Credit: Justin Higuchi / Press

Lauryn Hill has honoured John Forté following the Fugees affiliate’s passing earlier this week.

The rapper and producer died at his home in Chilmark, Massachusetts, on January 12th. He was 50.

Hill took to Instagram on January 14th to pay tribute to Forté, sharing photos of them while revealing how much he meant to her and her family.

“I can’t remember the exact moment I met John Forte or Forte as we used to call him, but I know we became fast friends very soon after,” she wrote. “I loved him, my family loved him… I remember meeting his mom with her sweet voice for the first time and walking New York City streets with him in full youthful fascination mode.”

Hill collaborated with Forté on the Fugees’ Grammy-winning album The Score in 1996, for which he served as a writer, producer, and featured artist. In her tribute, she spoke more about who he was as a person and credited him for the way he carried himself.

“Forte was a gentlemen and a scholar with a strong pen, deep soul, and kind heart,” she said. “Part Brownsville, part prep-school, he had access to a way of expressing himself with a vocabulary and fluency that was very unique for the time. John was a gentle soul beneath all of his Brownsville chanting.”

Hill opened up about introducing Forté to fellow Fugees members Wyclef Jean and Pras, before revealing her shock at his sudden death.

“We were in contact only a few weeks ago,” she wrote. “This loss is unexpected and surreal and my heart aches… for his family, for his wife, for his children, for his friends, and for all of us who were blessed to know him. I Love you John. Rest in peace gentle King.”

Chilmark Police Chief Sean Slavin said there were no signs of foul play or “readily apparent cause of death.”

Wyclef also shared a few words about his passing, writing, “This one hurts my brother @john_forte has joined the Angels legends never Die look at the smile R I P my Refugee brother.”