Earlier this week, it was sadly reported that DJ Mark "The 45 King" James passed away at the age of 62. At the time of writing, the producer's cause of death has not yet been revealed. The loss prompted various heartfelt messages from the late Bronx native's peers and collaborators, including Jay-Z and Eminem.
Jay-Z's engineer, Young Guru, took to social media to share a statement on his behalf. “Thank you, Mark. Your instrumentals, namely ‘The 900 Number,’ were more memorable than our whole albums,” he wrote. “You gave me a canvas to have a conversation with the world!! You changed my life. Even when the life is short, the art is long!!”
Eminem Is "4ever Grateful" For The 45 King
Eminem also shared some meaningful words for the late artist in a recent Tweet. “Legends are never over," he wrote. "#RIP Mark Howard James aka The 45 King … I’m 4ever grateful!!!” He also shared a video of The 45 King discussing his work on the track "Stan." DJ Premier shared the unfortunate news on Instagram this week, revealing that the producer died just days after his birthday. "R.I.P. DJ Mark The 45 King who passed this morning," he announced. "An ICON. His 62nd Birthday was Monday. I never heard of Gang Starr until I heard DJ Red Alert play their 2nd single Produced by Mark on 98.7 Kiss in NYC."
DJ Premier continued, "Mark is responsible for so many classics and was a member of the Iconic Crew FLAVOR UNIT. (Queen Latifah, Latee, Chill Rob G., Lakim Shabazz, Double J, Lord Alibaski, DJ Cee Justice, Apache, Naughty By Nature, Freddie Foxxx, Markey Fresh, Rowdy Rahz, Storm P and so many more members beyond whom I’ve mentioned..." What do you think of Jay-Z and Eminem's messages amid The 45 King's passing? Share your thoughts in the comments section down below, and keep an eye on HNHH for more updates. Rest In Peace to DJ Mark "The 45 King" James.