LOS ANGELES (AP) — Murdered rapper Nipsey Hussle, who was shot in Los Angeles, was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame Monday.
The gang member turned community activist died in a hail of bullets three years ago, in an episode that unleashed an outpouring of grief over a life of music and activism cut short.
On what would have been his 37th birthday, Hussle received a star on Hollywood Boulevard.
“Nip would have been honored by this moment,” Hussle’s longtime girlfriend, Lauren London, told a large crowd.
“I think he would want everyone to remember that you can’t get to what’s possible unless you commit to moving forward.
“That doesn’t mean forgetting where you came from, but it does require acknowledging the reality you were born into and the power you have to change that reality for the better.”
Raised in the Crenshaw district of Los Angeles, Hussle, who was 33 at the time of his death, had transformed the block where he used to work into a retail hub that created jobs for his Marathon Clothing company.
But the “Racks in the Middle” artist remained attached to the gang-ridden world he grew up in, and was killed after telling his attacker he was rumored to have been “blowing.”
Eric Holder, 32, was convicted of murder in July. He is expected to be sentenced on September 15.
Thousands of people gathered in April 2019 for a service honoring Hussle, with Stevie Wonder and Snoop Dogg among those paying tribute.
In a letter read during the service, US President Barack Obama wrote: “While most people look at the Crenshaw neighborhood where he grew up and see only gangs, bullets and despair, Nipsey saw potential. He saw hope. He saw a community that, despite his shortcomings, taught him to always keep going.”
Hussle was posthumously honored with two Grammy Awards in 2020 for Best Rap Performance for “Racks in the Middle” and Best Rap/Sung Performance for “Higher.”
