On 1 November 2022, hip-hop fans across the world were stunned by the untimely death of Takeoff, one-third of the chart-topping US rap group, Migos.
The 28-year-old rapper was gunned down in a bowling alley in Houston, Texas, during a private party with friends. A man named Patrick Clark was arrested and charged with killing the artist a month later.
It is alleged that Clark fatally shot Takeoff during a fight over a high-stakes dice game.
Along with his uncle, Quavo, and their family friend Offset, Takeoff – born Kirsnick Khari Ball – Takeoff formed their rap trio in 2008. By the time of their official disbandment in 2023, Migos had achieved four top 10 US Billboard Chart hits, including a Number 1 with the single “Bad and Boujee”.
A year after the rapper’s passing, the two remaining Migos members have shared tributes to their late bandmate on social media.
Offset (real name Kiari Kendrell Cephus) posted a black-and-white video filled with footage of Takeoff performing. A remix of the late rapper’s 2018 solo track, “Last Memory” plays on top.
Takeoff, Offset and Quavo of Migos— (Getty Images for The Recording Academy)
“The times we spent is priceless, what we built in this game they never wanted to give us our flowers we influenced the world,” Offset’s caption reads. “I love you Take, you still here with us I just know you are!!!! Migo 4Life!!!!!!”
Quavo – born Quavious Keyate Marshall – publicly marked the first anniversary of Takeoff’s death by posting a picture of him smiling and wearing dark sunglasses. “Can’t forget it won’t Forget It NEVER Forget it,” he wrote as a simple caption.
At the time of Takeoff’s death, Migos were on a hiatus, with Takeoff and Quavo releasing music together while Offset worked on a solo project.
Rumours of a feud between Offset and the other Migos members had been swirling since summer 2022, which were further fuelled when a Houston gig billed as Migos ended up being just Quavo and Takeoff.
In February 2023, Quavo released a song in tribute to his bandmate and nephew called “Greatness”, which fans considered a confirmation of the end of Migos.
Migos star Takeoff— (Getty Images for Global Citizen)
In the track, Quavo credits Takeoff with the intricate flow associated with the group, before hinting that the group is “gone”. He raps: “Swept the game like a storm with the motherf***in’ flow / Take’ did that / So don’t ask about the group, he gone / We gone... it can’t come back.”
Months later, Quavo and Offset presented a united front at the BET Awards in June with an on-stage tribute to Takeoff, marking Migos’s final performance.
In October 2023, Offset shared some further insight into the end of the group, stating that he and Quavo cannot continue performing together without Takeoff, “the glue” of their union.
“A lot of people just don’t get [it] – the group can never be the group,” he explained on US radio station Hot 97.
“It’s all love but we’re missing our glue. You can’t just act like it can all continue... we can’t continue our group without the man. He’s the main man behind the scenes.”
