Jahseh Onfroy better known as, XXXTENTACION, was a singer, songwriter, rapper, and most notably one of the most notorious young rappers to originate from the “Soundcloud Era” of wrap around 2018. Born January 23, 1998, in Plantation, Florida, Jahseh lived a troubled life as even before his adolescent years he moved to Lauderhill, Florida to live with his grandmother. Already having a troubled home life, Jahsey had many traumatic experiences throughout his early life beginning with him finding his uncle’s deceased body following his suicide. This experience would haunt Jahseh and would be mentioned in his music a handful of times. Following this Jahseh talked about how many other times he would experience or witness either physical or sexual assaults growing up. These traumatic events led to Jahseh being diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder at a young age and presumably led to him dropping out of high school in only his sophomore year. After abandoning his education Jahseh began to undertake a life of crime to make ends meet for himself. During a stint with the law, Jahseh was arrested for felony drug possession which would lead to him meeting Stokeley Goulbourne, Ski Mask the Slump God, and begin freestyling with Stokeley.
After finding talent in the freestyling world of rap, Jahseh would undertake the name XXXTENTACION, commonly known as X, as a self-proclaimed better outlet for his emotions than crime. After releasing a small number of songs, X would go on to join Ski Mask’s group Very Rare before leaving the group to begin his own collective known as Member’s Only. Under this group name X and Ski Mask would release their first collaborative extended play (EP) under the title of Members Only Vol. 1 in 2015. Following this release, X would continue to find trouble with the law and it would cause him to halt his music production for long periods of time. However, this never discouraged X as he continued as best he could to put out music for his growing audience. In 2017, one of X’s most famous songs, Look at Me!, gained extreme popularity for its loud and angry tone which made it perfect for many underground clubs and parties to play. During the height of his musical career, X signed with the label Empire Distribution, which would remain his label until his untimely death. For X’s first debut album, 17, many fans were expecting the piece to reflect the character X had created of violence, anger, and non-regret for any of his actions; however, many were surprised to hear a heartbreaking soundtrack that displayed X’s true emotions behind his angry attitude on social media. This new era of music by X would be followed by his next album, Revenge, which brought back music that mimicked his early rapping days with Slipknot and Rip Roach. Despite this reemergence of his angry self X showed a philosophy of fatigue and sadness, presumably from all of his controversies throughout his career. Succeeding his rising music in 17 and Revenge X announced he was prepared to release a new album under the title of ?. His album ? debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 and was highly praised for its versatility and powerful messages in his music.
Unfortunately, following the release of ? X would be killed in a robbery gone wrong after exiting a motorcycle shop on June 18, 2018, around 4:00 p.m. This occurred as X was driving away from the store and a black SUV stopped in front of X’s vehicle with three armed men exiting the SUV. Pieced together by CCTV footage it can be seen that the robbers struggled with and shot X over a Louise Viotte bag that contained $50,000 inside. X was rushed to the hospital but was pronounced dead at 5:30 after intensive care and a grueling struggle for life. X was only 20 years old when he was killed, his friends and fans were shocked by the news many having their real-time reactions recorded via either social media or self-recorded videos. The news of X’s passing sent shock waves throughout the music industry as X was well-known for his friendly nature and kindness towards other creators. His funeral took place on June 28, 2018, with many famous rappers and musicians alike attending to pay their respects to the fallen artist.
XXXTENTACION had never played fair cards since his birth, however, he did not let that affect his good nature towards others and supporting voice to many struggling fans. After his many stunts with Law Enforcement X dedicated himself to being better and setting a positive example to his young fans in hopes that he could resonate with them not over his troubled and violent past but by his encouraging attitude and self-improvement. X hoped that by singing about mental health issues he could end the stigma behind said issues and provide an outlet for fans who felt the pain he had once gone through. Forever missed and cherished X’s influence in the music industry will be felt for many years to come and hopefully for generations to come. Long Live XXXTENTACION.