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.
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Associated Press writer Kristie Rieken in Houston contributed to
this report.