Young Dolph Killed at Age 36 in Memphis Shooting. Rapper Young Dolph, widely admired in the hip-hop community for his authenticity and fierce independence, was shot and killed Wednesday inside a beloved local cookie shop in his hometown of Memphis, Tennessee, authorities said.
Twitter Young Dolph Memphis-based Rapper Fatally shot at Tennessee cookie shop:
Three independent law enforcement sources confirmed that rapper Young Dolph was shot and killed in Memphis Wednesday afternoon.
Maurice Hill, the owner of the shop where the shooting happened, Makeda’s Butter Cookies, employees said,
Young Dolph, 36, walked into the store to buy cookies. Someone then drove up and shot and killed him at the South Memphis bakery.
Shortly before 5 p.m., Memphis Police tweeted they had no information to release about a possible suspect in the shooting, which took place at Makeda’s Cookies near Memphis International Airport. But they said the identification process has not been completed.
No information about the shooter has been released by police at this point.
Here’s everything we know about the death of Young Dolph:
In his music, Young Dolph rapped about being a drug dealer and life on the streets in Memphis.
He recently performed at a concert at the University of Memphis and has performed during the halftime of a Memphis Grizzlies game. He was admired in Memphis as a torchbearer of the city’s rap legends, Three 6 Mafia.
Young Dolph considered himself a workaholic and in recent years was focused on growing his business.
“I’m a CEO first, then an artist,” he told the writer Gary Suarez in a 2020 interview for Forbes, saying he’d strategically held off on signing with a major label. “As long as I keep going up and keep working, my value is going to increase.”
“I know what the streets want to hear, I know what the street’s going through, the lingo, the fashion, everything. It ain’t nothing; it’s my real life,” he told Suarez.
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Police called the shooting “senseless” and said, “our hearts go out to the Thornton family and all who were affected by this horrific act of violence.” The release closed by saying officers are committed to working to curb these types of incidents.
The Daily Memphian newspaper reported that Young Dolph’s cousin, Mareno Myers, said the 36-year-old rapper had been in town since Monday visiting an aunt who has cancer and was also giving out Thanksgiving turkeys.
Rapper Young Dolph fatally shot; police chief urges people to ‘stay home’:
A large crowd gathered near the shop after the shooting. At a news conference Wednesday evening, Tensions flared and raw emotion spilt over.
Memphis Police Director Cerelyn “CJ,” Davis asked the public to remain calm and recommended that residents stay home tonight.
She did not say if the police think other shootings under investigation Wednesday were related to the rapper’s killing.
People laid on the ground, crying. Some onlookers called for an end to gun violence and peace. Others cursed and expressed anger at the loss of the Memphis icon.
Chaos broke out at times. A car with a man inside, apparently shot, drove into the crime scene. That man was taken away on a stretcher by paramedics.
For hours, police worked to push the crowd back from the scene while trying to make sense of the tragic death. Airways Boulevard, a major street in Memphis, was shut down during the investigation.
The Memphis rap legend was no stranger to the bakery. A week before being shot to death, Young Dolph was there, spreading love and promoting the business.
The cookie shop posted a video of the rapper promoting the store’s cookies, saying he returns to the store whenever he is in Memphis.
One week ago —-
Young Dolph at Makedas Cookies, showing love, promoting the place he stopped by often.
Today, he was shot and killed there. RIP Legend. pic.twitter.com/YccKCrJT0M
— Dakarai Turner (@Dakarai_Turner) November 17, 2021
His camouflage Corvette sat in the parking lot of the bakery. Hours later, it was towed. Videos of the car went viral on TikTok as it was taken by police. Hundreds of people in the comments asking for answers.
On the scene of a shooting on Airways. I’m hearing Memphis rapper Young Dolph may be a victim in the shooting. Shooting happened at Makeda’s Cookies. pic.twitter.com/Dw1nTcKV3C
— Jeremy Pierre FOX13 (@JeremypierreFOX) November 17, 2021
The Legacy of Young Dolph – Rapper Young Dolph dead in Memphis shooting:
The rapper, whose real name is Adolph Robert Thornton, Jr. is well known in the Memphis community.
Born in Chicago as Adolph Thornton Jr., he moved to Memphis when he was 2, according to The Commercial Appeal.
He said in the documentary that he’d been raised by his grandmother and tried to help his parents “clean their life up” once he found success.
He released numerous mixtapes, starting with 2008′s “Paper Route Campaign,” and multiple studio albums, including his 2016 debut “King of Memphis.” He also collaborated on other mixtapes and albums with fellow rappers Key Glock, Megan Thee Stallion, T.I., Gucci Mane, 2 Chainz and others.
Young Dolph began getting national attention in 2014 with the release of his mixtape “High-Class Street Music 4″ and the single “Preach,”.
In 2016, he released his debut studio album, King of Memphis.
Young Dolph had three albums reach the top 10 on the Billboard 200, with 2020′s “Rich Slave” peaking at No. 4.
Young Dolph is well known for handing out turkeys around Thanksgiving in Memphis through the Memphis Athletic Ministries charity, speaking to school children and donating money to his former high school Hamilton High School.
Hamilton High School knows him well including the students that attend now. They say they found out about Rapper Young Dolph’s death over social media. @FOX13Memphis https://t.co/aPP6hR5S5y pic.twitter.com/Rh4zYY2y4p
— Julian Paras FOX13 (@JParasTV) November 17, 2021
Young Dolph was supposed to pass out turkeys at St. James Missionary Baptist Church in Memphis this Friday between 2-5 p.m.
Huge scene at Joy&Airways after multiple agencies have confirmed rapper @YoungDolph was shot and killed earlier today. Lots of emotion as the crowd keeps growing. @FOX13Memphis pic.twitter.com/BU50LA3aeT
— Mandy Hrach (@FOX13Mandy) November 17, 2021
A city council member called for a curfew. Davis did not rule out issuing one at some point.
Like the Los Angeles rapper Nipsey Hussle, who was killed in 2019, Young Dolph pursued an independent approach to the music business.
His Paper Route Empire label retained control over his music. “I just got another vision for it — strictly 100 per cent ownership,” he said in a 2018 mini-documentary co-produced by his label, titled “Turned Dirt Into Diamonds.” “A lot of people, they can’t see what I see.”
Celebrities, community reacts to the death of Young Dolph:
Shortly after the news broke, people took to Twitter to share what Young Dolph meant to them.
Memphis officials, athletes and numerous members of the music industry posted their condolences on social media.
Coach Deion Sanders turned to faith on the day of the tragedy.
Lord please cover the entire @YoungDolph family, friends and loved 1z. We thank u in advance Lord in Jesus name Amen. pic.twitter.com/36fpPFlV6J
— COACH PRIME (@DeionSanders) November 17, 2021
“R.I.P. to my friend Dolph this broke my heart,” Gucci Mane posted on Twitter.
The rapper’s talent agency, APA, said it was shocked and saddened by his death.
“The world has lost an icon, a great man and beloved artist who has been taken too soon,” the agency said in a statement. “His dedication, drive, hard work and loyalty to all those around him always came first and he will be deeply missed.”
In a post on his Twitter account on Oct. 20, Young Dolph said a doctor told him he needed some time to himself.
”I never knew what anxiety meant until My doctor just explained to me that I have it this morning,” another tweet posted that day said.
In an August tweet, he said: “Still can’t believe I got to where I’m at in life. still feel unreal.”
Rapper Gucci Mane said that his heart is broken by the news, calling Young Dolph a close friend.
As the news spread, reactions continued to pour in from around the nation, including artists like Megan Thee Stallion and Rick Ross to local leaders such as Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland and Congressman Steve Cohen.
R. I.P. to my friend Dolph this broke my heart
— Gucci Mane (@gucci1017) November 17, 2021
It is the fourth high-profile shooting in the Memphis area in the past two months. Others include a school shooting in which a 13-year-old student wounded a classmate, the fatal shooting of two postal employees by a third postal worker who then killed himself, and a mass shooting at a Kroger grocery store in the Collierville suburb that left two people dead, including the shooter, and more than a dozen wounded.
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Young Dolph had survived previous shootings. He was shot multiple times in September 2017 after a fight outside a Los Angeles hotel. His SUV was shot at in Charlotte, North Carolina, more than 100 times in February of that year. The incident was the inspiration for the song “100 Shots.” He said he survived because he had bulletproof panels in his vehicle, The Commercial Appeal reported.
Young Dolph leaves behind family, including his cousin fellow Memphis rapper Key Glock.
