A 26-year-old northern California rapper was gunned down over the Thanksgiving weekend, another in the growing list of fatal shootings in the region this year.
Police in Dublin, in the San Francisco Bay Area, identified Alexander Mark Antonyyo Jr, who goes by the stage name Lil Yase, as the victim of a shooting at a Bay Area Rapid Transit (Bart) train station on Saturday. Officers located Antonyyo at a nearby hospital, where he was admitted with multiple gunshot wounds.
Antonyyo, a San Francisco-born rapper, was one of very few to gain fame in a region where most notable talent comes from Oakland or smaller nearby cities. The remix to his single Get It In garnered more than 3m views on YouTube and featured a bevy of California talent, including Mozzy and Nef the Pharaoh, both from Northern California.
Lil Yase is among a number of rap artists to be killed this year. Other murders include that of the New York rapper Pop Smoke, the Chicago up-and-comer King Von, and another Bay Area rapper, Tay Way, who was shot and killed in his hometown of Richmond, California.
🙏🕊 We’re hearing that San Francisco rapper @lilyase600 passed away this morning. We’re sick about the news and send prayers & positive energy to his family. What is your favorite Lil Yase song? pic.twitter.com/Wx0DbsL0pW
— Thizzler On The Roof (@TheThizzler) November 28, 2020
His death also reflects an increase in shooting deaths throughout the nation. Los Angeles saw 300 murders for the first time in a decade this year. In Chicago, shootings are up 50% and the number of shooting victims in New York has shot up by more than 100%. In the Bay Area – where gun violence dropped dramatically over the last decade – shootings have crept upward as well.
As news of Lil Yase’s death began to circulate, fans and other musicians shared their condolences and dismay at the loss of another young Black rapper on social media. On Lil Yase’s Instagram page, mourners have left thousands of “RIP” messages as well as prayer hands and broken heart emojis under the fallen rapper’s most recent photos.
“I want to know: why Lil Yase? Shit make no sense,” one fan tweeted.
