Now Reading: Nipsey Hussle: Villain, Icon, Legend?

Loading
svg
Open

Nipsey Hussle: Villain, Icon, Legend?

April 5, 20196 min read

Written by Lamar Coaston Jr.

I would be lying if I said I was a fan of the Artist known as “Nipsey Hussle” or if I said I was familiar with his music, I was not.

Emias Joseph Asghedom AKA “Nipsey Hussle” was brutally murdered in the daylight hours of March 31, 2019 in the parking lot of his Los Angeles business Marathon Clothing allegedly by Eric Holder 29, who is also said to have shot and wounded two others.

Details were sketchy, but it is believed that Nipsey and Holder had a confrontation prior to the shooting and that Holder left and then returned to the store firing multiple times at Nipsey and the other victims before fleeing the scene.

VILLAIN

Nipsey grew up in the “Crenshaw” neighborhood of South Los Angeles in the 90’s where he describes life as being “Intense” because of the heavy influence of “Gang Culture” It is alleged that Nipsey Hussle has gang affiliation with the Rollin 60’s Neighborhood Crips a street gang based in Los Angeles. He was of Eritrean and American descent, his father being from Africa After a visit to his father’s Native country in his teens, Nipsey began to have a whole new perception of the world especially the impact he felt from the love of his father’s side of the family.

ICON

Nipsey’s musical push came in 2005 with the release of his first mixtape, titled Slauson Boy Vol. 1, which soon became the name of his own record label.  This project was followed up with 2 mixtapes in 2008 respectively titled “Bullets Ain’t Got No Name, Vol. 1 and Vol. 2. Shortly after Nipsey signed with Epic Records and in 2009 released his debut single “Hussle In The House”. During his time at epic and with the rise of his movement, Hussle collaborated with many well-known artists including Snoop Dogg, Drake, Lloyd, YG and others. In 2010 after many disputes with Epic, Hussle was released from the label. This spawned the formation of his second label “All Money In”. Nipsey Hussle’s career was also mired in controversy. In 2016 he released a collab with YG on the song “FDT” (Fuck Donald Trump) in response to Donald Trump winning the 2016 Presidential race. Hussle was defending Mexican Immigrants, a common target of Trump’s agenda to halt the migration of Mexicans fleeing crime and corruption from their country in exchange for safety and security in America.

 Fast-forward to Hussle’s last and final project “Victory Lap” released February 2018, which was tentatively set for release in 2014. The project not only has garnered respect from industry greatness, it is hailed as his best body of work.

LEGEND

Although it is emphasized in the mainstream media that “Nipsey Hustle” has gang ties, according to a documentary from WorldStarHipHop “Nipsey Hussle’s Journey Of Opening A Store In The Middle Of His Hood In Crenshaw”

Nipsey and his brother were always hustling.  Sometimes the product was “Weed” but mostly clothing and other tangible merchandise.  Together they had aspirations of becoming legitimate businessmen with the intent of helping to change the neighborhood’s image and to empower people in the process. After a stint of getting busted for selling merchandise without the proper license, they began to lease space in a popular shopping plaza they frequented. This was the initial push of making their vision for business success a reality. The result was the 2017 opening of Marathon Clothing Store.  At the time of his death Nipsey was set to begin talks with government and community leaders to address concerns for empowering lives with the skills necessary to uplift the city mainly his Crenshaw neighborhood through various educational training programs and businesses.  He had already successfully turned around many lives by training and providing employment to those in need of a “Second Chance”. His creation of programs like “Vector 90” which is technology driven, and consists of inspiring minds from the neighborhood who conduct business, network and build a future for minorities to make an impact in the tech world.  The building also houses a science, technology, engineering & math center affectionately called “Too Big To Fail” which focuses on the skills needed to enter “Silicon Valley”.

The “Take Away for me will be that the death of “Nipsey Hussle” will add to the ranks of countless successful entertainers whose lives were tragically cut short, and whose “Music Catalogs” will be worth more now that they’re deceased, than when they were alive. Legends who we never really got to know in depth, until it was too late!  “Nipsey Hussle” was definitely a visionare

Lamar Coaston Jr. is Director of Internet Marketing for www.alwaysbeog.com For all media requests as well as info on being featured on our site, contact him directly at [email protected]h

Loading
svg