Each artist left an indelible mark on their culture, and their absences represent a collective wound for a genre that continues to grapple with its own immense power and peril.
From late 2019 to the end of 2024, the hip-hop community has experienced a terrible tsunami of loss, with both rising young artists and famous stalwarts passing away in startling ways. From street violence to accidental overdoses, this tragic timeline highlights the pervasive dangers that continue to shadow the genre, leaving fans and the industry in a state of perpetual mourning.
The tragedy was particularly felt in India, where there were two significant losses for the emerging rap genre. The life of Punjabi rapper and politician Sidhu Moose Wala, who was incredibly popular, was tragically taken at the age of 28.
He was shot and killed in his car in May 2022, a murder widely attributed to gang rivalries that silenced a powerful voice. Earlier in February 2025, the Odia rapper and engineer Juggernaut (Abhinav Singh) was found dead in his Bengaluru apartment. His apparent suicide stunned the local music industry and raised awareness of serious mental health problems.
The year 2024 proved to be particularly cruel, bookended by the losses of several influential figures. The year closed with the death of Atlanta trap pioneer OG Maco in Los Angeles on December 26th.The community had just months earlier lamented the passing of New York's legendary hype man Fatman Scoop (August 30) and Atlanta's Rich Homie Quan (September 5). The summer was marred by violence with the shooting deaths of Jacksonville rapper Foolio in Tampa (June 23) and Chris King, a close associate of Trippie Redd, in Nashville (April 20).
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The previous two years saw the passing of foundational 90s artists and promising new talents. In 2023, the world lost Grammy-winning legend Coolio (Sept. 2022) to an accidental fentanyl overdose, Three 6 Mafia's pioneering female rapper Gangsta Boo (Jan. 1), and Timbaland's famed collaborator Magoo (Aug. 13). The latter part of 2022 was especially brutal, with Migos member Takeoff being fatally shot in Houston (Nov. 1), Philly rapper PnB Rock killed during a LA robbery (Sept. 12), and Louisiana's JayDaYoungan shot outside his home (July 27).
The earlier years of this tragic period saw the departure of true titans. The rap world was shaken to its core in April 2021 by the death of the gruff-voiced icon DMX, who suffered a heart attack following a drug overdose. That same month, Shock G, the charismatic frontman of Digital Underground, also died from an accidental overdose. The pandemic year of 2020 claimed Brooklyn drill innovator Pop Smoke, who was killed in a Hollywood Hills home invasion in February, and Chicago storyteller King Von, fatally shot in Atlanta in November. Fred the Godson, a respected Bronx battle rapper, became an early victim of COVID-19, passing in April 2020.
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The string of losses began in late 2019, setting a somber tone for the years to follow. In December, genre-blending artist Juice WRLD died from an accidental overdose just days after his 21st birthday. The year started with an equally profound loss when community activist and revered rapper Nipsey Hussle was shot and killed outside his LA store in March 2019, a death that galvanized the industry and his community around issues of violence and ownership.
