BeatKing, a Houston rapper known for viral TikTok song ‘Then Leave,’ dies at 39

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Houston rapper BeatKing, whose booming voice and eccentric songs brought him fame in nightclubs and on social media, has died, his manager said Friday. He was 39.

The rapper, whose name was Justin Riley, died Thursday after fainting during a recording session, Tasha Felder told The Associated Press. Felder, his manager, said Riley was taken to a hospital and that he had a pulmonary embolism.

“His daughters were with him the entire time,” Felder said. “It is truly sad, we loved him so much.”

BeatKing, whose club music anthems earned him the name Club Godzilla, achieved his biggest hit in 2020 when his song “Then Leave” went viral on social media and peaked at No. 3 on Billboard’s Bubbling Under Hot 100 chart. He also scored hits with the songs “Crush” and “Thick.” His final album, “Never Leave Houston on a Sunday,” was released last month.

He was known for humorous, raunchy lyrics and broke through the Houston music scene in 2010 with “Kings of the Club,” reaching Houston’s younger generation not as familiar with the city’s famous slowed music style from The Screwed Up Click and Swisha House.

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As a rapper or producer, BeatKing collaborated with major artists including 2 Chainz, Bun B, T-Pain and Ludacris. Although BeatKing didn’t achieve the national prominence of fellow Houstonians such as Travis Scott and Megan Thee Stallion, he found fame throughout the South among fans who admired his sound and authenticity to Houston.

“My condolences @clubgozilla,” 2 Chainz wrote on social media. “God Bless your soul and family.”

“Just a great spirited person,” Bun B said in a tribute to the rapper on Instagram.

Fans on social media recalled BeatKing’s dominance over the club scene in the 2010s. He formed an image for himself by wearing black T-shirts with phrases such as “I unfollow back” and “Stop moving to Houston.”

He is survived by two daughters and his partner.

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Hamilton reported from New York.

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Lathan is a corps member for The Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.