XXXTentacion explored the darker side in his lyrics. MediaPunch / IPX
XXXTentacion explored the darker side in his lyrics. MediaPunch / IPX

XXXTentacion: a life haunted by violence and alienation cut short in a hail of bullets



When it comes to judging artists we are often told to separate their work from their life.

But that was never going to be the case for XXXTentacion, the 20-year-old Florida rapper who was gunned in broad daylight on Monday as part of an alleged car-jacking near Miami.

It marks the end of a controversial life that undulated between the creation of two of the most acclaimed hip-hop albums – 2017's 17 and this year's ? – of the past five years and a life of crime and brutality.

The fact that it all ended in a hail of bullets is not only a waste of genuine talent, but something not entirely unexpected.

Death and resignation always hovered above XXXTentacion’s ghostly compositions. The beats were skeletal and the melodies were woozy and hazy as apparitions, while the lyrics verged from the uncomfortably personal to crudely violent and misogynistic. It all went on to form part of XXXTentacion’s appeal, which was being the present soundtrack of youth alienation.

Born Jahesh Dwayne Onfroy to absent parents, XXXTentacion was raised in various households by family and friends.

It laid the seeds for a short and often explosively violent life which had him kicked out of schools, sent to juvenile detention and a string of pending criminal cases that included assaulting his pregnant girlfriend.

Among all that drama – or perhaps in reaction XXXTentacion found time to work on a music career that took off with the release of his first single Look At Me in 2015.

The deeply misogynistic track would go down as seminal moment in the young history of SoundCloud Rap, a three-year-old hip-hop subgenre with tracks originating from the online music distribution service SoundCloud.

Musically, SoundCloud rappers – such as Lil Uzi Vert, Lil Yachty and 6ixine – are regarded by their sheer disregard; the music is intentionally obtuse, the production is dirty and the lyrics portray a world view that is nihilistic at best. In a way the popularity of SoundCloud rap is a natural occurrence in the music cycle.

Where grunge was a reaction to the slickly produced spandex rock of the 1980s, SoundCloud Rap is the response to the bombastic and hyper-celebratory sounds of modern hip-hop extolled by the likes of Rick Ross and DJ Khaled. Where they celebrated partying, XXXTentacion discussed the flip side such as the timely topic depression, which was rarely heard in hip-hop at the time.

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That grunge connection was appreciated by XXXTentacion himself, as he often attributed the late Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain as his biggest influence.

There have been reports, through the social media posts of peers, that XXXTentacion was working to address his personal issues and in a recent interview described his mental strength as strong.

It was a battle ruthlessly cut short by the violence he so often spoke about.

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The specs

Engine: Dual 180kW and 300kW front and rear motors

Power: 480kW

Torque: 850Nm

Transmission: Single-speed automatic

Price: From Dh359,900 ($98,000)

On sale: Now

MATCH INFO

Who: UAE v USA
What: first T20 international
When: Friday, 2pm
Where: ICC Academy in Dubai

TRAP

Starring: Josh Hartnett, Saleka Shyamalan, Ariel Donaghue

Director: M Night Shyamalan

Rating: 3/5

Jigra
Director: Vasan Bala
Starring: Alia Bhatt, Vedang Raina, Manoj Pahwa, Harsh Singh
Rated: 3.5/5
Joker: Folie a Deux

Starring: Joaquin Phoenix, Lady Gaga, Brendan Gleeson

Director: Todd Phillips 

Rating: 2/5

ENGLAND SQUAD

Goalkeepers Henderson, Johnstone, Pickford, Ramsdale

Defenders Alexander-Arnold, Chilwell, Coady, Godfrey, James, Maguire, Mings, Shaw, Stones, Trippier, Walker, White

Midfielders Bellingham, Henderson, Lingard, Mount, Phillips, Rice, Ward-Prowse

Forwards Calvert-Lewin, Foden, Grealish, Greenwood, Kane, Rashford, Saka, Sancho, Sterling, Watkins 

The Bio

Hometown: Bogota, Colombia
Favourite place to relax in UAE: the desert around Al Mleiha in Sharjah or the eastern mangroves in Abu Dhabi
The one book everyone should read: 100 Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. It will make your mind fly
Favourite documentary: Chasing Coral by Jeff Orlowski. It's a good reality check about one of the most valued ecosystems for humanity

The specs
Engine: 77.4kW all-wheel-drive dual motor
Power: 320bhp
Torque: 605Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh219,000
On sale: Now

England's all-time record goalscorers:
Wayne Rooney 53
Bobby Charlton 49
Gary Lineker 48
Jimmy Greaves 44
Michael Owen 40
Tom Finney 30
Nat Lofthouse 30
Alan Shearer 30
Viv Woodward 29
Frank Lampard 29