Four Charged With Murder in Death of Rapper Pop Smoke, Could Face Death Penalty

Four people have been charged with murder in the shooting death of burgeoning Brooklyn rapper, Pop Smoke (born Bashar Jackson). Last week, five suspects were arrested in connection with the case. The 20-year-old was killed during a home invasion in Los Angeles in February. Prosecutors say that the attackers got the musician’s address after he posted videos with it in view on packages on social media.

According to Buzzfeed News, two suspects—20-year-old Corey Walker and 18-year-old Keandre Rodgers—were charged by the Los Angeles County Police Department on Monday for murder during a robbery, a charge eligible for the death penalty if they are convicted. Additionally, two unidentified teenage boys, ages 15 and 17, were charged in juvenile court for one count of murder and robbery.

“The house was reportedly a rental owned by John Mellencamp’s daughter, Teddi Mellencamp Arroyave, who stars on the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills,” Buzzfeed News continues. “The Los Angeles Police Department reported at the time that a “number of suspects in masks” entered the residence and shot [Pop Smoke].”

Pop Smoke’s posthumously released debut album Shoot for the Stars, Aim for the Moon debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard charts this week, with a total of 251,000 equivalent album units sold. The project, released July 3, features 50 Cent (widely regarded as one of Pop Smoke’s biggest influences), Quavo, Roddy Ricch and more.

50 Cent served as an executive producer on Pop’s album, and in a recent interview with Billboard, he praised the late rapper for carrying the torch for New York drill music, a style of trap that originated in the South Side of Chicago.

“You can hear the drill music and aggression,” 50 explains. “[Pop] wasn’t showing his abilities to do things different musically. And then, he broke out of that after those first two tapes to create the music that he was creating at those times.”