The Tale of Lil Snupe: A Story of Talent, Hard Work, and Tragedy
Meek Mill’s protege who went from the most exciting new voice in rap to shot dead over a game of 2k in just two months
In just 18 years of life, Lil Snupe has earned many monikers. From “The Freestyle King” to “Meek Mill’s Protege” to “2Pac Reincarnated” it is easy to gather that he was beyond well-respected. Snupe had peers twice his age looking up to him due to his absolutely lethal flow and southern drawl that allowed his punchlines to be piercing. For the two months following the release of his only mixtape R.n.i.c (Real Niggas In Charge), there was a unanimous belief in the rap game that the throne was Snupe’s for the taking. That is until tragedy struck changing the fate of rap forever.
Lil Snupe was born in Jonesboro, Louisiana in 1995. Born Addarren Ross, Snupe frequently got into trouble as a kid and alludes to spending time in juvenile detention in his music. It’s unknown when Snupe started rapping, but his career took off in 2012 when he approached Meek Mill’s tour bus. In 2013, Lil Snupe spoke about that day with MTV news. “He (Meek Mill) was in a van, they was finna pull off. And I went and knocked on the van, on the window. They let the window down and grabbed the mixtape.” 20 minutes later, before even finishing the mixtape, Meek Mill called Lil Snupe and asked him to be apart Dream Chasers, Meek’s record label. "He was spittin' so much pain, he's from the south with a flow like an east coast guy," Meek told MTV.
Meek quickly took Lil Snupe under his wing and began to show him how to be a successful rapper. The two spent a lot of time together that year and became close. There are many videos of Meek and Lil Snupe freestyling together and in almost all of them Snupe has to go ahead and body his mentor. There is a reason the 18-year-old MC was referred to as “The Freestyle King”, Snupe could rhyme for an hour straight without hesitation while always keeping his bars fresh and entertaining. The young emcee ability to spit was unparalleled and he is the best freestylers I’ve ever heard.
The mixtape that led to Snupe joining Dream Chasers (R.n.i.c) was rerecorded under Meek’s guidance and released in April of 2013. Upon release, the world was introduced to the gifted rapper and his instant impact on the rap game was palpable. The effect R.n.i.c had on the genre was felt strongly in the south but resonated throughout the entire country. Emcees everywhere started to feel a new pressure and it was widely excepted the Dream Chasers was soon to be the best rap collective in the game.
R.n.i.c is 14 songs long and is all killer no filler. The mixtape opens with the in-your-face “Take Over”. The track concludes with a minute of DJ Khaled co-signing Snupe and calling him the future. The third track features Meek Mill and, in hindsight, is easily his most tragic song. The cut contains grim foreshadowing as at the end of the first verse Snupe raps, “I gotta get it, ‘cause I’m tryna get full rich / And I refuse to let my mama lose me to some bullshit.”
The fifth track on the mixtape, “In Tha Air Freestyle” is easily one of his most iconic tracks. The combination of the soulful, slower, sampled instrumental and Snupe’s brutally honest lyrics make this song hit different. Snupe instantly changes the mood as goes into one of the most braggadocious and cocky cuts on the mixtape “I’m That Nigga Now”. This track shows Snupe at his most playful which is so fun to listen to.
“X Bitch” is the ninth track on the mixtape and potentially my favorite. I believe it to be one of the best odes to an ex-girlfriend in rap history. Snupe’s youthful confidence shines brightly throughout this cut as he raps about his “ex-bitch” who is constantly concerned with his “next bitch”. While “X Bitch” has one of the catchiest hooks on the album, it isn’t quite as addicting as the hook on “Melo” Lil Snupe’s biggest hit to date. The eleventh song on the tape is upbeat, fun, and showcases the rappers unmatched pen game. “Melo” is frequently the first song I show rap fans who are unfamiliar with the work of Lil Snupe.
While R.n.i.c was very well received and quickly threw Lil Snupe into stardom, he only enjoyed the limelight for two months after its release until the night of his death. Addarren Ross was shot dead in Winnfield Lousiana by 36-year-old Tony Holden on June 20th, 2013. Ross and Holden supposedly had bet a large sum of money on a game of NBA 2k. The story goes that Lil Snupe beat Tony Holden on a buzzer beater leading him to shoot Snupe twice, leaving the 18-year-old boy dead. Holden turned himself in six days later to the authorities.
The story of Lil Snupe is one of tragedy, but at the same time, one of familiarity. As a nation, we have become used to the story of a young black man being gunned down before he could even scratch the surface of his potential.
“He would spit off the top like it was written. Rap real tight for hours and not mess up. That’s unheard of, I’ve never seen nobody like that”
Snupe’s death was devastating to the rap community, it was blatantly apparent to any fan or artist that Addarren Ross was something special. Six years after his death, Lil Snupe is still held in the highest of standards among rappers and is shouted out many times a year. If we can learn anything from the fatal story of Lil Snupe, it is that we need to understand the value of our own gifts and value them so highly that we are careful about who we choose to be around. Snupe had so much to offer the world, as do we all. Rest in Peace to The Freestyle King. Rest in peace Lil Snupe.
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