PnB Rock dead: who was rapper killed age 30, is death similar to Pop Smoke - what did Kodak Black say?

American rapper PnB Rock, known for songs like Selfish, Fleek, MIDDLE CHILD, Gang Up and Horses, has died after being shot in a restaurant in LA at the age of 30.

Rock had been dining with his girlfriend, Stephanie Sibounheuang, who had shared their location in a since deleted post on Instagram prior to the shooting.

This is everything you need to know.

Who was PnB Rock?

Rock, whose real name was Rakim Hasheem Allen, was an American rapper from Philadelphia.

He was born on 9 December 1991 and grew up with his mother and four siblings after his father was murdered when he was a child. When he was 13, Rock was sent to a youth detention program for taking part in robberies and fighting in school.

Later, when he was 19, he was sentenced to 33 months in prison for a number of charges, including drug possession. It was during his time in prison that he wrote what would become his debut mixtape, titled Real N*gga Bangaz which was released in 2014.

Talking about his time in prison, Rock said: “There were people up there singing in the yard. They were doing the same thing that I was doing, but they were serious about it.

“There would be crowds around them and that was our entertainment, everybody loved it.”

His stage name, PnB Rock, refers to Pastorius and Baynton, a street corner near where he grew up in Philadelphia.

After releasing Real N*gga Bangaz, Rock signed a record deal with Atlantic Records in 2015, and after releasing a variety of mixtapes, released his hit single Selfish in 2016.

In 2017, Rock released GTTM: Goin Thru the Motions and later that year was featured in the soundtrack of the eighth instalment of the Fast and Furious film franchise, The Fate of the Furious, with two singles - Gang Up, with fellow rappers Young Thug, 2 Chainz and Wiz Khalifa, and Horses with Kodak Black and A Boogie wit da Hoodie.

Rock released two studio albums during his career - Catch These Vibes in 2017 and TrapStar Turnt PopStar in 2019 - and collaborated with a number of fellow musicians, including on Ed Sheeran’s song Cross Me.

Rock was the father to two daughters, born in 2013 and 2020.

What happened in LA?

According to reports, Rock and his girlfriend were eating at Roscoe’s Chicken & Waffles in South Los Angeles on Monday (12 September) afternoon when the rapper was fatally shot during a robbery.

Police said that the authorities received a call regarding the shooting at 1:23pm local time and, upon arriving at the scene, found a male victim with multiple gunshot wounds. He was taken to a hospital in the local area.

In a since deleted post, Rock’s girlfriend reportedly shared their location in a photo on Instagram prior to the shooting.

LAPD Captain Kelly Muniz said: “What occurred was the victim, along with a female witness, were in this area eating at a restaurant when they were approached by at least one suspect, who brandished a firearm and demanded property from the victim.

“The suspect then shot the victim multiple times, and removed property and then left the location in a getaway car.”

Muniz said that multiple shots were fired during the incident, however others on the scene were not injured.

After being taken to hospital, the rapper was pronounced dead at 1:59pm.

Do police have any suspects?

As it stands, the police have said that they are examining surveillance video to identify potential suspects, however no one has been arrested.

What happened to Pop Smoke?

Due to the circumstances surrounding Rock’s death, specifically the fact that his location had been shared before the shooting, many have drawn similarities to the death of rapper Pop Smoke.

Smoke, whose real name was Bashar Barakah Jackson, was murdered on 19 February 2020. He had been renting an Airbnb in California when, at roughly 4:30am, five men with a handgun entered the property whilst Smoke was taking a shower.

The incident occurred after Smoke and his friend, Mike Dee, posted images on social media in which the house’s full address could be read on packaging in the background.

The police arrived at the house six minutes after being alerted to the home invasion, where they found Smoke with multiple gunshot wounds. He was taken to Cedar-Sinai Medical Centre, however he was pronounced dead a few hours later.

What did Kodak Black say?

Sibounheuang, Rock’s girlfriend, has received backlash in the wake of the rapper’s death for sharing their location.

Rapper Kodak Black appeared to blame Sibounheuang specifically for Rock’s death on his Instagram story.

Black wrote: “Mannn I been low all day due to a headache I had earlier so I’m jus getting to the news fr.

“Ion usually speak on deaths! Go to funerals or nun kuz life goes on but smh PnB was my boy I was jus otp wit em last night!

“We be talkin bout him comin back out & poppin his s**t again in this rap s**t.

“That hoe might as well kill herself.”

Tributes for PnB Rock

Following the news of his death, fans, friends and fellow rappers have paid their tributes to Rock on social media.