Rapper MoneySign Suede was fatally stabbed in the shower at a prison in Soledad, California.
The 22-year-old rapper, whose real name was Jaime Brugada Valdez, was found in the evening “with injuries consistent with a homicide,” the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation said.
His attorney Nicholas Rosenberg said the late rapper suffered a stab wound to the neck in the shower.
“There’s an investigation, but at this point, the motive remains unknown,” Rosenberg said, per NBC, continuing, “Suede was a very popular guy, very mild-mannered. Everybody loved him.”
According to TMZ, his exact cause of death is under investigation.
He was absent for a headcount check and was found unresponsive in another area of the prison, where prison staff unsuccessfully attempted to save his life.
He was pronounced dead at 10:00 p.m., according to the report.
As a result of Valdez’s death, sources told the outlet that the prison has implemented restrictions to investigate the fatal incident.
MoneySign Suede was serving an almost three-year bid in prison
The late rap artist was in prison for two counts of firearm possession and was sentenced to 32 months. He was expected to serve the sentence for the two charges concurrently.
He also served 10 months of a 21-month sentence between 2020 and 2021 and reportedly broke parole which lengthened the time he was serving at the time of his death.
Valdez was born in Los Angeles and is the son of Mexican immigrant parents. He was raised in Huntington Park and began his rap career at 16.
He was signed to Atlantic Records, and his most popular song, Back To The Bag, was released in 2020 and has over 7 million views on YouTube.
He continued to release music from behind bars, and in 2022 he dropped a self-titled EP, followed by his debut album Parkside Baby in September.
Tributes pour in for MoneySign Suede
Many fans and fellow rap artists paid their respects to the late Mexican-American rapper on the rise at the time of his death.
Rap journalist Jeff Weiss compared Valdez to Kodak Black and wrote, “A young regional hero embodying the hopes & aspirations of the unsung and overlooked. Killed in jail far too young. Devastating.”
A fan shared a photo of Suede and Drakeo the Ruler, who was also fatally stabbed in 2021 at age 28.
Rapper Zoe Osama shared a photo of himself with Valdez in a recording studio and warned of the dangers of being a rapper in Los Angeles.
“RIP @moneysignsuede ION THINK THEY UNDERSTAND HOW TRAGIC THIS ROAD IS WHEN YOU CHOOSE TO BE A RAP ARTIST IN LOS ANGELES.”
PnB Rock, Biggie Smalls, Nipsey Hussle, and Pop Smoke are among the rap artists who were killed in Los Angeles.