Legendary Rapper and Producer, Grand Daddy I.U., Dies at 54

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Grand Daddy I.U., a veteran of golden age hip-hop label Cold Chillin' Records and a member of the legendary Queensbridge, New York, rap collective Juice Crew, has died. He was 54.

The rapper, ghostwriter and music producer's daughter, musician Yaya Bey, confirmed he died Monday night after rumors of his death began to circulate online.

"My dad passed away last night," she posted on Twitter. "I know he’s popular and some of you might already know but it’s only been a few hours so please I don’t want to talk to you about it."

Born, Ayub Bey, the New York native was signed to Cold Chillin' Records by Biz Markie in 1989. His debut album “Smooth Assassin" followed in 1990.

Produced by Biz Markie, it produced two minor hits, "Something New" and "Sugar Free." which peaked at No. 11 and nine respectively on Billboard's Rap chart.

Grand Daddy I.U. went on to release three more albums, with the final one, "P.I.M.P. (Paper Is My Priority)," coming in 2017.

GRAND DADDY IU YOU WERE A GREAT PERSON AND IM SAD RIGHT NOW. pic.twitter.com/UZw3LrABBq

— PETEROCK.COM (@PeteRock) December 13, 2022

Initially, a ghostwriter and producer for Biz Markie before a falling out over album credits, he also did prolific work as a producer for acts like Das EFX, Ice T, KRS-One and Heltah Skeltah.

Legendary producer Pete Rock, who once called Grand Daddy I.U. one of the most slept-on MCs and a great lyricist, lamented the news on Twitter.

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"GRAND DADDY IU YOU WERE A GREAT PERSON AND IM SAD RIGHT NOW," he wrote.

DJ Chuck Chillout, a longtime friend of the rapper, captioned a picture of his on Instagram, "Man this one hurts RIP to coldchillin artist MC @granddaddy_iu rest well bro u will be miss."