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Rapper Lil Peep in 2017

Lil Peep

Photo: Jacopo Raule/Getty Images

News
Rapper Lil Peep Dies At 21 lil-peep-alt-rockhip-hop-fusion-rapper-dies-21

Lil Peep, Alt-Rock/Hip-Hop Fusion Rapper, Dies At 21

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Fans and fellow artists take to social media to mourn the young artist
Brian Haack
GRAMMYs
Nov 16, 2017 - 11:28 am

American rapper, singer, and producer Lil Peep — née Gustav Åhr — died Nov. 16 prior to a tour appearance in Tucson, Ariz. A spokesperson for the Tucson Police Department has confirmed that evidence was found on the rapper's tour bus indicating the cause of death to be a drug overdose, according to The New York Times.

nineteen (prod. smokeasac) by ☆LiL PEEP☆

The SoundCloud rapper and rising alt-pop star was on tour in support of his debut album, Come Over When You're Sober, Pt. 1. He died just two weeks following his 21st birthday. 

Best known for his self-produced bedroom-recorded tracks such as "Crybaby" and "Hellboy," Lil Peep built a rabid online fanbase through his unique blend of emo-rock hooks and trap-inspired rapping. References to heavy drug use as self-medication to deal with severe depression were a staple of the young rapper's songwriting, and his soul-baring acknowledgement of his real-life trials and mood swings forged a powerful connection with a fanbase built almost entirely via SoundCloud and Instagram.

https://twitter.com/PostMalone/status/931045155502661632

in the short time that i knew you, you were a great friend to me and a great person. your music changed the world and it'll never be the same. i love you bud. forever pic.twitter.com/tpbxpkf4f4

— Posty (@PostMalone) November 16, 2017

"I suffer from depression and some days I wake up and I’m like, 'F***, I wish I didn’t wake up,'" he said in an interview with Pitchfork. "That's the side of myself that I express through music. That's my channel for letting all that s*** out."

https://twitter.com/jackalproducer/status/931046742719586305

rip @Lilpeep

the voice of an anxiety filled generation
one of the most original artists we had

so sad 💔

— jackal (@jackalproducer) November 16, 2017

Lil Peep began his career in music after leaving high school early and earning his degree via online courses. He began releasing self-produced music on YouTube and SoundCloud, where he discovered an unexpectedly fervent fanbase, prompting him to release his first mixtape Lil Peep Part One in 2015.

Though ostensibly a rapper, Lil Peep drew acclaim from his fans and music critics alike for his refusal to be pinned down by the conventions of any one genre, often sampling artists such as Underoath, Brand New, the Postal Service, Oasis, and the Microphones to build the sonic bed for his Southern-rap inspired vocal deliveries. His lyrical content — touching equally on themes of relationships, revenge, angst, and self-harm — prompted Pitchfork to label him as an artist who was "reinventing heart-on-sleeve agony for a new generation."

https://twitter.com/tunjiige/status/931048539156774912

Rip Lil Peep man this xanax culture gotta stop man

— Tunji (@tunjiige) November 16, 2017

Lil Peep was vocal on social media and in his songwriting about his close relationship with his mother. She has released a statement through a representative of First Access Entertainment, stating she remains "very, very proud of him and everything he was able to achieve in his short life," and that she is "truly grateful to the fans and the people who have supported and loved him."

CyHi The Prynce Gives The Scoop Behind 'No Dope On Sundays'

Logic performs in 2017

Logic

Photo: Jeff Hahne

News
Logic And Joey Bada$$ Spit A Tour Bus Freestyle watch-logic-and-joey-bada-spit-tour-bus-freestyle

Watch Logic And Joey Bada$$ Spit A Tour Bus Freestyle

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The young rappers uploaded a quick cypher to IG from the comfort of their tour bus
Brian Haack
GRAMMYs
Aug 9, 2017 - 3:56 pm

Rappers Logic and Joey Bada$$ are currently choppin' it up on a 29-date summer tour of the U.S. in support of Logic's latest LP, Everybody.

The dudes are clearly fast friends, as today Logic sent out a brief Instagram video of the two trading bars on some instrumentals in their tour bus. Obviously, it's straight fire, but you didn't need us to tell you that. Take a listen:

https://www.instagram.com/p/BXivAvjDB1Z

GRAMMYs

Content Not Available

Bada$$ will embark on a solo headlining world tour of his own, in support of his likewise just-released second LP, All-Amerikkkan Bada$$, once he and Logic cap off their shared dates with an Aug. 26 appearance in Toronto.

Watch Logic Talk About 'Everybody'

Ty (C) at the 2004 Mercury Prize ceremony

Ty (C) at the 2004 Mercury Prize ceremony

Photo: Dave Hogan/Getty Images

News
U.K. Rapper Ty Dies Of Coronavirus At 47 ty-uk-rapper-and-mercury-prize-nominee-dies-coronavirus-47

Ty, U.K. Rapper And Mercury Prize Nominee, Dies Of Coronavirus At 47

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The celebrated London-born artist received a nomination for the U.K.'s top music prize for his 2003 album, 'Upwards'
John Ochoa
GRAMMYs
May 8, 2020 - 2:38 pm

Ty, a celebrated U.K. rapper who received a Mercury Prize nomination for his 2003 album, Upwards, died Thursday (May 7) due to complications from COVID-19. He was 47.

The artist, born Benedict Chijioke, had contracted the disease around March/April, according to a GoFundMe campaign launched last month (April 8) to help raise funds for him. His condition had been improving, according to a post on the campaign dated April 19, and he had been released from his intensive care unit and moved into a "normal ward." He then contracted pneumonia, which "worsened his recovery and ultimately Ty's body couldn't fight back anymore," the post reads. 

Prior to this episode, upon his initial admission to the hospital, Chijioke had been put into a medically induced coma to temporarily sedate him in order to help him recover. He was put on a ventilator after waking from the coma. 

"This is a shock to everyone," Diane Laidlaw, the organizer for the GoFundMe campaign and a close friend of Chijioke, wrote in a post announcing the rapper's death. "I actually have no words or clear way of thinking and hope this comes out correctly when I post it … The family would like to say a big thank you to everyone who has reached out and expressed their concern since he was admitted in hospital but right now they would value having their privacy, so they can mourn privately. They just need time to process."

Read: Resources for Music Creators & Professionals Affected By COVID-19: Asia, Europe & The U.K.

Born to Nigerian parents in London in 1972, Chijioke was known for his storytelling skills and sharp wit, with his music taking "a tangibly British take on the U.S. boom-bap style of hip-hop," The Guardian writes.

He released his debut album, Awkward, in 2001. But 2003's Upwards marked his breakthrough into the mainstream. In addition to peaking at No. 35 on the U.K. Independent Albums Chart in his homeland, Upwards received a nomination for the Mercury Prize, the coveted annual award celebrating "the best of U.K. music and the artists who produce it," according to the organization's website.

Chijioke would go on to release three additional albums, including Closer (2006), Special Kind Of Fool (2010) and A Work Of Heart (2018); his albums featured collaborations with American hip-hop artists like De La Soul and Speech of Arrested Development, as well as U.K. rappers and producers like Roots Manuva, Sway and others. 

In addition to his solo work, The Guardian reports, Chijioke was an artist associate of The Hip-Hop Shakespeare Company, "a music theatre production company aimed at exploring the social, cultural and linguistic parallels between the works of William Shakespeare and that of modern day hip-hop artists," according to the organization's website. He also experimented with spoken word and was a founding member of the U.K. hip-hop supergroup Kingdem, alongside rappers Blak Twang and Rodney P.

Recording Academy And MusiCares Establish COVID-19 Relief Fund

Channel Tres

Channel Tres

Photo: Clare Gillen

News
Channel Tres Drops First New Music Of 2020 channel-tres-drops-first-new-music-video-2020-groovy-weedman

Channel Tres Drops First New Music & Video Of 2020, The Groovy "Weedman"

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"The track's nostalgic for a time where weed was inaccessible… I was stressed out over a lot of stuff at that age. The song explains that—me struggling to figure out where to get my weed, but also for the dealer going through hard times too," he told us
Ana Monroy Yglesias
GRAMMYs
Mar 27, 2020 - 4:33 pm

Today, March 27, Compton-born rapper/singer/producer/dancer Channel Tres shared "Weedman," the first single from his new label Art For Their Good. The funky track is his first new music of 2020, following 2019's Black Moses EP, and comes paired with a vintage-hued visual.

Behind the song's house party-ready vibes and undulating G-funk beat, the underlying message is an important one: Despite the legalization of marijuana in California and beyond, many people of color are still disproportionately serving time for weed-related charges. According to the ACLU, "in the United States, a black person is 3.73 times more likely to be arrested for marijuana possession than a white person is, despite approximately equal rates of use."

Channel Tres Talks Honoring Isaac Hayes On EP 'Black Moses,' Healing With Music & Being A "Ghetto Savior"

Over email, Tres shares with us the inspiration behind "Weedman" and how it portrays his younger self and the perspective of his weed dealer.

"The track's nostalgic for a time where weed was inaccessible—and now there's weed shops everywhere. Back then if I couldn't get my weed, it was a big thing for me because I couldn't go to sleep. I was stressed out over a lot of stuff at that age. The song explains that—me struggling to figure out where to get my weed, but also for the dealer going through hard times too," he wrote.

"Every voice on there is me. All the voices and characters in my head. I grew up on a lot of DJ Quik, Parliament, OutKast, dance music. One thing I noticed with DJ Quik is if you take all the vocals off his tracks, they hit like European dance records."

LISTEN: Childish Gambino Drops New Album ‘3.15.20’

Tres also spoke to the beautiful video, shot by Henry Grenier on 8mm film by in a house he rented in the Hollywood Hills. It was directed and edited by regular creative collaborator Anthony Sylvester, who also directed the videos for "Topdown" and "Jet Black."

"I wanted the video to represent the different personalities I have, and this is the first song where I did vocals I wouldn't normally do, mixed with sounds I've been inspired by for years. The video's shot with a Super8 camera and I rented out a house that looks like my Grandma's because I wanted it to have that feel. It just happened to come out during this time where it's kinda fitting for everything that's going on—it looks like I'm stuck at home, alone on the couch," he explained.

The "Sexy Black Timberlake" artist will be making his Coachella stage debut this fall and plans to treat us with more of his musical gifts ahead of the fest.

Mortal Man: Author Marcus J. Moore Talks 5 Years Of Kendrick Lamar's 'TPAB' & His Forthcoming Book, 'The Butterfly Effect'

Pop Smoke

Pop Smoke

Photo:  Johnny Nunez/WireImage

News
Brooklyn Rapper Pop Smoke Dies At 20 brooklyn-rapper-pop-smoke-dies-20

Brooklyn Rapper Pop Smoke Dies At 20

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The rising rapper had previously collaborated with Travis Scott, Nicki Minaj and Skepta, among many others
John Ochoa
GRAMMYs
Feb 19, 2020 - 9:39 am

Pop Smoke, a rising rapper from Brooklyn, died today (Feb. 19). He was 20.

The rapper, born Bashar Barakah Jackson, was shot and killed early this morning in Los Angeles during a home invasion, a representative from the Los Angeles Police Department confirmed to Rolling Stone.

Jackson was staying in a home in the Hollywood Hills when a pair of two masked men broke into the house and fatally shot the rapper, according to reports. He was transferred to a nearby hospital in West Hollywood where he was pronounced dead upon arrival. 

The suspects have not been caught and remain unidentified, according to reports.

Read: Chicago Rapper Juice WRLD Dies At 21

Born in 1999, Jackson was a fast-rising star in the hip-hop world. He broke into the mainstream in 2019 via his breakout track "Welcome To The Party," the lead single off his debut mixtape, Meet The Woo, which was released later that year. He later released two official remixes of the track featuring Nicki Minaj and U.K. grime rapper Skepta.

Most recently, Jackson released the sequel to his inaugural mixtape, Meet The Woo 2, earlier this month (Feb. 7) on Victor Victor Worldwide/Republic Records. The mixtape, which peaked at No. 7 on the Billboard 200 chart, featured collaborations with Migos rapper Quavo, A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie, Lil Tjay and others. 

Jackson also featured on JackBoys, the 2019 compilation album from Travis Scott and his Cactus Jack Records roster, and collaborated with artists like Charlie Sloth, Calboy and H.E.R., among others. 

Following the news of Jackson's death, fellow artists from the larger hip-hop and R&B community commemorated the late rapper.

https://www.instagram.com/p/B8wKzSGnCP0

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Barbie (@nickiminaj)

https://twitter.com/Bas/status/1230146946376990720

Damn this so shit fuckin wack. You made the whole city proud. RIP Pop Smoke

— Bas (@Bas) February 19, 2020

https://twitter.com/JoellOrtiz/status/1230145964469608448

Sad man. Just sad.. RIP Pop Smoke

— Joell Ortiz (@JoellOrtiz) February 19, 2020

Popa Wu, Wu-Tang Clan Affiliate and Mentor, Dies at 63

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Some of the content on this site expresses viewpoints and opinions that are not those of the Recording Academy. Responsibility for the accuracy of information provided in stories not written by or specifically prepared for the Academy lies with the story's original source or writer. Content on this site does not reflect an endorsement or recommendation of any artist or music by the Recording Academy.