In the late morning on Feb. 19, fans were shocked when they read alerts informing the death of Bashar Jackson, better known as Pop Smoke.

At the age of 20, Jackson was unexpectedly shot to death by four masked figures during a home invasion of the Los Angeles residence he was staying at.

“It is another tragic lost Pop Smoke will never be able to live up to the potential he had,” junior Alex Seok said.

It is suspected that this occurred because he posted his uncensored address publically on social media earlier on the day he died.

This was most likely inadvertent as the post thanked fans for sending gifts.

This tragedy again brings world attention to a trend that has been increasingly plaguing young rappers on their rise to success.

This rise was also highlighted by the deaths of Lil Peep, XXXTentacion, and Jimmy Wopo, who were also shot on their rise to fame.

As for the men who shot Pop Smoke, they have not yet been identified.

The likely motive was jealousy or personal beef with Jackson.

Similar to the death of Juice WRLD, Pop Smoke’s death brought grief from other famous figures in the rap world such as Nicki Minaj, 50 Cent, Gunna, and Chance the Rapper.

His death came just a day after his new mixtape: Meet The Woo, V.2 hit number 7 on the Billboard 200.

His most famous productions came during his collaborations with artists such as: Lil Tjay, Travis Scott, Callboy, Jackboys, and Nicki Minaj.

The week following the release of the mixtape, a deluxe edition was added that featured remixes with Nav, Gunna, and PnB Rock.

This would have been the beginning of Pop Smoke’s lucrative career, as he was planning to go on tour starting in Washington D.C. not even two weeks later.

“I believe we need to start knowing more about these upcoming rappers before others are taken too soon,” junior Isaac Nebyu said.

Although Pop Smoke only had a two year career, he will be remembered as a talented artist that rose to fame quickly.