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Rap Legend Heavy D Dies at 44
Influential '90s rapper Heavy D died this afternoon at the age of 44. According to TMZ, a 911 call was placed from his home in Beverly Hills at 11:25 a.m., he was rushed to the hospital around noon, and pronounced dead around 1 p.m.
The site reports that the 911 call was to "report an unconscious male on the walkway," but he was "conscious and speaking" when paramedics arrived. Cops are investigating the death, though there are no obvious signs of foul play. His last Tweet was from just 16 hours ago, and read: "Be Inspired!"
Heavy D, born Dwight Arrington Myers in Jamaica (and raised in Mount Vernon, NY), came on to the scene around 1987, when he and the Boyz signed to Uptown Records. Their fame later grew when they did the In Living Color theme song—in fact, check out this clip below of a live performance on the show. In it, you'll not only see Heavy D, but Rosie Perez, Jennifer Lopez, Puff Daddy, Tupac, and Flava Flav—before many of them broke out.
And of course, we all know this one:
In addition to creating music, Heavy D had been acting in recent years; he can be seen in "Tower Heist" as a courtroom guard.
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