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Rapper Pop Smoke Shot And Killed In Hollywood Hills

Rapper Pop Smoke Shot And Killed In Hollywood Hills

Rapper Pop Smoke was shot and killed Wednesday morning at a home in Hollywood Hills, California, according to multiple reports.

His record label, Republic Records, released a statement mourning the loss of the rapper on Wednesday afternoon.

“We are devastated by the unexpected and tragic loss of @POPSMOKE10,” the statement read. “Our prayers and thoughts go out to his family, friends and fans, as we mourn this loss together.”

Pop Smoke, whose real name is Bashar Jackson, was born in Brooklyn, New York. He was 20 years old.

Police officers responded to an emergency call in Hollywood Hills around 4:29 a.m. and found multiple masked men at the scene.

A shooting victim was transported to and pronounced dead at a local hospital, Los Angeles Police Officer Lizeth Lomeli confirmed to HuffPost. The LAPD did not immediately confirm the victim’s identity or whether the incident was a home invasion, as some outlets have reported.

Capt. Steve Lurie, commanding officer of the LAPD’s Hollywood area, said at a news conference earlier on Wednesday that it had been “widely reported that the victim is a music star of some import,” according to The Associated Press.

Lurie told reporters that the emergency call to the police was made by a friend “back East” who reported that a break-in was occurring at the Hollywood Hills home.

Pop Smoke was a rising rapper who released a hit summer song, “Welcome to the Party,” last year. Its remix, featuring Nicki Minaj, charted on Billboard’s Top 10 hits. His mixtape “Meet the Woo, V.2,” which was released this month, landed on the Billboard 200 chart this week.

Minaj posted a photo of Pop Smoke on Instagram early Wednesday morning, writing, “The Bible tells us that jealousy is as cruel as the grave. Unbelievable. Rest In Peace, Pop.”

Chance The Rapper also mourned on social media, tweeting, “Rest Up Pop Smoke, you were too young.”

“God Bless and comfort your family. What a crazy trajectory you were on man smh,” he wrote.

“R.I.P to my man Pop Smoke, No sympathy for winners,” 50 Cent wrote on Twitter. “God bless him.”

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This article originally appeared on HuffPost.