Rapper Slim Dunkin slain in Atlanta studio

ATLANTA - Atlanta police say the rapper Slim Dunkin was gunned down Friday evening in a city music studio as he prepared to record a video.

Police Maj. Keith Meadows said the performer, whose real name is Mario Hamilton, was fatally shot in the chest after getting into an argument with another individual.

"It appears the victim was scheduled to do a photo shoot," Meadows told The Associated Press. "Before the video shoot took place, it appears the victim and suspect got involved in a verbal altercation. We don't know what that altercation was about."

"The suspect produced a weapon, discharged that handgun one time, striking the victim in the chest," Meadows said.

The performer was transported to Grady Memorial Hospital where he was pronounced dead.

Meadows said police have not been able to identify the shooter. He said 13 to 20 people were in the small office-type building at the time of the shooting, which took place around 5:30 p.m., but they were in different places.

"We've questioned a number of witnesses inside the recording studio at this time." Meadows said.

Police have not recovered the handgun that was used.

"Right now we're just trying to....identify who may have seen what, really just trying to put the pieces of the puzzle together," he said. "It seems everybody witnessed something very different. We're just trying to go back and make sense of everything."

Meadows said the victim was in his early 20s and resided in the Atlanta area.

Many fans were posting messages late Friday night on the rapper's Facebook page.

[MRTENMM]

I'm shocked. What an upstanding young man in an industry and musical genre that has done so much for American culture and improving our status worldwide (not to mention the incredible, intelligent, heartfelt lyricism and pure talent.) Hip-Hop and Rap are perfect examples of the decline and impending destruction of America as we knew it. I bet the shooter was one of those evil High Frequency Traders.

[chris_bray]

It waz tuz bahd dey din bod "cap" on da oder.

[renegade192000]

Natural selection at work.

[baileyccc]

Imagine a rapper killed, this is such a rare occurrence in America.

[winchesterla]

American life is too dangerous when people are allowed to carry guns.
The unfortunate last week in LA is another example. This is not a race thing.

[InnerView]

This is just another pathetic tragedy in a long line of tragedies related to what is now a tired, dated genre - thug gangstarap and Hip Hop in general. Disco went out of fashion, there was a backlash but for some reason, perhaps big entertainment business backing and a stupid audience supporting it, Hip Hop has lasted more. Its tired, its of no real value, its as empty as the bravado poses J-Lo poses while dances, its nothing, pablum.

Look at the recent killing of that DEATH ROW Records thug violence culture pusher executive that got shot in Hollywood California just the other week. You live by the sword... his target audience, the audience that loves that blunt thug criminality in their "entertainment" and grew up with Snoops and Tupax and all those gangbangers in the end, in an incredible moment of irony himself gets caught in the violence.

Gang thug cultures, much like for instance any kind of anti-corporate movements, must have and will have an element of violence in their culture. Its what part of the culture, you will have criminals, immoral killers who justify their killings behind religion, or anarchists that agitate society.

Its PART of the culture. Look at just Mexican gangs, part of their culture is to be a "Sad Clown" or whatever drama they create for themselves, its PART of that culture to have tragedy. Its so foolish, but you can't change cultures, they are impossible to change unless you extract the generational malignant influences or family traditions that constantly create, support this criminal ... ethic... I hate to use that word but its for lack of a better one. Its that engrained.

[InnerView]

Ingrained... sorry, I misspelled that word. INGRAINED generational criminal cultural values.

[sobobx]

Rap is the anthem of a dumbed down generation leading a once great society to its internal destruction. All great empires are destroyed from within.

[cuffhead]

You can take the rapper out of the getto but you can't take the getto out of the rapper.

[InnerView]

And you can never take the gHetto out of gangstarap and hip hop in general nor can you take it out of those that push this form of entertainment and those that support it and glorify it.

[netjunkie1]

I think that the whole rap music phenomenon is really a sorry excuse for social communication.
The so called rappers are really gangsters or backed by gangsters and are generational criminals linked in history.
There are a few rappers that made it in the mainstream because they are simply better at it and have a fan base who only claim to like the lyrics and beat. I would hope so anyway because of the filth used in rape music today by some unscrupulous producers.
I personally miss the funk of the seventies and the brass sections they contained like for example....Parliament..They don't make them anymore...
Has anyone ever asked what's the deal with gangsters wearing clothes whose croches are at the knees? Not to say anyone not in a gang would wear such fashion.....being a man whose been to prison on the right side of the fence...In prison the inmates have no belts or laces...their pants droop to the knees...It's sometimes funny watching the yards at times. The rest we spent minding our own business.

[InnerView]

Once the Sugar Hill GANG STOLE Chic's "Good Times" bassline and drum beat it was over. Funk was faked, R&B was overtaken by bravado, hostility, ghetto mentalities and Soul music? Oh man, over, as was Blues and Jazz. Mind you there are still those that learn it but its nothing compared to the detrimental popularity of thug criminal culture of Hip Hop.

I'll point out that Parliament may actually have been the first R&B act that allowed gangstarap to later flourish. Clinton all that he did was gather excellent existing Funk musicians and let them do their thing, he could not sing, early Pairlament was a joke, look it up. Even Motown rejected Parliament.

[netjunkie1]

by InnerView December 17, 2011 4:29 PM EST
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Those are very interesting points...

[venusvegasvada]

"13 to 20 people were in the small office-type building at the time of the shooting".

"We don't know what that altercation was about."

"It seems everybody witnessed something very different".

"-just trying to put the pieces of the puzzle together".

13 to 20 people in the same room and nobody is talking?

What?