Afrika Bambaataa, hip-hop trailblazer and founder of Universal Zulu Nation, has passed away at the age of 68. At the time of writing, his cause of death has not been made public. News of Bambaataa's passing was confirmed today (April 9) in a video shared on Facebook by Hassan Campbell.
"I just want to take the time out to say 'rest in peace' to the greatest child predator who ever walked this earth, Afrika Bambaataa," he declared.
Born in New York City in 1957, Bambaataa rose to fame for transforming his community and shaping music, dance, fashion, and more. His later years, however, were marked by controversy. In 2016, former music executive and politician Ronald Savage came forward to accuse the artist of molesting him in the late 70s, when he was between 12 and 13 years old.
Savage later walked back his allegations, claiming that Bambaataa didn't know he was underage when they allegedly had sexual relations.
Afrika Bambaataa Sexual Abuse Allegations
Various other individuals came forward with similarly disturbing allegations. This includes Campbell, who told the Daily News in 2016 that he was also allegedly abused by Bambaataa. “He is a pervert,” he alleged at the time. “He likes little boys.” Bambaataa was kicked out of Universal Zulu Nation as a result.
During a 2023 interview with VladTV, Campbell opened up about how the alleged abuse began. According to him, he looked up to Bambaattaa, viewing him as a father figure since his own dad wasn't around. He alleged that he would make inappropriate comments to him and other underage boys, follow him into bathrooms, leave the door of his room open with pornography playing, and more.
"He has books, and in those black books, people you'd never think to even expect are in those books butt-ass naked," Campbell also alleged. Bambaataa vehemently denied allegations of sexual abuse, labeling them "baseless" and a "cowardly attempt to tarnish [his] reputation."
