Jahseh Dwayne Ricardo Onfroy was alone. Not surrounded by thousands playing live, not live streaming to millions, not flocked by fans. ‘XXXTENTACION’ as he was known, this time, was alone, striding out of a motorcycle dealership. Was he scared? Did he feel vulnerable? We will never know. What we do know is that seconds later Onfroy was shot, and a life that oscillated between the sublime, horrific and confusing was ended, however you may feel about him, too soon.

Jarad Anthony Higgins was living the life, on the surface anyway. A private jet was taking him to Chicago. Just 21, but with a net worth of 3 million, and fans many times over that figure. Three percocet pills and who knows what else later, and the young life of Juice Wrld also prematurely ended.

These two tales were met by a variety of reactions. “So what?” was a prominent one in generations not immersed in the mumble rap/trap subculture. Those in that subculture, a vast majority young adolescents, produced dramatic comments such as “not worth living life anymore without X/Juice”. The legacy of passing celebrities can be polarising, but rarely with such distinct demographic lines.

First of all, let’s discuss the music. After all, I am primarily a music blogger still (am I?). XXXTENTACION hit fame with the heavy, jarring track Look at Me! but what should really define his music legacy is his debut studio album 17. It is also a record that pushes the limit of my outlook of separating the music from the person. Because if you can bring yourself to delve past the inherent anger, X displayed talent in effortlessly slipping through genres, blending acoustic guitar with rap, and making innovative beats mould to his unique rapping style.

I feel that Juice WRLD’s music wasn’t as experimental or daring than X’s, mostly conforming to the vibes of the trap/emo rap genre. However he did play a role in boosting ‘soundcloud rap’ (rappers rising to prominence through the free music uploading and streaming platform). One thing many soundcloud rappers have in common is a sense of vulnerability, and Juice was no exception. If you’re not familiar, have a spin of Lucid Dreams which includes the haunting lyric “I take prescriptions to make me feel a-okay, I know it’s all in my head”. Contrast that to 90s and 00s staples such as Jay Z who’s lyrics are littered with references to wealth, prosperity and of course, their success with girls. Which theme is more relevant to the 15 year old teenager, unsure of their place in the world, struggling with self confidence? You can see how artists such as Juice and ‘X’ built such a devoted, almost cultish following so rapidly.

On that note I should discuss the ‘cultish following‘ as I put it, mobilising itself via live Instagram streams. After X’s death I spent a good half an hour looking through Youtube videos of his streams. It’s safe to say that what I watched was far from what I expected. No hatred, no anger, just a young man trying to provide some encouragement and hope to young people. Summed neatly in one reflection “If I’m to die or be a sacrifice I hope that regardless of the bad things people have said about me, I made at least 5 million kids happy or at least found some kind of answers.” It was snapshots like those that make it so difficult to place his legacy. Does preventing hundreds of young people from committing suicide through the dashes of hope in his moody lyrics erase his misdeeds? (if unaware, I’ll leave you to read the horrific account of what he did to his pregnant girlfriend). My answer is that it obviously does not, but that does not mean we can’t appreciate both facets of his life separately.

Where does this all leave us? Before the pandemic-that-must-not-be-named, before toilet paper became currency, a rising social interest topic was ‘cancel culture’ and how that relates to music specifically. Like the ethics of still listening to R Kelly despite…I would crash my website trying to go through each of his underage sexual assault allegations. Ultimately, it is up to the person. If XXXTENTACION gets you up in the morning, or through a difficult breakup, power to you, but just keep a whole perspective of his backstory. The rise of Juice and similar artists provide a lesson on how we look after the young generation. Rather than questioning the content and brushing it off, it highlights the need for more relatable support figures in schools- instead of your traditional out of touch middle-aged counsellor.

So is it wrong to still bop to Ignition? Play Chris Brown’s With You at your next karaoke (on Zoom of course) sesh? (‘Breezy’s’ assault on Rihanna should need no introduction). I love a vague, fence sitting ending and this will be no exception. It is down to whether the music makes you uncomfortable. But as a music lover, I implore you to not fall down a dangerous rabbit hole, where list of the acts you deem ‘cancelled’ stack up, and you’re stuck with talent deficient ‘good guys’ like Nickelback at the Zoom karaoke.