{"id":174885,"date":"2022-12-14T12:15:08","date_gmt":"2022-12-14T11:15:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blackouthiphop.com\/blog\/?p=174885"},"modified":"2022-12-15T11:49:12","modified_gmt":"2022-12-15T10:49:12","slug":"hip-hop-legend-grand-daddy-i-u-dies-at-54","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blackouthiphop.com\/blog\/hip-hop-legend-grand-daddy-i-u-dies-at-54\/","title":{"rendered":"Hip Hop Legend Grand Daddy I.U. Dies At 54"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Grand Daddy I.U.<\/strong>, a rapper, producer and media host who was also an early gatekeeper of hip-hop culture, has died. He was 54.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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I.U.<\/strong> emerged as an emcee during the late 1980s and became a leading artist on the iconic label Cold Chillin\u2019 Records <\/strong>among the likes of Biz Markie, Big Daddy Kane, MC Shan, Roxanne Shant\u00e9 <\/strong>and others.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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In 1990, Grand Daddy I.U.<\/strong> released his debut album, which contained the hit records \u201cSugar-Free<\/em>\u201d and \u201cSomething New<\/em>\u201d, which peaked on the charts at No. 9 and No. 11 respectively.<\/p>\n

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As a producer, I.U. worked with fellow rap legends Das EFX, KRS-One, Ice-T<\/strong> and Heltah Skeltah<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n