Celebrities Singers and Hip Hop Artists Who Die of Tragic Death Or in The Hands of another Person

Celebrities Singers and Hip Hop Artists Who Die of Tragic Death

Or in The Hands of another Person

This list arranges to recent demise; most popular music artist nationwide and locally.

Stage Names

OTF NUNU

OTF was shot and killed in Chicago Park on May 31, 2014 at the age of 21 he was a hip hop artist. He was sitting in a parked SUV at the Chatham Village Square Mall on the city's South Side when the shooter walked up to the vehicle and fired several rounds at NuNu. He was struck multiple times and tried to escape the scene in the SUV before crashing into a nearby store.

Magic

Magic was killed in a tragic car accident on March 1, 2013, Magic and his wife Chastity was killed in a fatal car accident in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. Their twelve-year-old daughter, Twila, was the lone survivor. Magic (or Mr. Magic), was an American hip hop recording artist from New Orleans, Louisiana, perhaps best known for his stint with Records in the late 1990s and early 2000s. His government name is  Awood Johnson. Magic's released his solo studio album debut, Sky's the Limit, in 1998, which reached #15 on the Billboard 200. In 1999 Magic released his second solo studio album Thuggin' which featured his hit singles " That's Me" and " Ice on my Wrist" with Master P, which had minor success, peaking at #30. Following poor sales of his third studio album, White Eyes (#147), in 2003, along with the departure of many of No Limit's marquee artists and the label's overall decline, Magic severed his relationship with No Limit. He released his fourth and final solo album, the non-charting On My Own, onKoch Records just five months after his split from No Limit.

Magic joined fellow New Orleans native Choppa and former boxing champion Roy Jones, Jr. to form the group Body Head Bangerz, who released their only album in 2004, Body Head Bangerz: Volume One, and had a minor hit with "I Smoke, I Drank."

Magic then secured a deal with TVT Records in 2006, but left without ever releasing any material. He formed his own label, Banx Entertainment, in 2011.

Lil Snupe 

Lil Snupe was shot and killed June 20, 2013 at the age of 18. Lil Snupe was murdered at an apartment building in Winnfield, Louisiana by two gunshots to the chest. A warrant was issued for 36 year-old Tony Holden in connection with the shooting.^[Holden was on the run from police for four days before turning himself in to authorities.

Killah P

Killah P was stabbed to death on September 18, 2013 at the age of 34 he was a Greek hip hop artist from Greece.  Government name is Pavlos Fyssas

Doe B      

Doe B was shot and killed at the Centennial Hill Bar & Grill in his hometown of Montgomery. On December 28, 2013 at the of 22 he was an American hip hop artist from Montgomery, Alabama... Government name is Glenn Thomas

Lil Phat

Lil Phat was shot 5 or 6 times on June 7, 2012 at the age 19 outside of a hospital in Sandy Springs, Georgia as he was awaiting the arrival of his unborn son. He was pronounced dead at the scene, and two suspects were sighted running from the location at the time of the shooting.^[3] Channel 2 News has confirmed that three of four suspects in the shooting of rapper Lil Phat are now in custody, including a reported member of the Russian mafia.  Phat was a hip hop artist from Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

His government name is Melvin Vernell III.

Sean Cos Mason

Sean Cos Mason or Sean M was tragically killed/murdered on July 18, 2012 at the age of 22 by the bus he was supposed to ride.  Wilson Romaine Coach USA bus driver operating NJ Transit bus 709 on Broad Street and Bay Avenue in Bloomfield NJ.  Cos was waiting at the bus stop signaled to the  bus driver to stop as he was standing on the sidewalk curb so he can aboard the bus to go to work but the driver refused to stop to pick him. He started driving in a reckless manner jumped the sidewalk curb were Cos was knocked down then dragged him to his demise. The bus driver was not charged. The Essex County Vehicular Homicide detectives and NJ Transit State Bus Company is trying to cover up his death by making false accusation that Cos was the cause of his demise. The case is still under investigation. The Bloomfield town, NJ Transit an Essex County Vehicular Homicide team have been treating Sean’s mother with disrespect and giving her a lot of stress with continue lies an cover up. The prosecutor office had broken Sean Cos Mason’s mother and his civil rights by not properly arresting the villain who killed Cos. The prosecutor detective had done a poor investigation on his case. They deem it as an accident so there will be no liability held against NJ Transit, Township and County. The County prosecutors trying to say the incident happen on town road. While the town of Bloomfield said it happen on the county road.   Sean demise is in vain.

Sean Cos Mason started singing at the age of eleven in chores and rapping at fourteen as Cosmos with Ice Grill Entertainment, Cos released a few album with them like Bang On Em, Just Because We Ice Grill and Life Hurts he wrote at the age of 16 when his mother was in a fatal car accident that left her disable. He has several other music. Later on in the years he branch out on his own as Noneillah Entertainment.  Cos had made cameo appearance in their videos with his former Ice Grill group. He was a part of Hip hop Stash/ Still Hip Hop Stash online entertainment web site with best friend James Little and Cousin Mathew Victors.  After Cos demise James an Matthew change the website name to Noneillah.com in his honor. Cos is the owner of Noneilllah Business and he has a Noneillah Collection from his Noneillahstore. Sean Cos Mason released few songs on YouTube and Google called "Hands on the Wheel "in June 9, 2012, "RemixKelly Rowland Motivation". “Martians vs. Goblins”, “Somthin More” “Right Please”,   "Jump Up". “DaDirty (So Jersey)”, "Power" , "DayDream" remixed, remixed to “Codeine Cup” on his mixed tape, "Body Wasted" , You can hear also hear his  musics "Lemonade" on MTV artist  and many more other sites.  His two mix tapes were released in June of 2012 shortly before his demise. 

His two mix tape was called Around MY Way 1 and Around My Way 2. You can Google his name to hear more of his music collections. Cos was schedule to shoot a sequel video to his Hands On The Wheel video on July 19,2012 called Body Wasted before his death so his best friends James, Theo and Cousin Mat released the video in his honor. They also released two Noneillah Volume 1 and 2 posthumous albums in his memory with several hip hop artists. You will hear Cos new release on the mixtape called “Who you ft. Lethal”, Cos  other music you can also hear like  “My World”, “Girl Tip Toe” from his "My World” mix tape and “Until I’m on”, “No Call Outs”, “Feels So Right”. from his Measure Up mixtape his mother released this year online.  In addition to his posthumous contribute mixtape he received his posthumous college certificate degree in Business Financial in 2013. Cos were working on his third mixtapes called My World and Measure Up. Sean M or Sean Cos Mason was a writer, digital designer, website designer, music engineer, singer and hip hop artist from Montclair, NJ. He did rock hip hop, gospel hip hop, slow music hip hop, club hip hop and more.  He was very lyrical with unique musical intense and complex flows. At times he did not have to write them down. He was known to compose lyrics in his head, rather than write them down on paper. Cos master rapping in a fast smooth rhythm. 

Cos performed in local events and he was sign up with Adel’s Kid and Adult Acting Agency for extra work plus commercials.  He did collaboration as well as Performed with Jay Bella, Lethal, C4, Mike Larry Draw, Genius, D Boy, Diggiz, Kyzer and to name a few. 

There were some interest with news paper report to write a documentary on Cos life and how there were corruption  and cover up on his demise. The news paper articles describe Cos as a peaceful, positive, intelligent, and talented young man who loved his mother, family and friends. Sean Cos Mason was the only child by Naomi Johnson. His government name is Deshon .L Johnson.

Lil Jojo

Lil Jojo was shot and killed at the age of 15 on September 4, 2012.

Natina Reed

Natina Reed was tragically killed being hit by a car near Atlanta, Georgia. October 27, 2012 two days before her 32nd birthday she was in the midst of creating the new album, on October 26, 2012, Reed formed Blaque while Fears formed another group called Intrigue. Intrigue won a recording contract with Elektra Records, and Fears met up with Brandi Williams at a talent show while a member of that group. Fears left Intrigue to join up with Reed in Blaque and Williams joined the group shortly thereafter. Reed met Ronald Lopes while singing jingles to earn extra cash and he introduced her to his sister Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes of TLC. Lisa Lopes signed the group to her production company, Left Eye Productions. In 1997, the group made a cameo appearance in the video Lil' Kim's "Not Tonight (Remix)." released four songs on Blaque  released four songs on YouTube: "Cut You Off", "All Nighter", "Blue Jeans" and "High Definition"On July 28, 2012, Blaque reunited for the Left Eye Music Festival in Decatur, Georgia. At the event, Blaque performed their single "808" and did an exclusive interview for The Industry where they announced their return as a group. Shortly after, the group teamed with another protege of Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes, Manager Inga "Nandi" Willis, and immediately began working on their comeback album and a reality television show. On November 20, 2012, Blaque member Shamari DeVoe announced a tribute album to Natina on her official Facebook page.

In addition to their recording work, Reed, Fears, and Williams appeared in the 2000 film Bring It On as members of the East Compton Clovers cheerleading squad fronted by Gabrielle Union. Williams also had a small role (playing her) in the 2001 movie On the Line. Blaque also appears on Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes's 2001 solo debut album.

Bad News Brown

Bad News Brown was murder February 11, 2011 at the age of 33. Brown's corpse was found in an alley on February 11, 2011. Police said "there was evidence of violence at the scene". His body was found in an industrial area near the Lachine Canal in Montreal. He was reportedly preparing for a show in Quebec City that was to be held a day later. .Brown was a Montreal-based Canadian entertainer, musician, and hip hop MC of Haitianorigin. He was well known for pairing the sound of his chief instrument, the harmonica, with hip-hop beats and rhymes. Frappier started busking in Montreal taking his signature sound as a teenager to the streets and subway stations of Montreal. He later toured and opened for many well-known hip hop acts or as background musician. He also appeared as an impromptu host in Music for a Blue Train, the 2003 documentary about busker musicians in the Metro subway train system. In 2004, he signed a management deal with E-Stunt Entertainment Group. In 2009, he established his own record label Trilateral Entertainment Inc and released his debut studio album Born 2 Sin. He was murdered in Montreal, Canada, and his body was found there on February 12, 2011. The long feature film BumRushfeaturing him in a leading role premiered on 1 April 2011.  Brown's debut album, Born 2 Sin, released in September 2009 on his own indie label Trilateral Entertainment Inc is difficult to categorize due to the different styles employed, but Brown termed it... "Harmonic Hip-Hop" or "Electronic Triptronic Melodic Harmonics". Intelligence is a classic Hip-Hop track featuring beats, scratching, and a cinematic production sound, while Back on It possesses a sexy and laidback vibe. The title track Born 2 Sin is a fusion of hip-hop and soul. The album was chosen as "disc of the week" in Vol.25 No.10 of the Montreal Mirror weekly newspaper. "Snappy and lighthearted, the title track of the debut from Montreal's "harmonic hip hop" man is at odds with the predominating slinky, deep-blue club thumpers, many of which are produced by Zoobone’s capable Haig V. Sly raps and a functioning fusion of house, hip hop and R&B vibes abound, and Brown's secret weapon, his harmonica—plaintive and insistent as a hungry housecat—integrates itself effortlessly. His government Paul Frappier.

M-Bones (Cali Swage District)

M-Bones (Cali Swage District) was shot on May 15, 2011 at age of 22. The 22-year-old rapper was the victim of a drive-by shooting in Inglewood California. M-Bone was in his car after visiting a local liquor store when he was shot twice in the head. He was brought to a hospital where he was pronounced dead. Three days after M-Bone's death, Cali Swag District premiered the song, "How to Do that", in his honor. The song was included on their mixtape, Deeper Than the Dougie

Killa Keise

Killa Keise was shot and killed November 10, 2011 at the age 28.

Slim Dunkin

Slim Dunkin was shot on December 16, 2011 at age 24 at an Atlanta recording studio preparing to shoot a music video. He was shot while arguing with another person in the building, who has been identified as another Atlanta rapper, Young Vito. On February 25, 2013, Atlanta rapper Young Vito was acquitted of murdering Slim Dunkin. However, he was given 25 years for aggravated assault and possession of a firearm.

Tony D

Tony D was in a car accident near his home in Hamilton, New Jersey on April 5, 2009 he was 42 years old. He was a hip hop artist from Trenton, New Jersey. Although he was a hip hop artist & DJ, he was most famous for being an influential producer in hip hop music. He was the producer behind Poor Righteous Teachers and YZ. He has also produced tracks for DJ Muggs, Young Zee, Outsidaz, Pace Won, Blvd Mosse, King Sun, Scott Lark, and Shawn Lov.

Tony D was the first artist to have a record released on Mark Rae's burgeoning British Grand Central Records independent record label (then called Gone Clear Records). His other albums were released on Cha-Ching Records and 4th & B'way/Island/PolyGram Records, and he was a part of the group Crusaders For Real Hip-Hop, which released one album on Profile Records.

Tony D's early records were sampled by several artists, including Naughty by Nature on the hit "O.P.P." and by Heavy D without permission. All cases were settled out of court.

Apart from Tony D., Depula was also known professionally under the names Harvee Wallbangar and Grand Pubha Tony D.

Later in life, Depula hosted a weekly hip hop radio show on Princeton University's 103.3 FM, which aired in Central New Jersey.  An investigation of the accident is pending. His government name is Anthony Depula

VL Mike

VL Mike was shot several times while exiting his vehicle on the 4700 block of Miles Drive at around 1:00 p.m. Mike was taken to University Hospital where he was later pronounced dead April 20, 2008 at the age  of  32.

He first appeared on the mainstream rap scene in 2004 as a member of the New Orleans-based record label, Chopper City Records, of which rapper B.G. is the CEO. Mike was known for his gangster rhyme structure and street lyrics throughout New Orleans. After the 2007 release of the Chopper City Boyz, We Got This debut album, VL Mike departed from Chopper City Records ^[1] and set out to pursue his solo career. VL Mike stated on his Place Yo Betz mixtape that the reason he departed from the label was because B.G. had been portraying himself as a gangster for years through his music when he was not. VL Mike stated in a recent interview that he had a deal with Sony/Epic Records and his debut album, It's Only One Me, would be released in April.  VL Mike, was an American rap artist from New Orleans, Louisiana. His government name was Michael Allen. The assailant is believed to have escaped on foot.

Stack Bundles

Stack Bundles was shot and killed on June 11, 2007 at the age of 24. He was a hip hop artist.

Big Hawk

Big Hawk was shot to death outside of 12127 Redfern Drive, Houston, TX. He was pronounced dead at the scene on May 1, 2006 at the age 36. According to police Hawkins had gone to the location to play dominoes with a friend. He arrived before the friend and started to walk along the side of the house when an unknown suspect shot him multiple times. Police were unable to find any witnesses that could provide information on a suspect or a motive for the shooting.^[6] He died 8 years after his brother Fat Pat was murdered. He was better known as H.A.W.K. or Big Hawk was an American rapper from Houston, Texas and a founding member of the late DJ Screw's rap group the Screwed Up Click. Big Hawk appeared on numerous mixtapes from artists in the Houston underground rap scene. After Screw's death in 2000, he was the main person responsible for keeping the S.U.C. together, so much so that his nickname was the Five Star General of the Screwed Up Click. He collaborated with Lil' O on the smash hit, “Back Back” Next; he partnered with Game Face Records in 2002 and released his first album under his label Ghetto Dreams Ent., self-titled, “HAWK.” With the hit song, “U Already Know,” the album charted the Billboard’s list of top R&B and Rap Albums at no. 45. It was at Game Face Records where Hawk met and clicked with a young up and coming group called the GritBoyz and an artist named Starchy Archy. Hawk and Ghetto Dreams Ent. teamed up with Presidential Records in 2003 to release “A Bad Azz Mix Tape Vol. II.” A year later he and Lil' Keke teamed up to release “Wreckin 2K4” with Presidential Records as well. It was around this time when the original S.U.C. members, along with M.J. (of Southside Studios) started collaborating on a group/compilation album titled “The Takeover.” Trae tha Truth made an album dedicated to BIG HAWK called Life Goes On.

Hawk was featured on the popular single "Swang" by Trae that included a tribute to Fat Pat in 2005. In 2006, Hawk, along with Clint Dempsey of the U.S. National Soccer team recorded a song for Nike's "Joga Bonito" World Cup soccer promotion called "Don't Tread". He was part of Pepsi's Yahoo! "Houston Mic Pass" with Lil' Flip, Chamillionaire, Trae, Chingo Bling, Bun B, Short Dawg, Magno and Mike D. Since his death, Hawk has been featured on several tracks including Lil O's "I Do" single, "Down In Texas" off of the 2008 A.B.N. album It Is What It Is, and Big Unk's "I'm a Beast" to name a few.

On November 11, 2011 two posthumous singles were released called "Somebody Who Loves You" and "Praise God." Shortly after his death, Bun B, a fellow Houston rap artist, spoke about Hawkins in an interview with the Houston Chronicle saying, "There were no kinks in this man's moral armor, because he was a rapper there will be people who will take his death the wrong way, but he was a peaceful guy and a family man who had no beefs with anybody. His government name was John Edward Hawkins

Proof

Proof was shot and killed on April 11, 2006 at the age of 32 during an altercation at the CCC nightclub in Detroit. His stage name Proof, was an American rapper and actor from Detroit, Michigan. During his career, he was a member of the groups Goon Sqwad, 5 Elementz, Promatic, and most notably, D12. He was a close childhood friend of rapper Eminem, who lived on the same block. His government name was DeShaun Dupree Holton.

Soulja Slim  was shot  on Thanksgiving Eve, November 26, 2003, an unknown gunman shot him four times; three times in the face, and once in the chest, in the front lawn of his mother's home located in the 4600 Lafaye St. in the Gentilly neighborhood.^{[3] [4]} Soulja Slim was buried with his Cut Throat Comitty charm and jewelry and also the leather camo clothes he wore on the cover of Give It 2 'Em Raw. On New Year's Eve, December 31, 2003, police arrested 22-year-old Garelle Smith in connection with Tapp's murder. Police discovered a stolen police pistol in Smith's possession with a scratched-off serial number. A ballistics test matched bullets from that gun to the ones that killed Soulja Slim but no witnesses would testify against him. By 2008 Smith had been arrested for three more murders and in each case, charges were dropped and he was released due to lack of witnesses and the New Orleans 60 day law. Along with the other murders, the District Attorney's Office dropped the Soulja Slim murder charge against him and his death became a cold case. In August 2011, Smith himself was found dead with gunshot wounds to the face and chest. In the same year, the song "You Got It" appeared on No Limit Records double-CD compilation Down South Hustlers: Bouncin' and Swingin' . In 1998, Tapp, now calling himself Soulja Slim, released Give It 2 'Em Raw on No Limit Records with his single and music video "From What I Was Told" and a single called "Street Life". Soulja Slim was convicted of armed robbery and incarcerated.^[1] He reappeared three years later with Streets Made Me, which was again released on the No Limit label. From there, he started his own label, Cut Throat Committee Records and released Years Later in late 2002. In 2003, he released Years Later...A Few Months After, his last album before his death. The album featured the hit "I'll Pay for It". In 2003 he also collaborated with fellow New Orleans rapper Juvenile to make the song "Slow Motion". The song was released on Juvenile's album Juve the Great and reached the No. 1 spot on the Billboard Hot 100. It was Soulja Slim and Juvenile's first No. 1 hit, and as the song was released after Soulja Slim's death he became only the sixth artist to have a posthumous No. 1 song. He was an American rapper. He is known for writing the U.S. No. 1 hit "Slow Motion" His government name is James Adarryl Tapp, Jr.

Left Eye

Left Eye was killed in an automobile accident in La Ceiba, Honduras on April 25, 2002 at the age 31. She was driving the vehicle, when she swerved off the road to avoid hitting another vehicle. She was thrown from her own vehicle and later died from her injuries. The last days of her life were filmed from March 30, 2002 until her death on April 25, 2002, including the accident that took her life. The footage was made into a documentary called The Last Days of Left Eye. It aired on VH1's rock docs on May 19, 2007, eight days prior to Lopes' 31st birthday. Her stage name Left Eye, was an American rapper, singer, dancer, musician, and songwriter. She achieved fame as a member of the R&B girl group TLC. Lopes contributed her self-written raps to many of TLC's hit singles, including "Ain't 2 Proud 2 Beg", "What About Your Friends", "Hat 2 da Back", "No Scrubs", "Waterfalls", "Girl Talk". Lopes won four Grammy Awards for her work with TLC. At the age of 19, having heard of an open casting call for a new girl group through her boyfriend at the time, Lopes moved to Atlanta to audition. TLC started off as a female trio called 2nd Nature.^[6] The group was renamed TLC – derived from the first initials of its then three members – Tionne, Lisa and Crystal. Things did not work out with Crystal Jones, and TLC's manager Perri "Pebbles" Reid brought in Damian Dame backup dancer Rozonda Thomas as a third member of the group.^[6] To keep the "initial" theme of the band's name, Rozonda needed a name starting with C, and so became Chilli—a name chosen by Lopes. Band mate Tionne Watkins became T-Boz which was derived from the first letter of her first name and "Boz," which is slang for "boss". Lopes was renamed "Left Eye", after a compliment from a man who once told her he was very attracted to her because of her left eye. Lopes emphasized her nickname by wearing a pair of glasses with the left lens covered with a condom, in keeping with the group's promotion of safe sex, wearing a black stripe under her left eye and, eventually getting her left eyebrow pierced.

The group arrived on the music scene in 1992 with the album Ooooooohhh... On the TLC Tip.  With four singles, it sold six million copies worldwide; TLC became a household name. 1994 saw the release of CrazySexyCool, which sold over 23 million copies worldwide and cemented TLC as one of the biggest female groups of all time. TLC's third album, FanMail, was released in 1999 and sold over 14 million copies worldwide. Its title was a tribute to TLC's loyal fans and the sleeve contained the names of hundreds of them as a "thank you" to supporters.

After the release of FanMail, Lopes began to expand her solo career. She became a featured rapper on several singles, including Spice Girl Melanie C's "Never Be the Same Again", which topped the charts in thirty five countries, including the United Kingdom.She was also featured on "U Know What's Up", the first single fromDonell Jones' second album, Where I Wanna Be, and she rapped a verse in "Space Cowboy" with 'N Sync on their 2000 album, No Strings Attached. On October 4, 2000, Lopes co-hosted the MOBO Awards alongside Trevor Nelson, where she also performed "U Know What's Up" with Jones. She also collaborated on "Gimme Some" by Toni Braxton from her 2000 album The Heat. In 2001, she appeared in a commercial for Gap Inc. Three years earlier in 1998, Lopes hosted the short-lived MTV series, The Cut. A handful of which would be pop stars, rappers, and rock bands who would compete against each other and were judged. The show's winner, which ended up being a male-female rap duo named Silky, was promised a record deal and funding to produce a music video, which would then enter MTV's heavy rotation. A then-unknown Anastacia finished in third place, but ended up securing a record deal after Lopes and the show's three judges were impressed by her performance. In July 2001, Lopes appeared on the singers' edition of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire along with Joey McIntyre, Tyrese,Nick Lachey, and Lee Ann Womack.  She dropped from a $125,000 question and won $32,000 for charity. She would later appear again in the audience alongside Tyrese. A year later, in 2002, the episode of her drop was shown and was dedicated to her.

Lopes created "Left Eye Productions" to discover new talent. She mentored the R&B trio Blaque, and helped them secure a record deal with Columbia Records. Their self-titled debut album was executive-produced by Lopes, who also made a cameo appearance in their music video "808" and also rapped in their second music video "I Do". Lopes was also developing and promoting another new band called Egypt.^[23] They worked with Lopes on her second album under her new nickname, N.I.N.A., meaning New Identity Not Applicable. Her government name was Lisa Nicole Lopes

Aaliyah

Aaliyah was killed in a plane crashed on August 25, 2001 coming from a video shot from Bahamas, at the age. Aaliyah and the eight others on board—pilot Luis Morales III, hair stylist Eric Forman, Anthony Dodd, security guard Scott Gallin, video producer Douglas Kratz, stylist Christopher Maldonado, and Black ground Records employees Keith Wallace and Gina Smith—were all killed. Gallin survived the initial impact and spent his last moments worrying about Aaliyah's condition, according to ambulance drivers. The plane was identified as being owned by Florida-based company Sky stream by Kathleen Bergen, spokeswoman for the US Federal Aviation Administration in Atlanta. Initial reports of the crash identified Luis Morales as "L Marael". Immediately after Aaliyah's death, there was uncertainty over whether the music video for "Rock the Boat" would ever air. It made its world premiere on BET'sAccess Granted on October 9, 2001. She won two posthumous awards at the American Music Awards of 2002; Favorite Female R&B Artist and Favorite R&B/Soul Album for Aaliyah. Her second and final film, Queen of the Damned, was released in February 2002.

On the first anniversary of Aaliyah's death, a candlelight vigil was held in Times Square; millions of fans observed a moment of silence; and throughout the United States, radio stations played her music in remembrance. In December 2002, a collection of previously unreleased material was released as Aaliyah's first posthumous album, I Care 4 U. A portion of the proceeds was donated to the Aaliyah Memorial Fund, a program that benefits the Revlon UCLA Women's Cancer Research Program and Harlem's Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. It debuted at number three on the Billboard 200, selling 280,000 copies in its first week. The album's lead single, "Miss You", peaked at number three on the Billboard Hot 100 and topped the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. In August of the following year, clothing retailer Christian Diordonated profits from sales in honor of Aaliyah.

In 2005, Aaliyah's second compilation album, Ultimate Aaliyah was released in the UK by Blackground Records. ^[Ultimate Aaliyah is a three disc set, which included a greatest hits audio CD and a DVD.

In March 2012, music producer Jeffrey "J-Dub" Walker announced on his Twitter account that a song "Steady Ground", which he produced for Aaliyah's third album, would be included in the forthcoming posthumous Aaliyah album. This second proposed posthumous album would feature this song using demo vocals, as Walker claims the originals were somehow lost by his sound engineer.

On August 5, 2012, a song entitled "Enough Said" was released online.

In June 2013, Aaliyah was featured on a new track by Chris Brown, titled "Don't Think They Know"; with Aaliyah singing the song's hook. The video features dancing holographic versions of Aaliyah. The song is set to appear on Brown's upcoming sixth studio album, X. Timbaland voiced his disapproval for "Enough Said" and "Don't Think They Know" in July 2013. He exclaimed, “Aaliyah music only work with its soul mate, which is me”.

Soon after, Timbaland apologized to Chris Brown over his remarks, which he explained were made due to Aaliyah and her death being a "very sensitive subject". In January 2014, producer Noah "40" She Did confirmed that the posthumous album was shelved due to the negative reception surrounding Drake's involvement. Shebib added, "Aaliyah's mother saying, 'I don't want this out' was enough for me [...] I walked away very quickly." Aaliyah has been credited for helping redefine R&B and hip hop in the 1990s, "leaving an indelible imprint on the music industry as a whole." Steve Huey of All Music wrote Aaliyah ranks among the "elite" artists of the R&B genre, as she "played a major role in popularizing the stuttering, futuristic production style that consumed hip-hop and urban soul in the late 1990s." Described as one of "R&B's most important artists" during the 1990s, her second studio album, One in a Million, became one of the most influential R&B albums of the decade. Music critic Simon Reynolds cited "Are You That Somebody?" as "the most radical pop single" of 1998. Kelefah Sanneh of The New York Times wrote that rather than being the song's focal point, Aaliyah "knew how to disappear into the music, how to match her voice to the bass line", and consequently "helped change the way popular music sounds; the twitchy, beat-driven songs of Destiny's Child owe a clear debt to 'Are You That Somebody' Her government name was Aaliyah Dana Haughton

Tupac Amaru Shakur

Tupac Amaru Shakur was shot and killed  on September 7, 1996 at the age of , At approximately 11:15 pm (PDT), a white, four-door, late-model Cadillac with an unknown number of occupants pulled up to the sedan's right side, rolled down a window, and rapidly fired gunshots at Shakur. He was hit in the chest, pelvis, and his right hand and thigh. One of the rounds went into Shakur's right lung Knight was hit in the head by fragmentation, though it is thought^{[by whom?]} that a bullet grazed him. The bodyguard, Frank Alexander, stated that when he was about to ride along with the rapper in Knight's car, Shakur asked him to drive the car of Shakur's fiancée Kidada Jones instead, in case they needed additional vehicles from Club 662 back to the hotel. The bodyguard reported in his documentary, Before I Wake, that shortly after the assault, one of the convoy's cars drove off after the assailant but he never heard from the occupants. after arriving at the scene, police and paramedics took Knight and a wounded Shakur to the University Medical Center of Southern Nevada. 

According to an interview with the music video director Gobi, while at the hospital, he received news from a Death Row marketing employee that the shooters had called the record label and threatened Shakur. Gobi told the Las Vegas police, but said they claimed to be understaffed. No attackers came. At the hospital, Shakur was heavily sedated, was placed on life support machines, and was ultimately put under a barbiturate-induced coma after repeatedly trying to get out of the bed. 

While in the critical care unit, on the afternoon of Friday, September 13, 1996, Shakur died of internal bleeding; doctors attempted to revive him but could not stop the hemorrhaging. His mother, Afeni, made the decision to tell the doctors to stop. He was pronounced dead at 4:03 pm (PDT). The official cause of death was noted as respiratory failure and cardiopulmonary arrest in connection with multiple gunshot wounds. Shakur's body was cremated the next day and some of his ashes were later mixed with marijuana and smoked by members of the Outlawz. However, E.D.I. Mean claimed in an interview in 2014 that despite believing that the ashes were those of Shakur at the time, he later found that the ashes did not in fact belong to Shakur. His fifth album, The Don Killuminati: The 7 Day Theory was released two months later.

In late 1993, Shakur formed the group Thug Life with a number of his friends, including Big Syke, Macadoshis, his stepbrother Mopreme Shakur, and Rated R. The group released their only album Thug Life: Volume 1 on September 26, 1994, which went gold. The album featured the single "Pour out a Little Liquor", produced by Johnny, who went on to produce a large part of Shakur's album All Eyez on Me. The group usually performed their concerts without Shakur.^[46] The album was originally released by Shakur's label Out Da Gutta Records. Due to criticism about gangsta rap at the time, the original version of the album was scrapped and re-recorded with many of the original songs being cut. Among the notable tracks on the album are "Bury Me a G", "Cradle to the Grave", "Pour Out a Little Liquor" (which also appears in the soundtrack to the 1994 film Above the Rim), "How Long Will They Mourn Me?" and "Str8 Ballin'". The album contains ten tracks because Interscope Records felt many of the other recorded songs were too controversial to release. Although the original version of the album was not completed, Shakur performed the planned first single from the album, "Out on Bail" at the 1994 Source Awards.^[47] Although the album was originally released on Shakur's label Out Da Gutta, Amaru Entertainment, the label owned by Shakur's mother, has since gained the rights to it. Thug Life: Volume 1 was certified Gold. The track "How Long Will They Mourn Me?" appeared later in 1998 from 2Pac's Greatest Hits album.

His third album, Me against the World, was very well received, with many calling it the magnum opus of his career. It is considered one of the greatest and most influential hip hop albums of all-time. It is his fourth biggest selling album with 3,524,567 copies in the United States as of 2011. Me Against the World won best rap album at the 1996 Soul Train Music Awards. 

"Dear Mama" was released as the album's first single in February 1995, along with the track "Old School" as the B-side. "Dear Mama" would be the album's most successful single, topping the Hot Rap Singles chart, and peaking at the ninth spot on the Billboard Hot 100.The single was certified platinum in July 1995, and later placed at #51 on the year-end charts. The second single, "So Many Tears", was released in June, four months after the first single. The single would reach the number six on the Hot Rap Singles chart, and number 44 on the Billboard Hot 100. "Temptations", released in August, was the third and final single from the album. The single would be the least successful of the three released, but still did fairly well on the charts, reaching number 68 on the Billboard Hot 100, 35 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks, and 13 on the Hot Rap Singles charts.

1996: Final recordings

All Eyez on Me was the fourth studio album by 2Pac, released on February 13, 1996 by Death Row Records and Interscope Records. The album is frequently recognized as one of the crowning achievements of 1990s rap music.

George "Papa G" Pryce, former Head of Publicity for Death Row, claimed that "Makaveli, which we did was sort of tongue-in-cheek and it was not really to come out and after Tupac was murdered, it did come out. But before that it was going to be a sort of an underground [record]."The album peaked at number one on the Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart and the Billboard 200. The album generated the second-highest debut-week sales total of any album that year,  was certified 4× Platinum on June 15, 1999. His government name was was Lesane Parish Crooks

Notorious B.I.G., Biggie 

Notorious B.I.G., Biggie or Biggie Smalls was shot and killed on March 9, 1997 at the age of   by an unknown assailant in a drive-by shooting in Los Angeles. By 12:45 a.m. (PST), the streets were crowded with people leaving the event. Wallace's SUV stopped at a red light at the corner of Wilshire Blvd & South Fairfax Ave 50 yards (46 m) from the museum. A dark colored Chevrolet Impala SS pulled up alongside Wallace's SUV. The driver of the Impala, a black male dressed in a blue suit and bow tie, rolled down his window, drew a 9 mm blue-steel pistol and fired at the GMC Suburban; four bullets hit Wallace. Wallace's entourage rushed him to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, where doctors performed an emergency thoracotomy, but he was pronounced dead at 1:15 a.m His double-disc set Life After Death, released 16 days later, rose to No. 1 on the U.S. album charts and was certified Diamond in 2000, one of the few hip hop albums to receive this certification. Wallace was noted for his "loose, easy flow",  dark semi-autobiographical lyrics and storytelling abilities. Two more albums have been released since his death. He has certified sales of 17 million units in the United States. ^[Wallace was raised in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. When he released his debut album Ready to Die in 1994, he became a central figure in the East Coast hip hop scene and increased New York's visibility in the genre at a time when West Coast hip hop was dominant in the mainstream.

Wallace's murder remains unsolved and there are many theories regarding the identities and motives of the murderers. The Wallace family said the LAPD "consciously concealed Rafael Perez's involvement in the murder of ... Wallace".  Wallace family also claimed the LAPD had sufficient evidence to arrest the assailant, but failed to use it. David Mack and Amir Muhammad (a.k.a. Harry Billups) were originally named as defendants in the civil suit, but were dropped shortly before the trial began after the LAPD and FBI dismissed them as suspects. a key witness who was expected to testify at trial, Kevin Hackie, revealed that he suffered memory lapses due to psychiatric medications. He had previously testified to knowledge of involvement between Suge Knight, David Mack, and Amir Muhammad.  Immediately after the shooting, reports surfaced linking the Shakur and Wallace murders, because of the similarities in the drive-by shootings.^[51]n 1997, Los Angeles Times authors Chuck Philips and Matt Laitt reported that the key suspect was a member of the Crips acting in service of a personal financial motive. Wallace mostly rapped on his songs in a deep tone described by Rolling Stone as a "thick, jaunty grumble",^] which went deeper on Life after Death. He was often accompanied on songs with ad libs from Sean "Puffy" Combs. On The Source's Unsigned Hype, his style was described as "cool, nasal, and filtered, to bless his own material".

Later in the year, Wallace gained exposure on a remix to Mary J. Blige's single "Real Love", under the pseudonym The Notorious B.I.G. He recorded under this name for the remainder of his career, after finding the original moniker "Biggie Smalls" was already in use. "Real Love" peaked at No. 7 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and was followed by a remix of Blige's "What's the 411? “ He continued this success, to a lesser extent, on remixes with Neneh Cherry ("Buddy X") and reggae artist Super ("Dolly My Baby", also featuring Combs) in 1993. In April 1993, his solo track, "Party and Bullshit", appeared on the Who's the Man? Soundtrack.  In July 1994, he appeared alongside LL Cool J and Busta Rhymes on a remix to label mate Craig Mack's "Flava in Ya Ear", reaching No. 9 on the Hot 100. Wallace had his first pop chart success as a solo artist with double A-side, "Juicy/Unbelievable", which reached No. 27 as the lead single to his debut album.

Ready to Die was released on September 13, 1994, and reached No. 13 on the Billboard 200 chart, eventually being certified four times Platinum. The album, released at a time when West Coast hip hop was prominent in the U.S. charts, according to Rolling Stone, "almost single-handedly... shifted the focus back to East Coast rap". It immediately gained strong reviews and has received much praise in retrospect. In addition to "Juicy", the record produced two hit singles: the Platinum-selling "Big Poppa", which reached No. 1 on the U.S. rap chart, and "One More Chance" featuring Faith Evans, a loosely related remix of an album track and its best selling single.

Allmusic describe Wallace as having "a talent for piling multiple rhymes on top of one another in quick succession". Time magazine wrote Wallace rapped with an ability to "make multi-syllabic rhymes sound... smooth",  while Krims describes Wallace's rhythmic style as "effusive." Before starting a verse, Wallace sometimes used onomatopoeic vocables to "warm up" (for example "uhhh" at the beginning of "Hypnotize" and "Big Poppa" and "whaat" after certain rhymes in songs such as "My Downfall").

Lateef of Latyrx notes that Wallace had, "intense and complex flows", All music describe Wallace as having "a talent for piling multiple rhymes on top of one another in quick succession”. Time magazine wrote Wallace rapped with an ability to "make multi-syllabic rhymes sound... smooth", ^[while Krims describes Wallace's rhythmic style as "effusive." Before starting a verse, Wallace sometimes used onomatopoeic vocables to "warm up"

Lateef of Latyrx notes that Wallace had, "intense and complex flows", Fredro Starr of Onyx says, "Biggie was a master of the flow", and Bishop Lamont states that Wallace mastered "all the hemispheres of the music". "Notorious B.I.G. also often used the single-line rhyme scheme to add variety and interest to his flow".  His government name is Christopher George Latore Wallace

Troy Dixon

Troy Dixon was killed by an accidental fall on July 15, 1990, at the age of 22. While on tour in Indianapolis, he and others were having fun after a performance and walking on a raised exit ramp outside the arena. Dixon lost his balance, fell from a height of approximately two stories, and hit his head. He was rushed to the hospital, where he later died. Trouble T Roy was a hip-hop dancer and rapper with the successful group Heavy D and the Boyz from 1987 until 1990. Heavy D and the Boyz dedicated their next album, Peaceful Journey, to his memory in 1991.

Pete Rock & CL Smooth dedicated their song "They Reminisce Over You (T.R.O.Y.)" to him in 1992. Pete Rock discussed the song's genesis in a 2007 interview with The Village Voice:

I had a friend of mine that passed away, and it was a shock to the community. I was kind of depressed when I made it. And to this day, I can't believe I made it through, the way I was feeling. I guess it was for my boy. When I found the record by Tom Scott, basically I just heard something incredible that touched me and made me cry. It had such a beautiful bassline, and I started with that first. I found some other sounds and then heard some sax in there and used that. Next thing you know, I have a beautiful beat made. When I mixed the song down, I had Charlie Brown from Leaders of the New School in the session with me, and we all just started crying."

Guy mentions him in a song called "Long Gone", a 1990 song paying tribute to various artists and friends, on their album The Future.

Vocalist Q-Tip of A Tribe Called Quest gives him a shout-out at the end of their song "Vibes and Stuff".

Rapper Sinister X mentions Dixon in the SyckSyde song Dead Gangstas, when he raps "They'll reminisce over you like Pete Rock did T-Roy, talking bout how you went from B-Boy to R.I.P. Boy."

DJ Scott La Rock     

 

DJ Scott La Rock was shot and killed on August 27, 1987 at the age 25. Shockingly, Sterling met a violent death in 1987. His friend and BDP associate D-Nice had been assaulted by a couple of young men because D-Nice had been dating one of their ex-girlfriends. D-Nice asked Sterling to try to help defuse the situation. Later that day, Sterling, Scotty "Manager Moe" Morris, DJ McBooo, D-Nice and BDP Bodyguard Darrell, all riding in a red Jeep CJ-7 with a white fiberglass top on it, drove to the Highbridge Homes^[1] Projects building on University Avenue in the South Bronx where the offending parties lived.^[1] Sterling’s intention may have been to try to defuse the situation, but plenty of physical support arrived with him. As they were leaving, bullets ripped through the side and top of the Jeep. Sterling was hit in the neck.

Critically wounded, he was driven in the Jeep to Lincoln Hospital, which was less than a mile away. He was conscious and talking to the doctors as he was wheeled into the emergency room. Sterling then stated to the doctor that he was feeling cold and tired. At first it was thought that his injuries were not life-threatening, and his friends last saw him being wheeled away into surgery. They couldn't go into the emergency room with him, so they went to the diner around the corner on Grand Concourse and East 149th Street to wait while he was treated. However, Sterling died in the operating room within one hour of being shot. Sterling graduated in 1984 and returned to New York City in hopes of finding work and making in-roads to the music industry. Through a connection of his mother’s, Scott landed a job as a social worker at Franklin Armory Men’s Shelter on 166th St in the Bronx. At night, though, he spun records at the hip hop hot spot, the Broadway Repertoire Theatre.

During his time as a social worker, Sterling met rapper KRS-One in 1986 at Franklin Men's Shelter where KRS resided. The pair formed Boogie Down Productions with DJ Derrick "D-Nice" Jones, a cousin of the shelter's security guard. The group's 1987 debut album, Criminal Minded, is considered a classic of hip-hop. Two men were arrested and charged with Sterling's murder but were acquitted at the trial. His government name was Scott Monroe Sterling