The member of 'Roxanne, Roxanne' hitmakers UTFO has lost battle with stage 4 colon cancer at the age of 55, less than a year after going public with his diagnosis.
- Dec 19, 2021
AceShowbiz - Kangol Kid passed away at the age of 55. His death came only 10 months after he went public with his stage 4 colon cancer diagnosis. The news was revealed by promoter Van Silk after he reached out to Kangol Kid's UTFO bandmate Mix Master Ice.
"RIP KANGOL KID. He passed at 3:02 a.m. My prayers go out to my brother who fought a battle of colon cancer at Stage 4," the promoter broke the sad news to HipHopDX on Saturday morning, December 18. "May my brother Kangol Rest In Heaven."
Van Silk and Kangol Kid had been close before the latter's passing. "Early on, we discussed our fight with this disease because my fight with colon cancer is stage 2. He told me it had spread in October," he said before dropping a message for fans, "I encourage all to get your prostate and colon checked."
Prayers and condolences poured in for the late hip-hop artist.
"You made history with UTFO and Roxanne, Roxanne is such a monumental song. Rest Well King!!!" Big Daddy Kane penned on Instagram, referring to the group's widely-acclaimed single which sparked over 100 remakes and led to the first rap beef.
Ice-T also paid tribute to Kangol Kid, "Wow… I'm waking up to this awful news.. I spoke on Kangol's fight with CANCER a couple of weeks ago.. He was a good friend and a True HipHop Legend.. My sincere condolences to his family… Life is Precious and Fragile.. RIP #UTFO."
Jermaine Dupri added on his own social media, "Damn! Man another one of my brothers,one of the first guys that talked to me and kicked it when I went on the Fresh Fest,on the 7th I sent him a message with a lotta love and good energy,I pray I made you laugh and I pray i made you smile."
Kangol Kid announced his cancer battle in February and began chemotherapy. In March, he showed improvement after a surgery to remove a part of his colon. But things got worse later on and he was hospitalized in October.
During his hospitalization, he got visits from numerous pals in the industry, including LL Cool J.
"I stepped out of the recovery-room…and was greeted by this guy. Maybe you've heard of him??? Ladies and Gentlemen, the man, the myth, the legend, Mr. G.O.A.T. himself L.L.COOL J @llcoolj @rockthebells visited me and elevated my healing energies in ways doctors can never duplicate," he posted their picture from the hospital. "Thank you Baby Bro. I love you man."
