Selasa, 04 Desember 2007

Rapper Pimp C found dead in LA hotel (AP)





LOS ANGELES - Pimp C, who spun searing tales of Texas street life

into a key role in the rise of Southern hip-hop, was found dead in an

upscale hotel on Tuesday. He was 33.



The rapper formed Underground Kingz with partner-in-rhyme Bun B

while the pair was in high school, and their often laconic delivery

paired with wittily dangerous lyrics influenced a generation of

current superstars like Lil' Wayne. T.I. had the group on as guests

when he remade their 1994 song "Front, Back and Side to Side" for his

"King" album.



To a mainstream audience, Pimp C was best known for UGK's cameo on

the Jay-Z hit "Big Pimpin'," and for "Free Pimp C" T-shirts and

shout-outs, ubiquitous in rap several years ago while he was jailed

on gun charges. On Tuesday, his MySpace page had been changed to

read: "C the Pimp is FREE at last."



Born Chad Butler, Pimp C was found dead in a room at the Mondrian

hotel, a longtime music industry hangout not far from the House of

Blues on Sunset Strip, where he had performed on Saturday night

alongside rap veteran Too $hort. Capt. Ed Winter of the Los Angeles

County coroner's office said Butler had apparently died while in bed

in his hotel room.



"At this time there's no signs of foul play," Winter said. "It

appears to be possibly natural, but pending autopsy and toxicology we

can't say the cause."



Manager Rick Martin identified Butler and his death was announced by

publicist Nancy Byron.



"This morning saw the loss of a man that was not only a client, but

a very dear friend at a time when he had the most to live for,"

Martin said in a statement. "He was my best friend and I will always

love him."



Though they never enjoyed massive pop chart success, UGK's early CDs

are considered landmarks for the then-burgeoning Texas hip-hop scene,

which also featured the Geto Boys. Signed to a deal with Jive

Records, they released "Too Hard to Swallow" in 1992, "Super Tight"

two years later, and "Ridin' Dirty" in 1996, considered a rap

classic.



Over laid-back beats, they laid out incisive details that remain

Southern rap mainstays: descriptions of sex and conspicuous

consumption, wood-grain steering wheels and triple-beam scales used

to weigh drugs.



The duo's career was derailed when Pimp C was jailed for three years

in 2002 on gun charges. But he got as much exposure as ever, as the

"Free Pimp C" slogan spread.



An unauthorized album of Pimp C's freestyle rhymes was released

while he was in prison. When he and Bun B finally put out an album

this year, they felt such a need to re-establish themselves they

titled their album "Underground Kingz," as if to underscore a new

start.



Critics praised the CD, which included the hit "International

Player's Anthem (I Choose You)," featuring OutKast. Pimp C's verse

riffs on high-class women and cars: "I'm pullin' Bentleys off the

lot. Smashed up the gray one, bought me a red. Everytime we hit the

parking lot we turn heads," he raps.



Barry Weiss, CEO of Jive, said in a statement: "We mourn the

unexpected loss of Chad. He was truly a thoughtful and kindhearted

person. He will be remembered for his talent and profound influence

as a pioneer in bringing southern rap to the forefront."



Butler, who grew up in Port Arthur, Texas, came from a musical

lineage. His father was a professional trumpet player, and the rapper

studied classical music in high school. He even received a Division I

rating on a tenor solo at a University Interscholastic League choir

competition.



"That's how I came up listening to everything," he told The

Associated Press in a 2005 interview. "Music don't have no color or

no face. It's a universal language. I think being exposed to all that

kind of stuff influences the way I make records."



Pimp C is survived by a wife and three children.



___



Associated Press writer Kristie Rieken in Houston contributed to

this report.

 
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