KJ Balla, an up-and-coming rapper from Brooklyn, was reportedly shot dead. Tributes have been pouring in on social media after the reports of his passing.
Rapper Jay Guapo who collaborated with KJ Balla on his new single Back to Back, posted a tribute seemingly confirming his death.
KJ Balla would be the third prominent Brooklyn rapper murdered this year. Rising star Pop Smoke, 20, was shot dead in February following the release of his second mixtape. Another Brooklyn rapper Nick Blixky, was killed in Brooklyn earlier this month, aged 21.
Jay Guapo was also a friend of late rapper Pop Smoke. It is unclear whether Nick Blixky, Pop Smoke, and KJ Balla’s deaths are connected. Blixky was reportedly a rival of Pop Smoke while Balla’s relationship to the two late rappers is unclear.
Monsters and Critics has been unable to independently verify Balla’s passing, or his cause of death, with the details still murky and no official announcement yet made by authorities.
Tributes fellow rap artist and fans are pouring in
Rapper J.I. shared a tribute to Balla in an Instagram post to his 1.4 million followers, reminiscing about when the late rapper supported him before he garnered any musical success. “Damnn Makk? we first chopped it up in 2018. Showed me mad love and this was before s**t had taken off for me. I remember I was trynna put you on “Love Won’t Change” before I had dropped it”
https://www.instagram.com/p/CAhOM_UAtYT/?utm_source=ig_embed
J.I also posted a tribute to Pop Smoke after the Dior rapper was shot dead. It is unclear whether Balla and Pop Smoke knew each other.
One KJ Balla fan tweeted a tribute which lamented the feeling around New York’s hip hop scene following the string of tragic murders. RIP KJ BALLA smh my city is taking too many losses If you from NY you know,” the fan wrote.
Damn Brooklyn, R.I.P KJ Balla
— MAXLENG (@justauramusic) May 23, 2020
2020 is a whole mess RIP KJ BALLA?? pic.twitter.com/aViGBsudyI
— Mayah (@highoffmayah03) May 23, 2020
KJ Balla’s last Instagram post: ‘We just getting started’
KJ Balla’s last Instagram post was about a month ago in which he promoted what appeared to be his last music video with rapper Jay Guapo. In the caption the late rapper wrote, “OUT ON ALL PLATFORMS TUNE IN WE JUST GETTING STARTED VIDEO OUT NOW…”
The Instagram post is flooded with tributes from fans following the reports of his death.
KJ Balla was signed to independent label From Nothing Records and released several songs on YouTube that have garnered traction.