On Labor Day, tragic news surfaced which revealed that Michael K. Williams — the acclaimed actor who starred in The Wire, Lovecraft Country, Boardwalk Empire, and more — was found dead at the age of 54. Although a cause of death has not yet been determined, it was reported that Williams was found with drug paraphernalia near his body. In light of the beloved actor's passing, several celebrities have come forward to publicly honor Michael K. Williams, from Lupe Fiasco and Stephen King to Mark Wahlberg and Wendell Pierce.
Another public figure who appears to be especially affected by the death of Michael K. Williams is Lil Mama, who recently took to social media to pen a heartbreaking post about the fallen actor and stress the importance of giving people their flowers while they can still smell them.
After hearing about the news, Lil Mama shared a picture of the beloved actor on Instagram along with a lengthy, heartfelt caption.
"Waking up To This News is Heart Breaking. This is Why I Started Giving People Their FLOWERS Before it Became a TREND," the VYP rapper wrote. "People kept asking me 'Why You Keep posting People Making Me Think Their Dead' WHY WAIT UNTIL PEOPLE LEAVE THE PHYSICAL REALM TO HONOR THEM MAN."
See her full tribute post to Michael K. Williams below.
After posting her tribute to Michael K. Williams, Lil Mama then proceeded to criticize the tendency of popular culture to sensationalize a person's life following their passing. In one Instagram story post, the multi-hyphenate reposts a photo from ItsBizkit that reads, "You die today 1000 plus people gone post you. You go to jail 1000 plus people gone post you. But while you out here doing your thing only 20 plus people gone post you."
In addition to that repost, Lil Mama also shared a video of herself speaking on the matter. "All I'mma say is this," she said while laying down in her bed. "If you die, and you don't fuck with me — let me die in peace, please."
"Don't send me no love notes," she continues. "Give as much of a fuck about me when I'm gone as you do when I'm here. Pay it. 'Oh, Lil Mama died. Great, let's go get ice cream.' Do what you've been doing. Don't fuck with me. Pay it."
Check The Neighborhood Talk's screengrab of Lil Mama's video out below.
What do you think — should people refrain from doing tribute posts for others after they pass if they didn't show them any love while they were alive?