Dallas rapper Lil Loaded has died at the age of 20.

Lil Loaded, Dallas Rapper Behind '6locc 6a6y,' Dies at 20
Dallas rapper Lil Loaded has died at the age of 20.

Ashkan Mehryari, attorney for Lil Loaded (real name Dashawn Robertson), confirmed the rapper's passing in an email to Billboard on Monday night (May 31). He said the death was a result of suicide.

Lil Loaded was known for the viral track "6locc 6a6y" that arrived in 2019, and just last week was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). He had released his latest music through Epic Records.

"dopest fanbase on earth," he'd written on his last post on Instagram on May 27, when he proudly shared the news about "6locc 6a6y" being certified gold.

In 2020, Robertson had been arrested on a murder charge in connection to the shooting of 18-year-old Khalil Walker.

According to the Dallas Morning News, in February he was indicted on a lesser charge of manslaughter. At the time, his attorney told the local news outlet that the two were friends and the incident involved "no malice."

Robertson was born in San Bernardino, California, before moving to Dallas when he was a kid. He grew up listening to Michael Jackson -- "to me he started the whole rapping/singing thing. That's where it originally came from for me," he said in a 2019 interview with XXL -- and Lyfe Jennings, and also drew inspiration from artists like Lil Wayne, The Game, Chief Keef, Snoop Dogg, Rich Homie Quan and Tupac.

He started rapping at 18. Before "6locc 6a6y" made its mark -- as of May 31, its offical video on YouTube had been viewed close to 29 million times -- he dropped his first song, "B.O.S.," which was a reworking of YNW Melly's "Butter Pecan."

One of Robertson's latest releases was his music video for the track "Hard Times," feat. Hotboii, a track off of 2020's Criptape.

If you're thinking about suicide, or are worried about a friend or loved one, contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, available 24 hours, at 1-800-273-8255.

Rapper Lil Loaded dies aged 20
Rapper Lil Loaded has died aged 20.

His lawyer Ashkan Mehryari, confirmed the death to Newsbeat, saying the artist, real name Dashawn Robertson, had taken his own life.

The official cause of death has not been confirmed by the medical examiner.

The Dallas rapper was arrested in 2020 on a murder charge in connection with the shooting of 18-year-old Khalil Walker. In February he was reportedly indicted on a lesser charge of manslaughter.

Lil Loaded was known for viral track 6locc 6a6ym, which received over 29 million views on YouTube and was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America.

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His follow-up song, Gang Unit, was an even bigger hit with over 39 million YouTube views.

He said he had the "dopest fanbase on Earth" in an Instagram post, responding to the certification.

Lil Loaded has previously said he grew up listening to Michael Jackson and also drew inspiration from artists such as Lil Wayne, Snoop Dogg and The Game.

For information and support on issues raised in this article, go to the BBC Action Line.

Lil Loaded, the musician behind the YouTube hit “6locc 6a6y,” is dead at the age of 20. The Dallas Morning News reported the Texas rapper’s passing on Monday. A cause of death has yet to be officially confirmed. Lil Loaded, the stage name of Dashawn Maurice Robertson, was thrust into the spotlight when his song “6locc 6a6y” went viral during the summer of 2019, racking up nearly 29,000,000 views on the platform to date, and becoming certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America just last week, according to USA Today. Signing to Epic Records, the rapper released three studio albums in short order, including 2019’s 6locc 6a6y, 2020’s A Demon in 6lue, and 2020’s CRIPTAPE.

According to the Dallas Morning News, Robertson was reportedly due in court on Tuesday for a hearing in the October 25, 2020, shooting death of friend Khalil Walker. The rapper was subsequently charged with manslaughter in February. “He had a very bright and promising music career ahead of him,” Robertson’s lawyer Ashkan Mehryari told the Morning News, calling the rapper’s death “very tragic” and insisting “there was no malice” in the shooting for which he was charged.

Texas rapper Lil Loaded dies at 20
The rapper, who was facing a manslaughter charge, had a 2019 hit with “6locc 6a6y,” which racked up more than 28 million views.
Texas rapper Lil Loaded, who won viral success with a 2019 single and was facing a manslaughter charge in a fatal shooting last year, died Monday, officials said.

The rapper, whose real name was Dashawn Robertson, 20, died by suicide, said his attorney, Ashkan Mehryari.

An official with the Dallas County medical examiner's office said the cause and manner of death had not yet been determined.

Robertson's 2019 song "6locc 6a6y" racked up more than 28 million views and was awarded a gold certification last week by the Recording Industry Association of America.

Stanley Gabart, whose production company worked with Robertson's record label, Epic, told The Dallas Morning News that his death was a shock.

"This kid was on a great path," he said, adding: "He was struggling with some things we wish we would've known about."

Court records show that Robertson was charged with murder in the shooting of Khalil Walker on Oct. 25. A police account of the incident said the shooting occurred at a home southwest of downtown Dallas. When officers arrived, they were told that Walker, 18, had been taken to a hospital.

Robertson was indicted this year on the less serious charge of manslaughter, accused of having "recklessly" caused Walker's death, the documents say.

Walker was Robertson's best friend, The Morning News reported.

Mehryari did not respond to a request for comment about the charge. It was not clear whether Robertson had entered a plea.

Last month, prosecutors asked for Robertson's bond to be revoked after he tested positive for marijuana, a violation of the terms of his pretrial release.

If you or someone you know is at risk of suicide please call the U.S. National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-8255, text TALK to 741741 or go to SpeakingOfSuicide.com/resources for additional resources.

Abbott threatens veto of pay for lawmakers after Texas House Democrats kill GOP-backed elections bill
Some lawmakers viewed the move as a way to draw them back into a special session, particularly Democrats, since red meat items they oppose are expected to dominate the menu.
Updated at 8:35 p.m. with new information throughout.

AUSTIN — After a dramatic walkout by House Democrats upended the GOP’s divisive elections bill, this year’s edition of the Texas Legislature ended Monday afternoon with a punctuation mark — and a lot of hugging.

Gov. Greg Abbott stamped the exclamation point after a weekend of discord over the voting measure. He not only threatened to call an additional special session — beyond the one already planned — but said he’d veto a section of the state budget that funds the Legislature and its associated agencies. That would mean lawmakers’ pay, and that of their staff members, cuts off by September.Speaker Dade Phelan, after gaveling out his chamber in early afternoon, told reporters his guess is the Republican governor will call lawmakers back in late summer. That would be for a 30-day gathering separate from one planned in fall, after census data needed for redistricting rolls in.

Why late summer?

“Because after Sept. 1, our staff doesn’t get paid,” Phelan said, chuckling, with a nod to two of his communications office employees. “No one in the building gets paid after Sept. 1. I assume we’ll be back in August.”

As he spoke, just 15 hours after the Democrats’ quorum break killed the voting bill, Phelan dismissed suggestions it might leave a bitter taste — and hurt members’ ability to work together.

“You saw a very congenial atmosphere today. People of both parties were hugging each other and telling everybody, ‘Have a good summer. I want to see you — but not too soon,’” he recounted.

Day 140 of the 87th regular session was different, though. Yes, many lawmakers’ families were on hand, selfies were taken, resolutions were passed in commendation of employees who, after decades of service to that quintessentially Texan institution known as the Legislature, won’t be back. Richmond Rep. Jacey Jetton is the House GOP caucus’ freshman of the year. Houston Rep. Ann Johnson is the Democrats’ star frosh.

Senators were almost weepy about how, because of COVID-19, the absence of chaplains and “pastors of the day,” taken as a public-health measure, created a new and meaningful tradition: The members themselves give the opening prayer each day.

“Giving prayers was wonderful and brought us together,” said Sen. John Whitmire, a Houston Democrat who’s called “dean” because he’s been a member of the Legislature since 1972.

But House Democrats’ quorum break — the result of feeling trampled by the majority party all session and frustrated by a voting bill they viewed as a GOP attempt to suppress Black and Latino voters — didn’t exactly generate universal sweetness and light.

Edgewood GOP Sen. Bob Hall said he and his party’s activists are furious.

Speaking of Abbott’s vow to veto the budget’s two-year appropriation of $410.4 million for the Legislature and its support agencies, Hall said:

“It kind of bothers me, with the worry it’ll put in the staff. I mean, these people have families to feed. … But how do we make sure we’re going to get the Democrats to come back? It’s just a shame … we have to do something like that to get people” who agree to public service to not go AWOL, said Hall, a military veteran. “I see no service to the people of Texas by tucking tail and running and hiding.”

Veteran Flower Mound GOP Rep. Tan Parker, putting it more diplomatically, said, “There’s a lot of disappointment.” And the session’s end left some with a sense of incompleteness, he said.

“We don’t feel like we got something done,” Parker said.

Already, though, many members on Monday were looking ahead to special sessions to come, jockeying for their issues to make the second-round agenda.

While Abbott, as governor, decides the list, he also feels some pressure to collaborate with lawmakers so voters won’t think state leaders are just wasting time and money. A special session can be pricey for taxpayers and cost upward of $1 million.

“Ensuring the integrity of our elections and reforming a broken bail system remain emergencies in Texas, which is why these items, along with other priority items, will be added to the special session agenda,” he said in a statement. “I expect legislators to have worked out their differences prior to arriving back at the Capitol so that they can hit the ground running to pass legislation related to these emergency items and other priority legislation.”

Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick has been broadcasting his wishes for days, publicly pressing Abbott to make lawmakers reconsider his priority bills that died in the House — on bail changes, transgender youths, taxpayer-funded lobbying and “censorship” by social media platforms, such as Facebook, which removed former President Donald Trump.

Democrats are making the case for items such as Medicaid expansion, an issue that gained virtually no traction this year in the GOP-dominated Legislature.

“I certainly wasn’t looking forward to coming back, but I would like to see us talk about things that I think everyday Texans are looking for us to focus on,” said Sen. Carol Alvarado, D-Houston. “A lot of these social issues that we were forced to deal with don’t really do anything to stimulate our state’s economy.”

Sen. Roland Gutierrez, D-San Antonio, is pressing for any special session to include more electric grid reforms, including ratepayer relief and more robust winterization.

“Those are the real issues that keep us safe and sound at home.
Playing to the GOP base