RIP
R.I.P. Martin Kahan, Music Video Director (KISS, Rush, Mötley Crüe) Dead at 74
Martin Kahan, a prolific music video director, has died at age 74. He passed away this past Sunday (July 18th) in Lakewood, New Jersey, following a battle with cancer. Kahan directed numerous videos for hard rock acts in the 1980s. If you watched MTV during that era, you surely caught Kahan’s work. Some of his best known clips include KISS sans-makeup (“Lick It Up”, “All Hell’s Breakin Loose”), Mötley Crüe (“Too Young to Fall in Love”), Scorpions (“I’m Leaving You”), and Bon Jovi (“In and Out of Love,” “She Don’t Know Me”). Videos for Ian Hunter (the VMA-nomiated “All of the Good Ones Are Taken”), Loverboy (“Queen of the Broken Hearts”), and Michael Bolton (“Fool’s Game”) also garnered rotation on MTV. Advertisement Related Video Kahan got a break early in his career when he shot three vid...
Charlie Robinson of NBC’s ‘Night Court’ Fame Passes Away At 75
HipHopWired Featured Video Source: Maury Phillips / Getty Sitcom star Charlie Robinson, who is best known for his role as court clerk and Vietnam war veteran Mac on NBC’s Night Court, has died. He was 75. A representative for the actor confirmed his passing last night (July 12). Robinson died from cardiac arrest and organ failure which was the result of septic shock and a form of cancer known as metastatic adenocarcinoma at the Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center in Los Angeles, California. Robinson was a celebrated veteran actor of the stage and screen. Born on November 9, 1945, he started his career in his home state of Texas by attending the Studio 7 acting school at the Houston Music Theatre in the late 1960’s. After being cast in a made-for-TV movie, he moved to Hollywood. In addition t...
Rush Singer Geddy Lee’s Mother Mary Weinrib, a Holocaust Survivor, Dies at 95
Rush singer-bassist Geddy Lee is mourning the loss of his mother, Mary Weinrib, who passed away on Friday (July 2nd). Weinrib, a Holocaust survivor, died just weeks shy of her 96th birthday. Weinrib’s obituary tells a remarkable story of survival and perseverance. She grew up in a Jewish community in Poland, and was forced into concentration camps, including Auschwitz. After she was freed in 1945, she reunited with and married Morris Weinrib, whom she had fallen in love with while at Auschwitz. The couple moved to Toronto and opened a variety store, but Morris died suddenly in 1965, leaving Mary with three children to raise on her own. She was a big supporter of Geddy’s music career from the early days of Rush. As her obituary states, “When the first Rush album was released, Mary plastered...
R.I.P. Johnny Solinger, Ex-Skid Row Singer Dies at 55
Johnny Solinger, the longest tenured singer of Skid Row, died Saturday (June 26th) at the age of 55. The rock vocalist had announced that he was suffering from liver failure in May. A statement from Skid Row read, “We are saddened to hear the news of our brother Johnny Solinger. Our thoughts are with his family, friends and fans. Godspeed Singo. Say hello to Scrappy for us.” Solinger became Skid Row’s singer when the when the multiplatinum rock band re-formed in 1999 without vocalist Sebastian Bach following their 1996 breakup. He recorded two studio albums (2003’s Thickskin and 2006’s Revolutions Per Minute) and two EPs (United World Rebellion: Chapter 1 and Rise of the Damnation Army – United World Rebellion: Chapter Two) with Skid Row before being fired from the group in 2015. Related V...
Lil Loaded’s Mother Says Son Was Heartbroken When He Took His Own Life
HipHopWired Featured Video Source: Prince Williams / Getty This past weekend the Hip-Hop world was shocked when news broke that up and coming rapper Lil Loaded had passed away. While cause of death wasn’t immediately released, word spread that the rapper had taken his own life after finding out his girlfriend had cheated on him with someone else. Now TMZ is confirming the rumor as Loaded’s mother told police who arrived on the scene that her son was “emotional Sunday night, crying and upset over how much he loved his ex-girlfriend.” Damn, man. A broken heart should never equate to self-harm or harming the person you’re dating. It proves nothing and only causes further trauma to the people involved and others in your circle, such as Lil Loaded’s mother, family and fans. According to the rep...
Tragic: Dallas Rapper Lil Loaded Dead At The Age of 20
HipHopWired Featured Video Source: Prince Williams / Getty Another member of the Hip-Hop community light has been dimmed. Monday (May 31), The Dallas Morning News reported that local rapper Lil Loaded passed away at 20. While the news outlet didn’t reveal his cause of death, some social media users have been pointing to the rapper’s last post in his Instagram Stories as an indication as to how he passed. This has not been confirmed, but fans believe the rapper died as a result of suicide. In the post, he wrote: “Dear most high, Please forgive me for my shortcomings and all of the times I’ve fell short of making you proud and being appreciative of all the blessings that have been put in my life. Sometimes the lines are blurred between being solid and being heartless. I want to thank yo...
Power Trip Singer Riley Gale’s Cause of Death Revealed
<span class="localtime" data-ltformat="F j, Y | g:ia" data-lttime="2021-05-25T21:50:21+00:00“>May 25, 2021 | 5:50pm ET Nine months after the tragic passing of Power Trip singer Riley Gale at the age of 34, a cause of death has been revealed for the metal frontman. According to an autopsy report from the Dallas County Medical Examiner’s office, Gale’s death was due to a pulmonary edema as the result of the toxic effects of fentanyl. The paperwork was obtained by the YouTube channel Heavy Metal Picker, and confirmed by the website MetalSucks. According to the autopsy, Gale’s death was accidental and estimated to have occurred on the morning of August 25th, 2020. It further revealed that he was “found unresponsive on the floor at home.” The report lists Ga...
Iconic Hip-Hop Photographer Chi Modu Dead At 54
HipHopWired Featured Video Source: Johnny Nunez / Getty Legendary Hip-Hop photographer Chi Modu has passed away. He was just 54. Source: Jerritt Clark / Getty On Saturday, May 22, an Instagram post from Modu’s official account shared the sudden, sad news. “Our hearts are broken… We continue the fight ©💪🏾. The family request privacy at this time, ” was the caption of an image of Modu’s signature with “1966 – 2021” below it. No cause of the death has been revealed at this time. For Hip-Hop fans of a certain age, Chi Modu was a household name like any of their favorite rappers. The photographer’s work was featured all over the pages of The Source magazine during it halcyon days in the early 90’s and soon enough Modu was capturing images of the culture’s most iconic artists. So...
Shock G of Digital Underground Passes Away At 57
HipHopWired Featured Video CLOSE Source: Rachel Worth / WENN / WENN Shock G, lead rapper, founder and producer of seminal Hip-Hop group Digital Underground has passed away. He was 57. On Thursday (April 22), Jimi “Chopmaster J” Dright, a founding member of Digital Underground, broke the news that Shock, born Grag Jacobs, had passed. TMZ reports that his father, Edward Racker, confirmed his death. Reportedly he was found dead in a hotel room in Tampa. A Bay Area group and Hip-Hop band, Digital Underground was created in 1987 but broke through in late 1989 early 1990 with their debut album, Sex Packets, on Tommy Boy Records. The album’s lead single was “Doowutchyalike,” which featured a big nosed rapper named Humpty Hump. It would take some fans longer than others to realize that Humpt...
Black Rob Has Passed Away At 51
HipHopWired Featured Video Source: Jamie McCarthy / Getty Hip-Hop has lost another great artist way too soon. Black Rob of Bad Boy Records and “Whoa” fame has passed away. Born Robert Ross, Black Rob aka Banco Popular aka Bacardi Rob was just 51. Late Saturday (April 17), Rob’s friend, former labelmate and rapper Mark Curry confirmed his passing on social media. Recently; fans, friends and peers were concerned after footage of a hospitalized Black Rob, while DMX was also in the ICU, started making the rounds. Another clip showed Rob out of the hospital, however he also relayed that he was homeless and suffering an assortment of health problems. He was reportedly hospitalized in Atlanta at the time of his death. In 2016, Black Rob was part of Diddy’s Puff Daddy and The Family Bad Boy Reunio...
Actor and Poet Craig muMs Grant Has Passed Away
HipHopWired Featured Video Source: Roy Rochlin / Getty Sad news in the Hip-Hop creative world today (March 25). Renowned actor and poet Craig muMs Grant has passed away. I am just speechless right now. Any of us who came up in New York poetry/spoken word scene of 1990s or 2000s know name Craig “Mums” Grant. Got word this morning he passed while making a film or tv project in ATL. Mums was mad gifted with words, and acting, and more. HUGE LOSS. pic.twitter.com/UXDRAxFi9y — Kevin Powell (@kevin_powell) March 25, 2021 A number of the talented New York City native’s contemporaries, including The Real World star, writer and activist, Kevin Powell took to social media to confirm muMs’ death. muMs aka muMs the Schemer is probably most known for his portrayal of Arnold “Poet” Jackson in the acclai...
R.I.P. Corey Steger, Founding Underoath Guitarist Dies in Car Accident
Guitarist Corey Steger, one of the original members of Florida metalcore act Underoath, has died in a car accident. The tragic news was reported by Dallas Taylor, another founding member of band. Steger joined singer Taylor, guitarist Luke Morton, bassist Rey Anasco, and drummer Aaron Gillespie in Underoath’s original lineup in 1998, remaining with the band through 2001. He appeared on their first two albums, 1999’s Act of Depression and 2000’s Cries of the Past. Taylor, who parted ways with Underoath in 2003, shared the devastating news of Steger’s death on Instagram, writing the following: “I don’t know how to type this. I’m without words. Yesterday 3/17/2021 at around 6:00 p.m. Corey Steger one of the original founding members of Underoath was rear ended in a car wreck, and went home to...
