Tragic events in the hip-hop community are far too commonplace, with amazing artists like Takeoff lost to violence. While this example is fortunately not fatal, it's a reminder of the cruel landscape rappers navigate today. Atlanta rapper J Money was shot and robbed in a Korean prince's Rolls-Royce last Friday, November 18th in Los Angeles. He was transported to the hospital in critical condition.
According to Fox News, J Money was shot outside of the luxury Kurve apartment complex in Koreatown. Moreover, the LAPD reported that unknown individuals shot the artist and robbed three chains and a Rolex. J Money was sitting in a Rolls-Royce Phantom owned by entrepreneur (and member of the Korean royal family) Andrew Lee. Also, officials confirmed the rapper was conscious and breathing when paramedics arrived at the scene.
Furthermore, Hollywood Unlocked identified the rapper, real name Jermaine Miller and aged between 25 and 30 years old. Police suspect that two males committed the armed robbery and fled the premises. They opened an investigation, yet they have not reported an arrest as of writing this article.
However, it's unknown why J Money (a.k.a. SauceGod) was in Lee's car. Surprisingly, there's a connection there. Lee rapped on J Money's track "Dun It All" under the alias KingLee. They also appeared on a Gutta TV video with rapper Lil Flip, who was freestyling at a gas station. KingLee praised the quality weed he was smoking, and he and J Money took some pictures together.
Lee was born and raised in Indiana and founded London Trust Media. Also, he's the crown prince of Korea's royal family and heir to the Joseon dynasty. They ruled Korea for 500 years until 1897. Now, Korea royalty holds no real power but are still well-known in media and the Korean public consciousness. Unfortunately, the people of South Korea have gone through their own tragedies as of late, as well.
Moreover, J Money previously went by J Futuristic and has worked with the Migos, Soulja Boy, Zaytoven, and more. He also recently won a battle with cancer and has a number of felonies to his name, including a child molestation charge in 2010. Regardless of past actions, no one deserves to go through a brush with death for their art and success. Safety in the rap game is in danger of becoming wishful thinking, and many artists are demanding change.
Stay tuned to HotNewHipHop for the latest news from the rap world, which we hope will become brighter soon.