Five Things To Know About Slain Rapper Magnolia Shorty

Another senseless tragedy befalls the hip-hop community

By Josh Grossberg Dec 21, 2010 9:50 PMTags
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Yet another rapper whose life was cut short by gun violence.

You might have heard that Magnolia Shorty, a New Orleans MC who was in the Cash Money Records stable of artists, was gunned down Monday in a hail of bullets in what appears to be a drive-by double homicide in the Crescent City.

We pulled together five things we thought you should know about her.

1. Her Real Name and Origin of Her Stage Moniker: The 28-year-old hip-hopster was born Renetta Lowe and grew up in the Magnolia Projects of East New Orleans, which was notorious for having one of the highest murder rates of any projects in the country. Fellow rappers who made it out of "Nolia," include Juvenile, Turk and Jay Electronica, and it's also the birthplace for Bounce Music. Her mentor, Soulja Slim, aka Magnolia Slim, bestowed her with her stage moniker, Magnolia Shorty. Soulja was shot and killed in 2003.

2. Claim to Fame: Shorty signed with Cash Money Records in the early '90s after an introduction by the Hot Boys, whom she knew from her childhood. Per the New Orleans Times-Picayune, Lowe put out her first album on the label in 1995 and appeared on a Juvenile track not long after. She often joined forces with fellow Cash Money artist Ms. Tee and last year scored  two local club hits, "Smoking Gun," a remix of a Jadakiss tune, and "My Boy," which saw her perform a duet with Jive R&B star Kourtney Hart.

3. The Facts as We Know Them: According to New Orleans police, Shorty and a 25-year-old man, identified as Jerome Hampton, were found shot to death inside a car that had plowed into the gate of an apartment complex. There are no witnesses and detectives are investigating the possibility of a drive-by. Both bodies were riddled with bullets to the head and body, and the slaying is thought have occurred around 12:30 p.m. after police received a report of gunshots. They were pronounced dead at the scene.

4. Aftermath: Magnolia Shorty's murder quickly made waves on local R&B radio stations as well as on Twitter. Online video tributes from local musicians have since begun to surface as well as a Facebook memorial which already has 21,000 likes. "R.I.P to my big sister Magnolia Shorty...this is a krazy world," Lil Wayne tweeted.

5. A Future Now Lost: Before her promising life and career was cut short, Shorty, who claimed Michael Jackson, Beyoncé and Eve as influences, was working on her second album and trying to launch a career in Hollywood.