Gerrard Kaonga
An Atlanta rapper known for a song that went viral back in 2015 has been sentenced to 30 years in prison after pleading guilty to killing his cousin.
Viral songs come and go and sometimes, they are the start of a wonderful career. But sometimes, they aren’t.
For one Atlanta rapper, within a few years after shooting to international fame, they would find themselves on the wrong side of the law multiple times.
Rapper Silentó was only 17 when his hit had people around the world dancing to his catchy and memorable song that ended up having an impressive six weeks on top of the Billboard Hot 100.
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If you remember 2015 well, you know we’ are talking about the rapper’s breakout song ‘Watch me (Whip / Nae Nae)'.
While you might hope the following years would see the musician - real name Richard Lamar Ricky Hawk - go on to solidify himself in the music industry, his issues with the law began in 2020.
On August 28 of that year, he was first arrested and charged with corporal injury on a spouse or cohabitant.
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The very next day, Hawk was arrested again when looking for his girlfriend, after he allegedly ended up walking into a stranger’s home holding a hatchet.
Fast forward to 21 January, 2021 and he was booked into an Illinois jail on one count of murder after police responded to a 'shots fired' call in the early hours.
On June 11, the now 27-year-old was sentenced to 30 years in prison for the fatal shooting of his cousin, Frederick Rooks.
He pleaded guilty but mentally ill to voluntary manslaughter, aggravated assault, possessing a gun while committing a crime and concealing the death of another.
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As part of his plea deal, another murder charge was dropped.
Police stated how they responded to complaints of gunshots heard in a residents area, where they found Rooks bleeding in the street, having been shot in the face and leg.
Unfortunately, he was pronounced dead at the scene.
DeKalb County Police Department confirmed in a statement at the time: “Today, Ricky Hawk, 23, was arrested for the murder of his cousin Frederick Rooks, 34.
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“On January 21, the DeKalb County Police Department investigated Rooks' death after he was found shot on Deep Shoals Circle. Hawk is in the DeKalb County Jail charged with Murder.”
After his arrest, Hawk’s publicist said the rapper had been suffering from ‘a series of mental health illnesses’ in the years leading up to the murder, adding: “We will continue in his efforts of treatment but we ask in the meantime the public uplift him and his family in immediate prayer and positive energy.”
Police said they found 10 bullet casings near Rooks’s body, and nearby security footage showed a BMW SUV speeding away from the scene.
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A family member of Rooks went on to reveal to police that Hawk had picked up Rooks in a white BMW SUV, and GPS data placed that very vehicle at the scene of the crime during the time of the shooting.
Hawk was arrested and confessed to the killing ten days later.