These have definitely been some sad times lately as we all mourn the loss of basketball legend Kobe Bryant and the eight others that died in the helicopter crash with him, one in particular being his 13-year-old daughter Gianna as well. For rapper Tech N9ne, the timing is unfortunately coinciding with a personal loss of his own: the sudden death of his CES Cru homie Justin "Info Gates" Gillespie.
While the loss of Info Gates is without a doubt hard on the entire Strange Music fam, it seems to be particularly difficult for Tech to take in specifically. "I just can't right now!" he wrote with what we're sure was a mixed feeling of exasperation and grief, following up by writing, "Our family love circle just got a helluva lot shorter with THIS loss!" He goes on to honor Gates by his many monikers, including "The nucleus of the Killa City Committee" and "The glue for the Cru," referencing the Kansas City-bred rap collective that debuted in 2004. The most touching part though is his words that question what will become of the kids in Justin's Plaza Academy hip hop class, also known as "Beat Academy of Kansas City," that teaches hip hop production to over 30 students.
Details on what exactly caused the death of Info Gates are still unclear, but we send condolences to his family and all those he touched in his short-yet-impactful time while living. Read the official death announcement from Plaza Academy below, in addition to a video of Justin himself breaking down the Beat Academy to 41 Action News back in 2018: