Ketchy the Great, known best as a member of the Stinc Team alongside Drakeo the Ruler in Los Angeles’ underground rap scene, has died as the result of a car accident.
Ketchy, whose real name was Jameon Davis, also gained notoriety through his solo work. His breakout track, “If I Go Broke,” dropped at the end of 2017 and his mixtape, “Free Sauce,” was released in 2019. His official cause of death has not been released, according to NME.
His death was confirmed on social media by Drakeo the Ruler on Monday, February 15, 2021, and others who collaborated with him over the years. His press team also confirmed his death to Pitchfork.
Here’s what you need to know:
Ketchy the Great Gained Popularity While He Was in Prison for Using Spray Paint in a Music Video
RIP Ketchy the Great. One of the brightest LA talents of the last five years: a ball of 1000 watt voltage with a razor blade growl, who never failed to steal a track — whose promise was first undercut by the DA plot to persecute the Stinc Team, & now this. An unspeakable loss.
Ketchy the Great served time in jail for spray painting graffiti during a music video for “The Right Decision,” with Ralfy the Plug. You can watch the video here or below. He was arrested in 2018 and charged with vandalism with a gang enhancement and witness intimidation with a gang enhancement. The charges stemmed from the Los Angeles District Attorney’s labeling of the Stinc Team as a gang, Pitchfork reported.
“It was a bunch of bulls***,” Ketchy said on the PALM podcast in December 2020.
He spent two years and 10 months in prison, where he said he started to gain recognition.
He said on the podcast:
When I went to jail, a n**** wasn’t going crazy—like I had a couple songs that started takin’ off. So while I’m in there, it’s just motherf****** comin’ up to me like, ‘Yo you’re Ketchy the Great, I f*** with your s***.’ It’s crazy ’cause when I was on the streets, n***** wasn’t really coming up to me, noticing me, or recognizing me. But once I was in the county and I was sittin’ down for like six, seven months, everybody who’s comin’ in that motherf****** like ‘Hey, Ketchy, yo, Ketchy, sign my cup!” And I’m like d***, I’m signing my first f****** autographs in the county.
Rapper Biz Markie wrote a tribute to Ketchy on Twitter and said the charges against him were part of a “DA plot.”
“RIP Ketchy the Great,” he wrote. “One of the brightest LA talents of the last five years: a ball of 1000 watt voltage with a razor blade growl, who never failed to steal a track — whose promise was first undercut by the DA plot to persecute the Stinc Team, & now this. An unspeakable loss.”
Rappers & Fans Paid Tribute to Ketchy the Great on Twitter & Called His Death ‘An Unspeakable Loss’
LONG LIVE KETCHY THE GREAT
Drakeo the Ruler shared a photo on Twitter, writing, “LONG LIVE KETCHY THE GREAT.” The two often collaborated together. He also squelched rumors that Ketchy was murdered, saying he had been hit in a car accident.
“N***** DID NOT KILL THE HOMIE HE GOT HIT BY A RANDOM PEDESTRIAN STOP CLAIMING BODIES THATS NOT YOURS THE SCORE WILL NEVER BEEN EVEN,” he wrote, followed by laughing emojis.
RIP Ketchy the Great. I was just listening to this song today thinking how impactful Stinc Team been for the LA music scene these last whatever years.
“RIP Ketchy the Great,” a fan wrote on Twitter. “I was just listening to this song today thinking how impactful Stinc Team been for the LA music scene these last whatever years.”
Another fan wrote, “RiP Ketchy The Great. Gone too soon. LA rap gonna feel this one.”
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