Nipsey Hussle’s longtime girlfriend, Lauren London, paid tribute to the rapper after he was shot and killed at the age of 33.
“I am completely lost,” London wrote via Instagram on Tuesday, April 2. “I’ve lost my best friend. My sanctuary. My protector. My soul…. I’m lost without you. We are lost without you babe. I have no words.”
Hussle (real name Ermias Asghedom) was pronounced dead at a Los Angeles-area hospital on Sunday, March 31, after sustaining gunshot wounds to the head and torso outside his Marathon Clothing store. The next day, police identified Eric Holder of L.A. as a suspect. The 29-year-old was arrested on Tuesday afternoon.
The West Coast rapper and London, 34, had been dating since 2013 and shared 2-year-old son Kross. Hussle was also the father of a young daughter named Emani from a previous relationship, while the ATL star has 9-year-old son Cameron with her ex-boyfriend Lil Wayne.
The couple were introduced over Instagram DM after London purchased copies of Hussle’s mixtape as a wrap present for her The Game costars. She started following him on the social media app soon after, then he followed back and sent her a message.
“Our stories are very different,” the actress told GQ during a joint interview with the musician that was published weeks before his death. “I did not slide into his DMs. My homeboy did.”
In addition to his budding music career, including his Grammy-nominated 2018 album Victory Lap, Hussle was known for rebuilding the South L.A. community where he grew up. At the time of his death, he was in the midst of redeveloping a strip mall, where Marathon is located, and also owned a barbershop, a burger restaurant and a fish market. His other charitable community acts included buying shoes for students, refreshing local basketball courts and playgrounds, paying for funerals for people who could not afford them and providing jobs for the homeless.
“He was a solid man who loved his woman, his family and his community,” fellow California native and Insecure star Issa Rae tweeted on Sunday. “This hurts.”
