A scant 13 days after New Times printed the profile, Onfroy was shot to demise in broad daylight at a Broward County motorbike dealership in an obvious theft gone unsuitable.
As it turned out, Hitt’s story contained XXXTentacion’s final public feedback in regards to the home abuse expenses pending towards him, in addition to candid insights into the 20-year-old rapper’s problematic youth and subsequent rise to fame and notoriety.
Hitt’s profile, nevertheless, is just one of many tales that comprise Miami New Times‘ contemporaneous protection of XXXTentacion’s music profession and the violence and controversy that surrounded it. Below is a timeline of New Times XXXTentacion protection.
Annotated Timeline of New Times Coverage of XXXTentacion (Jahseh Onfroy)
May 7, 2017: Rolling Loud 2017: A$AP Rocky, Lil Wayne, and Others Ruled the Stage
“It was the second younger hip-hop followers had been ready for all weekend. Not lengthy after being launched from jail, XXXTentacion lastly bought his likelihood to carry out reside in entrance of your complete nation, and the gang couldn’t get sufficient,” begins New Times music contributor Tony Centeno’s encapsulation of XXXTentacion’s efficiency on the 2017 version of Miami’s Rolling Loud hip-hop competition. (XXXTentacion had been jailed the 12 months prior for allegedly stabbing his supervisor, whom he believed was stealing from him. But these expenses have been in connection together with his alleged assaults on Geneva Ayala.)
June 14, 2017: Broward Rapper XXXTentacion Makes the XXL Freshman List
Jahseh Onfroy, AKA XXXTentacion, “is simply as dogged by violence and criticism as he’s profitable,” Douglas Markowitz writes of the rapper’s inclusion on XXL journal’s vaunted listing. “He has an intensive felony report: The most up-to-date cost stems from an assault on a pregnant girlfriend [Geneva Ayala]. He was nonetheless in jail when ‘Look at Me!’ started to garner consideration. Most individuals first see him in his mug shot: pale pores and skin, piercing eyes, the suitable half of his midlength dreadlocks dyed blond. This historical past of violence is mirrored in his music — blown-out bass, metallic samples, and obscene lyrics about blowjobs in Starbucks loos — and his reveals, the place followers have rioted and assaulted performers. His nickname for himself is ‘Young Dagger Dick.'”
July 3, 2017: Inside the Dark Carnival of XXXTentacion’s Broward Show
Douglas Markowitz evaluations XXXTentacion’s present at Club Cinema in Pompano Beach, evaluating and contrasting it with different performances on the rapper’s nationwide Revenge Tour, which was marked by wild antics and violence. “But nothing so excessive occurred at Club Cinema,” Markowitz writes. “There was solely the same old madness: rooster fights, crowd browsing, and mosh pits, all of which Onfroy gladly participated in, even coordinated.” The assessment was paired with a slideshow by photographer Amadeus McCaskill.
November 14, 2017: Lauderhill’s XXXTentacion Allegedly Jumped by Migos
Writes Markowitz: “The decline and fall of South Florida’s once-rising, now-sinking rap star XXXTentacion continues….” XXXTentacion, who’d already deleted a collection of Instagram posts accusing Atlanta rappers Migos of leaping him in Los Angeles, backed off the allegation and apologized.
November 28, 2017: XXXTentacion, Accused Abuser of Women, to Hold “Anti-Rape” Event During Art Basel
“This is, notably, the primary time X has straight tried to have interaction with the form of crimes he is dedicated, outdoors of denying them,” Markowitz factors out. (As Hitt notes in her 2018 characteristic, “The anti-rape occasion was canceled after certainly one of [XXXTentacion’s] followers vandalized the venue.”)
December 15, 2017: XXXTentacion Receives Seven New Charges, Will Await Trial in Jail
Miami-Dade County prosecutors had already alleged witness tampering on Jahseh Onfroy’s half. The seven new expenses, which might rapidly greater than double to fifteen, have been primarily based on extra proof of the identical crime, in addition to harassment. (Spoiler alert: XXXTentacion didn’t await trial in jail.)
April 12, 2018: XXXTentacion Sues Woman He Hit in Video
A video surfaced that appeared to indicate XXXTentacion slapping a lady, arduous, within the face. An Instagram consumer got here ahead saying she was the girl within the clip. Jahseh Onfroy and his authorized staff sued her for fraud and defamation.
May 8, 2018: XXXTentacion’s Witness-Tampering Tapes Sealed by Miami Judge
In an opinion column, New Times editor-in-chief Chuck Strouse took challenge with Circuit Court Judge Richard Hersch’s ruling denying the paper’s public-records request for copies of taped telephone calls Onfroy created from jail. “Justice shouldn’t be administered in personal,” Strouse writes. “Judges ought to comply with state legal guidelines. And the Legislature ought to cease trimming the Florida Sunshine Law, which is among the many greatest within the nation. The public has a proper to know.”
May 11, 2018: XXXTentacion’s Music Removed From Spotify Playlists, Declared “Hate Content”
On May 10, 2018, the streaming service Spotify applied its so-called Hate Content and Hateful Conduct Policy, underneath which it nixed from its platform-created playlists music by artists who’ve been deemed undesirable. “We don’t censor content material due to an artist’s or creator’s habits, however we would like our editorial selections — what we select to program — to mirror our values,” Spotify mentioned in an announcement. The first artist to be faraway from playlists was R. Kelly. The second was XXXTentacion.
June 5, 2018: The Real Story of South Florida Rapper XXXTentacion
Tarpley Hitt’s seminal 2018 New Times profile of XXXTentacion.
June 5, 2018: XXXTentacion Back on Spotify Playlists as Streaming Service Reverses Content Policy
As Tarpley Hitt’s XXXTentacion characteristic went to press, Spotify reversed its Hate Content and Hateful Conduct Policy. “While we consider our intentions have been good,” Spotify mentioned in an announcement, “the language was too imprecise, we created confusion and concern, and did not spend sufficient time getting enter from our personal staff and key companions earlier than sharing new pointers.”
June 6, 2018: XXXTentacion’s Alleged Victim Raised $12,000 on GoFundMe in One Day
Tarpley Hitt’s story famous that Geneva Ayala had initiated a web based fundraising marketing campaign to lift cash to cowl the medical payments she incurred because of the alleged abuse by the hands of Onfroy. In lower than 24 hours after the story went reside on the New Times web site, the fundraising effort raised greater than $12,000. In all, the marketing campaign would amass $36,350 earlier than Ayala shut it down 4 days after Onfroy was murdered. “i drastically admire each single donation made,” she wrote within the marketing campaign’s sole replace. “this was an unbelievable journey and i am nonetheless in shock. i put an finish to the marketing campaign as a result of i’ve acquired greater than sufficient and i am grateful. r.i.p. jahseh onfroy, it doesn’t matter what occurred/occurs my love for him won’t ever stop….”
June 11, 2018: A Timeline of Rapper XXXTentacion’s Abuse Allegations
With a trial nonetheless a distant prospect, New Times information author Jerry Iannelli recapped the yearlong timeline of abuse allegations towards Jahseh Onfroy.
June 18, 2018: Rapper XXXTentacion Shot Dead in Broward County
Jahseh Onfroy’s life was crammed with bursts of violence, a lot of it within the public eye. He died at age 20 in the identical method: shot to demise in his automotive in broad daylight at a motorbike dealership in Deerfield Beach. His notoriety adopted him all the best way to the top, as witnesses shared video clips of his inert physique slumped within the driver’s seat of his BMW.
June 19, 2018: Police, Friends Say Rapper XXXTentacion’s Murder Was Likely Robbery Gone Wrong
A day after the slaying, this a lot was clear, Tarpley Hitt reported: “Around 4 p.m. yesterday, the rapper was leaving Riva Motorsports when he was approached by two armed suspects. At least one of many suspects fired into the automotive, hitting Onfroy. The pair then fled the dealership in a black SUV, recognized in a dispatch name obtained by TMZ as a Dodge Journey. In the decision, the suspects are additionally recognized as sporting hoodies and a purple masks.”
June 20, 2018: Hundreds Mourn XXXTentacion at Candlelight Vigil
“‘Please I’d love for everybody to attend and share your recollections that you just had with him,’ one good friend, who makes use of the deal with @jordans_n_diamonds, wrote on Instagram. ‘Please let’s take into account #bread over beef, and let’s make his final phrases come true,’ referring to the rapper’s closing Instagram story, by which he introduced a charity occasion in Florida.” Tarpley Hitt coated the vigil, held close to the motorbike dealership the place Onfroy was killed. The story was accompanied by a slideshow of images by Ian Witlen.
June 21, 2018: XXXTentacion Murder: Police Arrest 22-Year-Old in Killing
Three days after Onfroy was gunned down, Broward sheriff’s deputies arrested 22-year-old Dedrick D. Williams in reference to the rapper’s demise, charging him with first-degree homicide and grand theft.
June 22, 2018: Tarpley Hitt Interviewed on New York Times Popcast
On episode 183 of the New York Times‘ Popcast podcast, “XXXTentacion, Mourning and Morality,” host and Times pop music critic Jon Caramanica spoke with Tarpley Hitt. Jump to the 40:30 mark within the hyperlink above to listen to Hitt describe how she was capable of interview each Jahseh Onfroy and his ex-girlfriend Geneva Ayala, and share a few of her insights into the rapper’s quick, violent life.
June 25, 2018: XXXTentacion Memorial to Be Held at BB&T Center
Jahseh Onfroy’s lawyer introduced {that a} public memorial had been scheduled for Wednesday, June 27, on the BB&T Center in Sunrise. Attorney J. David Bogenschutz mentioned the memorial would come with an open-casket viewing.
June 26, 2018: XXXTentacion’s “Sad!” Tops the Billboard Hot 100
The day after rapper XXXTentacion was murdered, his track “Sad!” broke the Spotify report for many single-day international streams, a mark beforehand held by Taylor Swift. Eight days later, the track reached the highest of Billboard‘s Hot 100, leaping from quantity 52 to number one.
June 27, 2018: At XXXTentacion’s Memorial, Fans Gather to Pay Respects to the Rapper
“The occasion took the type of an open-casket viewing, albeit an unconventional one in the course of an enormous sports activities enviornment,” Douglas Markowitz writes. “A video montage of X’s profession — from interview clips and live performance footage to a information report of a riot that broke out in Los Angeles after his demise — flashed on the Jumbotron. His music performed on the loudspeakers, and the somber nature of songs comparable to ‘Sad!’ and ‘Revenge’ have been oddly becoming for the event.”
June 28, 2018: BSO Hunting for Second Person of Interest in XXXTentacion Murder
The Broward Sheriff’s Office introduced it was in search of Robert Allen, 22, in reference to Jaseh Onfroy’s killing. Allen was seen in security-camera footage at Riva Motorsports. Police mentioned an SUV with three males inside blocked Onfroy’s automotive outdoors the motorbike dealership and robbed him earlier than rushing away. (Earlier studies had referred to solely two assailants.)
June 29, 2018: XXXTentacion’s Last Will Names Mom and Brothers as Beneficiaries of His Estate
According to court docket paperwork obtained by New Times, Jahseh Onfroy’s mom, Cleopatra Bernard, filed the rapper’s will days earlier. Completed on November 7, 2017, the doc designated Bernard as Onfroy’s private consultant. She, together with Onfroy’s two brothers, Aiden Kerr and Corey Pack, have been named because the beneficiaries.
July 11, 2018: Alleged Gunman in XXXTentacion Murder Arrested
The Broward Sheriff’s Office introduced {that a} second suspect, 22-year-old Broward resident Michael Boatwright, had been charged with first-degree homicide within the slaying of Jahseh Onfroy. Police believed Boatwright, who they already had in custody on a marijuana cost, was certainly one of two gunmen concerned within the rapper’s homicide. A seek for 22-year-old Robert Allen and a second, unnamed alleged gunman later recognized as 20-year-old Trayvon Newsome, was ongoing.
July 26, 2018: XXXTentacion Murder Suspect Robert Allen Arrested in Rural Georgia
U.S. Marshals in Georgia tracked Robert Allen to a home within the small city of Eastman in rural Dodge County, southeast of Macon. Marshals surveilled the home and peacefully took Allen into custody after figuring out he was inside. Every week earlier, authorities in Florida had indicted Allen for the homicide of Jahseh Onfroy, higher recognized to rap followers as XXXTentacion. The fourth suspect within the homicide, Trayvon Newsome, additionally underneath indictment, surrendered in Fort Lauderdale two weeks later.