Remembering Migos rapper Takeoff's life in pictures
Migos rapper Takeoff was shot dead in Houston, Texas, in the early hours of Tuesday morning.
Takeoff — real name Kirshnik Khari Ball — rose to fame in 2013 when the group released "Versace."
Take a look through Takeoff's life in pictures here.
Takeoff, Kirshnik Khari Ball, died after being shot at a bowling alley in Houston, Texas, in the early hours of November 1.
The rapper, who found fame with his uncle Quavo (Quavious Keyate Marshall) and Offset (Kiari Kendrell Cephus) as part of the group Migos, was 28 years old.
As the news of his death sends shockwaves throughout the music world, Insider has taken a look back on the rapper's life.
Born Kirshnik Khari Ball on June 18, 1994, in Lawrenceville, Georgia, Takeoff first started making beats and developing rhythms in the seventh grade.
Takeoff and Quavo (his uncle) were raised by Quavo's mother, Edna Marshall, in the suburbs of Atlanta, Georgia.
In 2008, he formed a musical group with his uncle, Quavo, and Quavo's cousin, Offset.
You can read all about how the group is related here: Quavo was Takeoff's uncle, and Offset is Quavo's cousin.
The group was originally called Polo Club, but they eventually changed the name to Migos.
Fans posited the name was short for the Spanish word for friends ("amigos"). In an interview with Hot 97, the host mentioned the movie "Three Amigos," and asked if that's where the name came from.
Quavo and Takeoff explained that it was "kind of like that [but] it's a coincidence that it happened. We always ran together on the North side, as Migos, as boys...but actually, it's the hub of drugs out there, so everything that comes to Georgia got to touch Gwinnett [County] first, so we just call it Migos."
The group shot to fame in 2013 with their debut single "Versace," which peaked at number 99 on the Billboard Hot 100 after going viral.
They went on to achieve four Billboard Hot 100 top 10 entries. Their most well-known song is "Bad and Boujee," which was the lead single from their second album "Culture" and was released in 2016.
However, the absence of a verse from Takeoff on the song sparked a minor internet controversy.
Takeoff later told Rap Radar in 2022 that he was simply unavailable the day they recorded.
Also in 2016, the trio made a brief but memorable cameo in Donald Glover's television show "Atlanta."
The group attended the 2018 Grammy Awards after being nominated for both best rap album for "Culture" and best rap performance for "Bad and Boujee."
While continuing his contributions to Migos, Takeoff began working on solo material in 2018 and released his full-length debut, "The Last Rocket."
Migos performed at the Savage X Fenty Show in 2019 alongside Halsey, DJ Khaled, Big Sean, and A$AP Ferg.
Takeoff released his final album during his lifetime, a collaboration with Quavo titled "Only Built for Infinity Links" in early October.
Read the original article on Insider