When it comes to judging artists we are often told to separate their work from their life.
But that was never going to be the case for XXXTentacion, the 20-year-old Florida rapper who was gunned in broad daylight on Monday as part of an alleged car-jacking near Miami.
It marks the end of a controversial life that undulated between the creation of two of the most acclaimed hip-hop albums – 2017's 17 and this year's ? – of the past five years and a life of crime and brutality.
The fact that it all ended in a hail of bullets is not only a waste of genuine talent, but something not entirely unexpected.
Death and resignation always hovered above XXXTentacion’s ghostly compositions. The beats were skeletal and the melodies were woozy and hazy as apparitions, while the lyrics verged from the uncomfortably personal to crudely violent and misogynistic. It all went on to form part of XXXTentacion’s appeal, which was being the present soundtrack of youth alienation.
Born Jahesh Dwayne Onfroy to absent parents, XXXTentacion was raised in various households by family and friends.
It laid the seeds for a short and often explosively violent life which had him kicked out of schools, sent to juvenile detention and a string of pending criminal cases that included assaulting his pregnant girlfriend.
Among all that drama – or perhaps in reaction XXXTentacion found time to work on a music career that took off with the release of his first single Look At Me in 2015.
The deeply misogynistic track would go down as seminal moment in the young history of SoundCloud Rap, a three-year-old hip-hop subgenre with tracks originating from the online music distribution service SoundCloud.
Musically, SoundCloud rappers – such as Lil Uzi Vert, Lil Yachty and 6ixine – are regarded by their sheer disregard; the music is intentionally obtuse, the production is dirty and the lyrics portray a world view that is nihilistic at best. In a way the popularity of SoundCloud rap is a natural occurrence in the music cycle.
Where grunge was a reaction to the slickly produced spandex rock of the 1980s, SoundCloud Rap is the response to the bombastic and hyper-celebratory sounds of modern hip-hop extolled by the likes of Rick Ross and DJ Khaled. Where they celebrated partying, XXXTentacion discussed the flip side such as the timely topic depression, which was rarely heard in hip-hop at the time.
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That grunge connection was appreciated by XXXTentacion himself, as he often attributed the late Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain as his biggest influence.
There have been reports, through the social media posts of peers, that XXXTentacion was working to address his personal issues and in a recent interview described his mental strength as strong.
It was a battle ruthlessly cut short by the violence he so often spoke about.
Biography
Favourite drink: Must have karak chai and Chinese tea every day
Favourite non-Chinese food: Arabic sweets and Indian puri, small round bread of wheat flour
Favourite Chinese dish: Spicy boiled fish or anything cooked by her mother because of its flavour
Best vacation: Returning home to China
Music interests: Enjoys playing the zheng, a string musical instrument
Enjoys reading: Chinese novels, romantic comedies, reading up on business trends, government policy changes
Favourite book: Chairman Mao Zedong’s poems
Europa League group stage draw
Group A: Villarreal, Maccabi Tel Aviv, Astana, Slavia Prague.
Group B: Dynamo Kiev, Young Boys, Partizan Belgrade, Skenderbeu.
Group C: Sporting Braga, Ludogorets, Hoffenheim, Istanbul Basaksehir.
Group D: AC Milan, Austria Vienna , Rijeka, AEK Athens.
Group E: Lyon, Everton, Atalanta, Apollon Limassol.
Group F: FC Copenhagen, Lokomotiv Moscow, Sheriff Tiraspol, FC Zlin.
Group G: Vitoria Plzen, Steaua Bucarest, Hapoel Beer-Sheva, FC Lugano.
Group H: Arsenal, BATE Borisov, Cologne, Red Star Belgrade.
Group I: Salzburg, Marseille, Vitoria Guimaraes, Konyaspor.
Group J: Athletic Bilbao, Hertha Berlin, Zorya Luhansk, Ostersund.
Group K: Lazio, Nice, Zulte Waregem, Vitesse Arnhem.
Group L: Zenit St Petersburg, Real Sociedad, Rosenborg, Vardar
MATCH INFO
World Cup 2022 qualifier
UAE v Indonesia, Thursday, 8pm
Venue: Al Maktoum Stadium, Dubai
THE SPECS
Engine: 3.5-litre V6
Transmission: six-speed manual
Power: 325bhp
Torque: 370Nm
Speed: 0-100km/h 3.9 seconds
Price: Dh230,000
On sale: now
How to donate
Send “thenational” to the following numbers or call the hotline on: 0502955999
2289 – Dh10
2252 – Dh 50
6025 – Dh20
6027 – Dh 100
6026 – Dh 200
'My Son'
Director: Christian Carion
Starring: James McAvoy, Claire Foy, Tom Cullen, Gary Lewis
Rating: 2/5
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Cultural fiesta
What: The Al Burda Festival
When: November 14 (from 10am)
Where: Warehouse421, Abu Dhabi
The Al Burda Festival is a celebration of Islamic art and culture, featuring talks, performances and exhibitions. Organised by the Ministry of Culture and Knowledge Development, this one-day event opens with a session on the future of Islamic art. With this in mind, it is followed by a number of workshops and “masterclass” sessions in everything from calligraphy and typography to geometry and the origins of Islamic design. There will also be discussions on subjects including ‘Who is the Audience for Islamic Art?’ and ‘New Markets for Islamic Design.’ A live performance from Kuwaiti guitarist Yousif Yaseen should be one of the highlights of the day.
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
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