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Young rapper Dolla shot dead in Los Angeles
The 21-year-old who had worked with Akon was gunned down while in LA to record album
By Jonathan HarwoodFIRST POSTED MAY 19, 2009Hip hop's troubled relationship with gun crime is under the spotlight once again after up-and-coming rap star Dolla was shot dead in a shopping mall in Los Angeles.
The death is sure to reignite the debate over violence and urban music in the States. The latest killing comes 12 years after the murders of rap legends Biggie Smalls and Tupac Shakur whose deaths shocked the rap community, but who are just two names on a long list of artists to be gunned down.
Dolla, a 21-year-old from Atlanta whose real name was Roderick Anthony Burton II, had recorded with well-known stars T-Pain and Akon. He was shot in the head in broad daylight at the Beverly Center.
Police said he was attacked at the entrance to the shopping mall just after 3pm. The victim was waiting in the valet area with fellow rapper DJ Shabbazz. He was taken to the nearby Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, but died soon afterwards.
There were reports that two men were seen running from the scene, and a grey Mercedes SUV was later spotted heading towards Los Angeles airport. A 20-year-old man was subsequently arrested at the airport with a handgun in his possession. He has been named in some websites as 20-year-old Aubrey Berry, who was known to the victim.
