Who killed Run-DMC’s Jam Master Jay? We may soon find out.
[This was my weekly column for GlobalNews.ca. – AC]
Hip-hop has a long, tragic history of murder and mayhem. Tupac Shakur, Notorious B.I.G., Big L., Fat Pat, Mac Dre, Big Hawk, Magnolia Shorty, XXXTentacion, Nipsey Hustle, Pop Smoke and dozens of others have been shot since the late ’80s. In terms of infamy, the unsolved murders of Shakur and Biggie have attracted the most attention, but right behind them is the shooting of Jason Mizell, otherwise known as Jam Master Jay, the DJ behind Run-DMC.
For more than two decades, the case ran cold with no arrests or convictions. Now, though, that may change.
The crime
At around 7:30 p.m. on a cold, rainy Wednesday in late October 2002, two men were buzzed into a recording studio on Merrick Avenue in Queens, New York. They walked up the stairs, down a long hall and into the studio. One man blocked the door while the other, clad in a wool mask, shot Jay in the head as he was playing video games, killing him instantly. Then they vanished.