Afrika Bambaataa Dead

Afrika Bambaataa, the influential hip-hop pioneer and founder of the Universal Zulu Nation, has died at the age of 68. As of now, no official cause of death has been released. The news was confirmed on April 9 through a video posted on Facebook by Hassan Campbell.

Born in New York City in 1957, Bambaataa was once celebrated for his role in building up his community and helping define the sound, style, and culture of early hip-hop. But his legacy became heavily tainted in later years by multiple accusations of sexual abuse. The allegations first gained major attention in 2016 when Ronald Savage, a former music executive and politician, publicly claimed that Bambaataa had molested him as a child in the late 1970s, when Savage was just 12 or 13. Savage later partially retracted his story, suggesting that Bambaataa may not have realized he was underage at the time.

Several other people soon came forward with similar claims. Hassan Campbell, who had looked up to Bambaataa as a father figure growing up without his own dad around, was among those who spoke out. In interviews, Campbell described disturbing behavior, including inappropriate comments toward underage boys, following them into bathrooms, and leaving his bedroom door open while pornography played. He also alleged that Bambaataa kept “black books” filled with explicit photos of people many would never suspect.

As a result of the accusations, Bambaataa was removed from the Universal Zulu Nation. He consistently denied all the claims, calling them baseless and an attempt to destroy his reputation.