Star Celebrates The Death Of Afrika Bambaataa

BY Zachary Horvath
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Aquarius In Concert
NEW YORK, NY - JANUARY 21: Afrika Bambaataa spins at Le Poisson Rouge on January 21, 2012 in New York City. (Photo by Johnny Nunez/WireImage)
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Radio host Troi Torain, aka Star, seems to be pretty ecstatic about the recent news regarding Afrika Bambaataa.

The news about Afrika Bambaataa's passing has received a whole bunch of different reactions. From indifference to pure jubilation, it's safe to say that the hip-hop legend time on Earth was viewed in a variety of ways. For radio host Star, real name Troi Torain, he couldn't be happier about the news.

In a clip from his YouTube show, THE STAR REPORT, caught by joebuddenclips, Star began his segment on Bambaataa by celebrating as if he took him out himself. "And we got him! We got that f*ck n****," he exclaimed while laughing.

"It took a decade but we got him [...] outta here... Hopefully he died a slow death I'm just being honest with you. He was so arrogant to the point where he didn't feel like he needed to respond to the allegations once upon a time."

Star then goes on to give listeners some context about how he aided in the allegations against Bambaataa becoming more concrete. Folks in the comments section are pretty skeptical about Star's rant and claims, so it's up to you how you want to interpret all of this.

Afrika Bambaataa's Cause Of Death

Pharoahe Monch, Black Thought & Afrika Bambaataa In Concert
NEW YORK, NY - FEBRUARY 26: Afrika Bambaataa performs at Brooklyn Bowl on February 26, 2015, in Brooklyn, New York. (Photo by Johnny Nunez/WireImage)

Essentially, though, Star discusses how he was able to interview multiple people affiliated with Universal Zulu Nation, the hip-hop community that Bambaataa founded during the genre's inception.

While he says he was hesitant to broach the allegations given how loose they were prior to 2016, it ultimately helped set things in motion for better or worse. Star claims that some affiliates of Zulu were not happy at all with all of the poking and prodding and that they were dismissing any negative things said about their leader.

But as the story goes, several people later that year like Ronald Savage and Hassan Campbell came forward with disturbing allegations. Child molestation and abuse and sexual assault accusations were unleashed.

Savage, for example, has been more compassionate towards Bambaataa, even going as far as to encourage others to move on. But folks like Star and Campbell feel this isn't someone to celebrate given the severity of their alleged acts.

Bambaataa passed away early Thursday morning due to complications related to prostate cancer in Pennsylvania. He was 68. "Hip Hop will never be the same without him," his talent agency, Naf Management Entertainment, reportedly said in an email. "But everything hip hop is today, it is because of him. His spirit lives in every beat, every cypher and every corner of this globe he touched."

About The Author
Zachary Horvath is one of the Music Freelance News Writers at HotNewHipHop and has held that title since August 2023. Prior to this position, he held another freelance gig covering local high school football, girls and boys varsity basketball, in addition to recapping Cleveland Cavaliers games remotely. He's taken the previous experience and used it to become a jack of all trades at HotNewHipHop. Zach has thoroughly enjoyed tackling some of the trending topics in sports, with a larger focus on hip-hop and pop culture. Some of those include Bronny James's draft stock, a multitude of angles swirling around the Drake and Kendrick Lamar beef, as well as Diddy's arrest and lawsuits. Separate from the headlines that everyone wants to hear about, he was fortunate enough to help spread Zaytoven's current thoughts at the time around mid-December in 2023. Even though being able to give his expertise on these stories is fulfilling, being able to share his passion for releases trumps that ever so slightly. Having the chance to express his excitement indirectly about what he thinks our readers should be checking out/revisiting grows his passion for writing that much more.

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