Atlanta-based rapper 6 Dogs, whose real name was Chase Amick, died by suicide on January 26, as first reported by Everything Georgia on Twitter. He was 21.
There has been no official confirmation of his death, but Benny Blanco, Amick’s producer on his Mad Love label, tweeted, “he may have been ur favorite rapper 6dogs… but to me he was one of the kindest, toe painting, star gazing, art making, day dreaming, thoughtful, warmest souls i had ever met.”
Amick, who had amassed 164,000 followers on Instagram, just had one video posted from February 2018 at the time of his death. The comments section filled with “RIP” messages on Tuesday. Rapper Lil Aaron tweeted, “rip 6 dogs. real underground legend. made it all the way to benny blanco off of some internet rap songs. forever the goat.”
If you or someone you know is having suicidal thoughts, the toll-free National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255) is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week with assistance in English and Spanish. You can also speak with a trained crisis counselor 24/7 by texting HOME to 741741 to reach the Crisis Text Line.
Amick started his rap career recording songs in his friend’s basement, away from his “super Christian” parents, he told the Masked Gorilla in 2017. He burst out onto the rap scene via SoundCloud in 2016. His most famous hits include the songs, “Faygo Dreams,” which racked up over 14 million views on YouTube, and “Flossing,” which has more than 7 million views, the latter of which was shot on an iPhone in his parents’ basement, according to the Masked Gorilla.
In his interview with the Masked Gorilla, Amick opened up about his religious upbringing and said he had a happy childhood:
My super Christian parents, and all their friends, are super religious and stuff, and I love my childhood but we had this homeschooling group or whatever. I loved them, it was so fun we would just do stuff in the woods, make forts, like legos and stuff like that. I love my childhood, I’m glad I wasn’t just watching T.V. and stuff like that. I was reading books and doing stuff which contributed to my creativity.
While Amick teased the release of a new album on Twitter on November 8, his final tweet was a November 16 screenshot of Ray Daniels asking fellow musicians to reach out to those who may be suffering from depression.
Amick is survived by his parents and sister. Here’s what you need to know about the rapper 6 Dogs:
6 Dogs Said of His Rap Career, ‘I Get Paid to Do What I Love & It Doesn’t Even Feel Like a Job
Amick was only 17 and still in high school when he spoke with the Masked Gorilla. Asked where he saw himself in one year, he told the outlet: “Yo I don’t know why but I want to cry right now. This is crazy. I feel like whatever I say is actually going to happen. … I think I’m probably going to have a condo in Midtown, I’m gonna be chilling making music, but I also think I’m gonna be traveling doing crazy stuff.”
At age 18, the rapper was living on his own with his girlfriend, according to The Bird Feed, and was able to fully focus on his music career. Amick told the outlet at the time that he felt like he was living in a dream.
“I think it’s crazy that people even listen to my music and like it so much,” he said. “The other day I was like ‘Wow. I can’t believe it actually worked.’ I get paid to do what I love and it doesn’t even feel like a job.”
6 Dogs’ Music Brought Awareness to Suicide & Mental Health Issues
Amick told The Bird Feed that music helped him deal with stress and depression, but what touched the rapper the most was having fans reach out to him to say his music saved their lives when they were considering suicide.
“It feels really good to be able to help people like that, especially since I know what that’s like to have to go through,” he said. “In ‘Faygo Dreams,’ my favorite lyric is ‘thankful for these scars now,'” which The Bird Feed described as his way “to encourage his fans to embrace their struggles” and remember that “people come out stronger on the other side.”
While speaking with The Masked Gorilla, Amick opened up about his own mental health struggles.
“I was super depressed, you know, I still feel some type of way sometimes but for the most part I’m straight now, but I just needed an outlet,” he said in 2017. “I’ve always wanted to rap. I remember just sitting in the lifeguard stand, the entire summer, 8 hours a day or longer and just sitting down and I was like ‘this sucks, I want to do something with my life.'”
In fact, it was the healing qualities Amick felt through rapping that eventually got his parents on board with his career. He said:
Literally if I didn’t start recording I was have killed myself by now, not even kidding. It’s insane what a difference it made. It’s just getting everything out there. I had a therapist at one point and that’s nice, being able to tell things to someone, but when you tell things to literally everyone on the internet it’s amazing. It’s like having a million therapists.
6 Dogs Delayed the Release of His New Album After Contracting COVID-19
On July 1, the rapper revealed on Twitter that he tested positive for coronavirus. He tweeted, “Just took a covid test and my results came back positive:/ I’m str8 just a pretty bad headache. I’m a healthy dood tho so I should b fine. Unfortunately this will put a delay on the album thx for rockin w me y’all.”
In September, the rapper was still hyped to get new music out. He tweeted, “There’s about to be so much fire music coming out sheesh. Covid has been shaping good artists on all fronts.”
Tributes Filled Social Media Following the Sudden News of 6 Dogs’ Death
Fans, friends and fellow rappers filled Twitter with their condolences following the news of 6 Dogs’ death. One person tweeted, “spent my entire middle school life listening to their stuff truly one of the reasons I make music and am the person I am today, the self titled project they put out in 2017 is truly one of my favorite pieces of music ever rest in paradise 6dogs :(.”
Another fan tweeted, “6dogs was one of the kindest and most genuine people I’ve ever had the privilege of being friends with, he was always kind to others and was not afraid to be loving and to be himself and encourage others to be themselves. His only intent ever was positivity and this hurts so much.”
His former label, Foundation Media, posted on Instagram, “Heartbroken hearing of the passing of 6 Dogs. REST IN PEACE.”
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Rapper 6 Dogs Dies by Suicide at Age 21: Report