10 Rappers Who Died Too Young
"The greatest of all time died on March 9..." ehh... I don't think so.
Here is
my list of the top ten rappers who are dead. I based my ranking on how
fresh they were when they were alive, their contributions to hip-hop.
And if they were alive, would their music be any good?
I
excluded cats like Jay Dee, Jam Master Jay, Freaky Tah, and Scott La
Rock because they weren't really emcees. Jay Dee was more of a producer
and Freaky Tah more of a hype man. Anyway, here's the list.
10. Cowboy (Grandmaster Flash & The Furious 5)
Death: On Saturday, September 8 1989, Cowboy died of complications from HIV AIDS. He was two weeks shy of his 39th birthday.
When
people think of Grandmaster Flash and Furious 5, they first
automatically think of Mellie Mel, but Cowboy was the backbone of the
group along with Scorpio. There wasn’t much publicity when he passed,
mostly because he already contributed what he had to the culture.
9. MC Trouble
Death: MC Trouble died of an epileptic seizure in 1991, on her 19th birthday.
MC
Trouble was the first female emcee ever signed to Motown Records. In
1990 she made her rounds on BET and YO! MTV Raps with “(I Wanna) Wanna
Make You Mine”. The track was hot, and unfortunately she died before
really making a name for herself.
8. Buffy (Fat Boys)
Death:
on December 10, 1995, Darren "Buffy, the Human Beatbox" Robinson died
of a heart attack in Rosedale, New York. He was 28 years old and
reportedly 450 lbs.
Growing up I was a huge fan of the Fat Boys. They were funny, confident and made some fresh music. I think after their movie Disorderlies
they pretty much worn out their welcome. They broke up for awhile,
which was fine. Prince Markie Dee was doing his thing. Then talk of
reunion surfaced, which I think would have been dope over some those
beats from the mid-90’s from Pete Rock, Large Professor, or Evil Dee. I
mean it worked for Run-DMC and “Down with The King” right?
7. Eazy E
Death:
In 1995, Eazy-E entered the hospital with what he believed to be
bronchitis. He was diagnosed with AIDS, and almost immediately announced
his illness to the public. He died soon after, on March 26, 1995.
Eazy
E didn’t write his own lyrics until the last years of his life. He was
wack. But when Cube or Ren wrote them, he was one of the best emcees
ever. He had the perfect voice, look and attitude. If it wasn’t for him,
there’s a lot of things that wouldn’t have happened in hip-hop.
6. Grym Reaper aka Too Poetic (Gravediggaz)
Death:
In April 1999: "Grym Reaper" was diagnosed with a deadly colon cancer,
and was given only three months to live. On Sunday, July 15, 2001,
Anthony “Grym Reaper” Berkeley passed away, almost two years longer than
the time he was given by the doctors.
Most
people forget about Grym, but his contributions to the first two
excellent Gravediggaz albums and the heart and passion he showed on the
last Gravediggaz album has to be applauded. He was an excellent emcee,
but honestly I don’t miss him as much as some other emcees.
5. Ol Dirty Bastard
Death:
ODB collapsed at approximately 5:29pm on November 13, 2004 at Wu-Tang's
recording studio. He was pronounced dead less than an hour later, only
two days shy of his 36th birthday. He had a lethal mixture of cocaine
and the prescription painkiller Tramadol in his system at the time of
his death.
I
liked ODB. I liked his personality; I liked his unpredictable nature
and just his craziness. It made for funny, entertaining hip-hop. His
flow wasn’t to bad either, especially on the DJ Premier-produced cut
“Pop Shots” with M.O.P.
4. Tupac
Death:
Tupac was shot in a drive-by on September 7, 1996 after the boxing
match between Mike Tyson and Bruce Seldon in Las Vegas. Shakur was hit
several times (including once in the lung) while attempting to jump in
the back seat. He died in the hospital on September 13, 1996.
I
really haven’t had an urge to want to hear new Tupac music at all. He
made so many tracks that they’re still coming out almost a decade after
his death. I would like to see what he would be doing nowadays and if he
ever would have squashed his beef with everyone. Although lyrically,
Pac has never impressed me, but his passion, charisma and honesty always
caught my attention. Me Against the World is still his best album.
3. Notorious B.I.G.
Death:
On March 9, 1997, Biggie was shot and killed in Los Angeles, where he
had been attending a party by VIBE Magazine near the Peterson Automotive
Museum.
After
hearing the Duets album, and the regurgitation of Biggie lyrics that
we’ve heard over and over again, it would definitely be nice to hear him
spit some new stuff over beats from the Neptunes, Kanye and Timbaland.
He’s really one of the best that’s ever done it.
2. Big Pun
Death: Struggling with weight problems during his lifetime, Pun died on February 7, 2000 after a fatal heart attack.
I’m a Big Pun fan, and it really hurt my heart when he passed. It was
cool to see a Latino represent with skills plus make dope hits. I
really put him up there with Biggie, Jigga, Rakim, Nas, you know, the
legends in the game. He just left too early to do more than he did.
1. Big L
Death: On February 15 , 1999 Big L was shot seven times in the head and chest and killed on 139th Street, just blocks away from his Harlem home. He was 24 years old.
I
think Big L is the illest emcee who is no longer alive. Listening to
his first album and then his posthumous album, you’ll hear some of the
illest metaphors and similes ever spoken.
Peep this nugget from 1995’s “Put it On:
“Aiyyo, you betta flee Hops, or get your head flown three blocks
L keep rapper's hearts pumpin like Reeboks…
I got the wild style, always been a foul child
My guns go boom-boom, and yo' guns go pow-pow”
Check this one from 1999’s “Ebonics”:
“A burglary is a jook, a woof's a crook
Mobb Deep already explained the meanin' of shook
If you caught a felony, you caught a F
If you got killed, you got left
If you got the dragon, you got bad breath
If you 730, that mean you crazy
Hit me on the hip means page me”
He was on his way to signing with Roc-A-Fella Records. How nice it would have been.
Comments
Post a Comment