MediaPunch /IPX) Dayvon "King Von" Bennett (provided to NPR courtesy of the artist).
Mac P Dawg was shot and killed in the Koreatown neighborhood of Los Angeles on April 6, 2020. He and an unidentified woman were approached by an armed male suspect on foot who shot them both and fled in an unknown vehicle, according to L.A. police. Mac P Dawg was pronounced dead at the scene. The 24-year-old artist, born Joshua Andrade Galvez, was an associate of the L.A.-based hip-hop group Shoreline Mafia. Police said they still have no suspects.
Tre Koast (real name Luc Treadwell) was killed in a shooting while parked on his family’s street in North Phoenix, Ariz. on Jan. 17, 2020, Fox 10 reported. The up-and-coming 21-year-old hip-hop artist’s body was found inside his Dodge Charger, which was “riddled with bullets.”
An SUV was seen pursuing the artist’s car on a surveillance video prior to the shooting, the Nicki Swift website reported. According to the police, “someone (fired) between 20 and 30 rounds” inside the vehicle.
Tre Koast released three lead singles in 2019: “This Year,” “Safe Around,” and “Got It in Send It Out.”
Udith Karanath Joby was charged with first-degree murder in Tre Koast’s death, ABC 15 Arizona reported.
Dee Dave was fatally shot outside an apartment building in Baltimore, Md. on Jan. 24, 2020, in a case of mistaken identity.
The 29-year-old’s most recent music release was “No More Humble” in December 2019.
Dee Dave, whose real name is David Leroy King Jr., was killed by mistake, police said. A second man injured at the scene was the intended target, The Baltimore Sun reported.
Big Booda was shot and killed while sitting in a vehicle in Washington, D.C., on Feb. 1, 2020, Fox 5 reported. He later died at a nearby hospital.
The artist, born Donelle Hodges, had an impressive “local following.” Big Booda’s death came shortly after his fourth mixtape, “Slide 2,” was released in late 2019.
Chicago hip-hop artist FBG Duck, 26, was shot and killed in an upscale retail shopping district in broad daylight by four people who emerged from two cars and then fled.
The shooting occurred Aug. 4, 2020, in the Gold Coast area, a luxury and boutique shopping district near Chicago’s downtown, home to exclusive stores such as Prada, Christian Louboutin, and Dolce & Gabbana. FBG Duck was shopping for a birthday present for his son, according to his relatives.
Police believe the murder of FBG Duck, who was born Carlton Weekly, was in retaliation for a recent threat video called “Dead Bitches” in which he dissed dead members of the rival Black Disciples gang. FBG Duck was said to be a member of the Tookaville faction of Gangster Disciples, The Daily Mail reported. “Dead Bitches” got more than 21.1 million views on YouTube. Police believe the video may have made him a target.
The Gangster Disciples have been involved in a long-standing conflicts with the Black Disciples on the South Side, the Chicago Tribune reported.
FBG Duck rose ton prominence in 2018 with his hit single, “Slide,” after getting his start in Chicago’s drill music scene in 2013. A few years ago, FBG Duck signed with Sony Music Entertainment.
On the day he was killed, FBG Duck had been traveling through the city live streaming his whereabouts on social media.
Five members of the O-Block Gang were later charged in his murder.
Brooklyn, New York hip-hop artist KJ Balla was shot in the chest in the East New York neighborhood on May 22, 2020, the New York Daily News reported.
KJ Balla, 23, was best known for his songs “Switch the Game,” “Strangers,” and “Cookin’ Up.” His latest single, “Back To Back,” was released just a month before his death.
The co-founder of From Nothing Records, his real name was Kennedy Joseph Noel. He was a member of From Nothing, a local gang, according to police.
Prosecutors arrested one of KJ Balla’s friends in connection with his murder.
Nick Blixky, whose real name is Nickalus Thompson, was shot and killed outside a building near Brooklyn’s Prospect Park on May 10, 2020, the New York Police Department said.
Blixky, 21, was shot in the torso and buttocks and was found “unconscious and unresponsive” by emergency personnel, CNN reported.
The rising star had a single titled “Drive The Boat” with more than 5 million views on YouTube. Just hours before his death, Blixky announced on Instagram that his first mixtape, “Different Timin” was set to be released.
Police arrested Caliph Glean, 28, who previously served a stint in prison for attempted murder.
Atlanta artist Marlo, who was signed to Quality Control Music, was shot and killed in Atlanta on July 11, 2020. Atlanta police found Marlo dead inside a car on the I-285 highway with a gunshot wound on July 11, 2020, XXL reported. Born Rudolph Johnson, he was 30 years old.
Nipsey Hussle, born Ermias Asghedom in Los Angeles in 1985, was fatally shot on March 31, 2019. The incident happened outside his Marathon Clothing store at the strip mall he was redeveloping in Crenshaw, the South Los Angeles neighborhood where he grew up. He was 33.
Hussle spent part of that Sunday afternoon signing autographs, taking photos with fans and talking with friends at the strip mall, the Los Angeles Times reported. A man named Eric Holder approached the famed artist and the two shook hands. They had a four-minute conversation, and at some point, the topic turned to snitching.
The snitching conversation is when things apparently turned sour, just before Hussle was gunned down.
As a young man, Hussle was part of the gang South Side Crips. But as an adult he worked on revamping and empowering his community. Besides opening several businesses in the neighborhood, he also opened Vector90, a co-working space and STEM incubator for inner-city youth.
He pushed for art-centric beautification projects like Destination Crenshaw and he wasn’t above getting his own hands dirty as he personally helped renovate World on Wheels, the legendary roller rink on Venice Boulevard.
“He was not confused about who he was and what his mission was,” his life partner, Lauren London, told GQ. “And it was the upliftment of us, as a people.”
Nina Ross Da Boss, whose real name was Jimmiel Spillman-Ingram, has been called “Tampa, Fla.’s best kept secret.” She released a number of popular mixtapes such as “The Only S**t Poppin” in 2012.
Nina was a victim in a double homicide that occurred in Tampa on Jan. 8, 2019, according to celebrity website Nicki Swift. The 31-year-old is survived by six children, who ranged in age from 2 months old to 11 years old.
Nina’s mother-in-law, Yolanda Baker, said the artist wasn’t the intended victim of the shooting, just an innocent bystander, The Philadelphia Tribune reported.
