Legendary West Coast rapper Saafir has died aged 54
Oakland rapper Saafir has reportedly died at the age of 54. The legendary West Coast artist (born Reggie Gibson) passed away on the morning of November 19th. A cause of death has yet to be announced.
Xzibit, who was a member of the rap group Golden State Project alongside Saafir and Ras Kass, announced the news in a tribute post on Instagram. He admitted he was “crushed” while revealing he was around Saafir and showed him love before his death.
“I can’t believe I’m writing this right now, but don’t know what else to do at the moment,” the rapper wrote. “Approximately at 8:45am this morning, my brother Reggie known to the world as Saafir passed away. We have so much history I can’t even explain what I’m feeling right now. We surrounded him and let him know how much we loved him. He can rest now.”
He added: “The family really needs to be supported during this time. That’s all I have right now. My soul is crushed. We love you bro.”
Saafir made a name for himself in the Digital Underground and Hobo Junction crews in the early ’90s. He was friends with 2Pac and once roommates with the rapper, which led to him appearing in the classic 1993 film Menace II Society.
The West Coast star released his classic album Boxcar Sessions in 1994 and went on to release three more albums: 1998’s Trigonometry, 1999’s The Hit List and 2006’s Good Game: The Transition.
Saafir suffered a back injury as a passenger on the TWA Flight 843 in 1992 that involved an aborted takeoff and landing, resulting in a crash and fire. In the years prior to his death, he had been going through health struggles and had been confined to a wheelchair.
“I had a cancerous tumour in my spinal cord and they had to get it out as soon as possible,” he told the San Francisco Bay Guardian in 2013. “That was around ’05 … I had to have the surgery to get the tumour out. The doctor told me that if I didn’t take it out, by the time I was in my later 40s I would probably be paralysed.”
He continued, “And it’s ironic because I did the surgery and I’m still kinda in that situation. I’m not a paraplegic; my legs are still active and whatnot, it’s just getting the right kind of treatment to spark what needs to be sparked in order to get my legs to work.”