After erroneously being reported as dead at 52 from pancreatic cancer after fellow Texas rap icon Bun B wished him a heartfelt “rest in peace” on Twitter, Richard Shaw, bka Bushwick Bill of Geto Boys, actually passed away in his sleep Sunday night, June 9, according to his publicist. Although Bill’s son used the rapper’s official Instagram to correct the initial reports, it wasn’t long before they eventually came true. Bill previously announced his condition in May, saying: I’m not really afraid of dying.”
April 7. The last time I saw him. He was, is and will always be a legend. God bless his soul and his family. There will never be another. RIP Bushwick Bill. Geto Boys. https://t.co/KUfgxHSAQa
— BunB.eth (@BunBTrillOG) June 9, 2019
The hip-hop world wasted little time in offering condolences and tributes to the Houston rap pioneer, whose impact throughout the genre has been felt for the past 30 years. His verses on Geto Boys hits like “Damn It Feels Good To Be A Gangsta” and “Mind Playing Tricks On Me” were seminal in terms of hip-hop storytelling and bringing some of the earliest elements of horrorcore to rap. Bill’s stark worldview and a fearless attitude toward death stemmed from a 1991 in which he shot himself in the eye during an argument with his girlfriend while high on PCP. A photo from the hospital taken in the aftermath of the shooting became the cover for Geto Boys’ 1992 album We Can’t Be Stopped.
R.I.P…… BUSHWICK BILL… YOU WILL BE MISSED…. pic.twitter.com/IMnuPJC7wL
— BIZ MARKIE (@BizMarkie) June 10, 2019
The tributes began pouring in at the time of the original report even after the correction from both admirers and collaborators alike. See more below:
“SIZE AINT S^*T!!!”
– the legendary #BushwickBill rip #GetoBoys @ Fifth Ward, Houston https://t.co/1m3GOGyRTU— ?st (@questlove) June 9, 2019
#RIP #BushwickBill love and respect always. #GetoBoy4L https://t.co/MAnJFeDwps
— Killer Mike (@KillerMike) June 9, 2019
Then I felt just like a fiend..
Damn. RIP Bushwick Bill, and thank you. Love.
— Just Blaze (@JustBlaze) June 9, 2019
“This year Halloween fell on a weekend” – 🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾 R.I.P. Bushwick Bill
— PHAROAHE MONCH (@pharoahemonch) June 10, 2019
Rest In Peace Bushwick Bill
— Crook 🏴🏳️🏴 (@CrookedIntriago) June 9, 2019
#RIP Bushwick Bill. Geto Boys 4 Life!!!! https://t.co/LzHMbvPro3
— Charlamagne Tha God (@cthagod) June 9, 2019
Rest In Peace #BushwickBill. Geto Boys album The Ressurection one of my all time favorites.
— Tom Morello (@tmorello) June 9, 2019
I met Bushwick Bill for the first time at SXSW ‘18, then wound up DJing for him somehow…It was madness. He’d lost his music, and told me “just search ‘Geto Boys instrumentals’ on YouTube, we’ll be fine.” I was super nervous, he wasn’t. Bill killed it. What a moment 🙏🏾 pic.twitter.com/RKgjtcefoM
— Mega Ran (@MegaRan) June 9, 2019
RIP Bushwick Bill, aka Dr. Wolfgang Von Bushwickin, the barbarian mother funky stay high dollar billster, who gave the Geto Boys that extra hint of flavor. A tragic life but a long legacy. Halloween will always fall on a weekend. Pour out a little Everclear… pic.twitter.com/T58kCqvzMy
— Otto Von Biz Markie (@Passionweiss) June 10, 2019
