Hip-Hop’s Stars React To Pop Smoke’s Sudden Death At 20

Earlier this morning, it was reported that burgeoning Brooklyn rapper Pop Smoke — aka Bashar Barakah Jackson — had been shot and killed during an apparent home invasion in Hollywood Hills. TMZ reported that a pair of masked men broke into the home the rapper was renting in the very early morning and fired multiple shots. Jackson was pronounced dead at nearby Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in West Hollywood.

Smoke had only recently released his second major label mixtape, Meet The Woo 2, after a stunning 2019 breakout that included New York club favorite “Welcome To The Party,” a placement on Travis Scott’s Cactus Jack Records compilation Jackboys, and booking on the New York lineup of the Rolling Loud traveling festival. “Welcome To The Party” was notably remixed by other big-name rappers, including Nicki Minaj and Rico Nasty.

While his road to stardom had its share of bumps — he was barred from Rolling Loud New York by NYPD over alleged gang ties and arrested in January of this year for transporting a stolen vehicle across state lines — he was also rapidly becoming one of hip-hop’s new favorite artists. The proof was in the outpouring of condolences from collaborators like Quavo and Nicki Minaj, admirers like fellow New Yorker Bas and Bay Area singer Kehlani, and even New York old heads like Talib Kweli and Pete Rock.

See hip-hop react to the sudden death of Pop Smoke below.

https://www.instagram.com/p/B8wKBpAJURS/

https://twitter.com/TalibKweli/status/1230147857530966017

https://twitter.com/IDK/status/1230139701471961089

Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. .