Nipsey Hussle

On March 31, 2019, Ermias Joseph Asghedom, known professionally as Nipsey Hussle, a 33-year-old Grammy-nominated rapper and beloved community activist, was shot and killed in the parking lot of his Marathon Clothing store on Slauson Avenue in the Hyde Park neighborhood of South Los Angeles. He was shot multiple times, including in the head, and was pronounced dead at a hospital.

Nipsey Hussle was far more than a rapper to his community. He had invested heavily in the Crenshaw neighborhood where he grew up, opening businesses, creating jobs, and working to reduce gang violence. He owned the shopping plaza where his store was located and was developing plans for affordable housing. He had been scheduled to meet with LAPD officials to discuss strategies for reducing gang violence the day after his murder.

The shooter was identified as Eric Ronald Holder Jr., 29, a man from the same neighborhood who had been at the Marathon store that day. Holder and Nipsey had a brief conversation before Holder left and returned minutes later with a handgun, shooting Nipsey multiple times and then kicking him in the head. The motive appeared to be personal—reportedly related to a conversation about Holder being a snitch—rather than gang-related, though both men had gang associations.

Holder fled the scene but was arrested two days later. He was charged with murder and two counts of attempted murder for injuring bystanders. In July 2022, a jury convicted Holder of first-degree murder. He was sentenced to 60 years to life in prison. Nipsey Hussle's death sparked an outpouring of grief in Los Angeles and beyond, and his legacy as a community leader and entrepreneur has only grown since his passing.