Saafir, the veteran Oakland rapper best known for a famous freestyle battle with Casual, as well as his classic 1994 debut album Boxcar Sessions, has died at the age of 54.
On Tuesday (November 19), Xzibit, a longtime friend and groupmate (in The Golden State Project, along with Ras Kass) of Saafir’s, announced the rapper’s passing in a joint Instagram post with Saafir’s son, a rapper known as Lil Saafir.
“I can’t believe I’m writing this right now, but don’t know what else to do at the moment. Approximately at 8:45am this morning, my brother Reggie known to the world as Saafir passed away,” Xzibit began.
“We have so much history I can’t even explain what I’m feeling right now. We surrounded him and let him know how much we loved him. He can rest now.
“[T]he family really needs to be supported during this time. That’s all I have right now. My soul is crushed. We love you Bro.”
Check out the full post below.
Saafir first came to public notice in the early 1990s with his crew Hobo Junction. He was friends (and at one point roommates) with 2Pac, a connection that led to his appearance in the movie Menace II Society.
Saafir’s 1994 battle with Casual on KKBT’s The Wake Up Show was a seminal moment in Bay Area Hip Hop history. A decade ago, HipHopDX published an oral history of the event, which features interviews with both artists as well as radio hosts Sway and King Tech. It can be read here.
For years prior to his passing, Saafir had been undergoing significant health struggles (which he enumerates in this 2013 interview) and had been confined to a wheelchair. No immediate information on cause of death was available.
