Ol' Dirty Bastard lived life on the edge--right up until the end apparently.
The maverick rapper died from a drug overdose last month as the result of the combined effects of cocaine and a prescribed painkiller, according to a ruling by the New York City medical examiner.
ODB, otherwise known as Russell Jones, died unexpectedly on Nov. 13 at a New York recording studio two days shy of his 36th birthday. The hip-hopster had reportedly been complaining of chest pains before collapsing and never regaining consciousness. Initial autopsy results were inconclusive; toxicology tests released Wednesday showed that a fatal cocktail of drugs triggered ODB's death.
According to a spokeswoman for the medical examiner's office, ODB died "as a result of intoxication by the combined effects of cocaine and Tramadol, a prescription painkiller, but not a narcotic." The overdose was ruled accidental.
The Wu-Tang Clan cofounder had a long, sad history of drug abuse, including a 1999 arrest for misdemeanor possession of crack cocaine and numerous stints in rehab. Following his death, the New York Post quoted a source inside ODB's camp as saying the rap star had gone on a cocaine binge and had been "up for two days" before he began noticing the chest pains. Such speculation however was dismissed by the rapper's manager, Jarred Weisfeld, who said ODB had cleaned up his act.
ODB's teenage son said the rapper exhibited erratic behavior in the hours before his death. Barson Jones, 15, told the New York Daily News he and his sisters were in the studio with their father just before ODB collapsed. The younger Jones said his father had been acting anxious and unsteady--at one point scratching his head and panting so heavily that he removed his shirt and asked for cold water.
"I already knew something was going to happen. He was shaky and mad paranoid," the younger Jones said.
Barson subsequently went home in a limo with his siblings while ODB remained behind to work on tracks with his cousin, all the while refusing their pleas to seek medical treatment. After he collapsed, paramedics called to the scene were unable to revive him.
Despite his death, Dirty's legacy will live on. ODB's mother and manager recently teamed up to release Osirus, a posthumous album of new material that will hit stores Jan. 4.