Young Dolph death: Megan Thee Stallion leads tributes after Memphis shooting

Rapper Young Dolph has died after being shot while visiting a cookie store in Memphis, according to police.

Memphis police said in a statement: “The preliminary information indicates that the victim is Adolph Robert Thornton, Jr,” but added “this information will be confirmed once the identification process has been completed.”

An eyewitness stated that the musician, who released his debut album, King of Memphis in 2016, was shot as he walked into Makeda’s Homemade Butter Cookies.

According to TMZ, a shot was fired through the window.

The rapper, who has collaborated with the likes of 2 Chainz, Megan Thee Stallion and Gucci Mane, is survived by two children.

Fans, fellow artists and friends have paid tribute to the fiercely independent artist.

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Key Points

• Reports emerging that rapper Young Dolph has been shot and killed

• Memphis Police confirm they’re dealing with a shooting

• Memphis police say: “The preliminary information indicates that the victim is Adolph Robert Thornton, Jr."

What we know so far

Wednesday 17 November 2021 20:11 , Elizabeth Aubrey

Rapper Young Dolph, real name Adolph Robert Thornton, Jr., has reportedly been shot and killed during an incident in Memphis.

Details about what happened are still emerging but you can read a round up of all the latest developments from my colleague Sam Moore here.

Rapper Young Dolph shot and killed, reports say

Death reportedly confirmed by law enforcement officials

Wednesday 17 November 2021 20:19 , Elizabeth Aubrey

The death of Young Dolph was reportedly confirmed by “three independent law enforcement sources” to US news outlet Fox13.

An eyewitness at the scene, Maurice Hill – the owner of the shop where the shooting happened – also spoke to Fox13 about the incident.

He told the news outlet his employees at Makeda’s Butter Cookies had told him that the young rapper walked into the store to buy cookies. Someone then allegedly drove up and shot and killed him around 1 p.m. on Wednesday at the bakery, which is located in South Memphis.

The rapper’s Lamborghini could be sat in the parking lot of the bakery when news crews arrived.

You can see some images from the scene here:

Memphis Police confirm they’re dealing with a shooting incident

Wednesday 17 November 2021 20:28 , Elizabeth Aubrey

On Twitter, Memphis police confirmed that they were responding to a shooting incident at “2370 Airways”, which is the location of Makeda’s Butter Cookies where the incident was said to have taken place.

The tweet read: “Officers are on the scene of a shooting at 2370 Airways. One male victim was located and was pronounced dead. No suspect info is available at this time. The victim will be identified once the next of kin notification has been completed.”

At this time, no official confirmation as arrived as to the identity of the victim, which reports are saying are rapper Young Dolph.

Young Dolph had been a victim of previous shootings

Wednesday 17 November 2021 20:38 , Elizabeth Aubrey

Young Dolph had been a victim of shootings in the past.

Back in 2017, the rapper was hit by gun shots in Hollywood for which he required hospitalisation. He suffered three bullet wounds which needed surgery.

In the same year, his SUV was reportedly shot at over 100 times while he was in Charlotte, NC.

Fans lamenting the loss of a “hugely talented" rapper

Wednesday 17 November 2021 21:04 , Elizabeth Aubrey

While official confirmation has not yet come directly from the police themselves, three independent law enforcement officials have reportedly confirmed the death of Young Dolph to news outlet Fox13.

In the interim, fans online have been lamenting the loss of a “hugely talented” rapper.

Dolph, who had 4.4m followers on Instagram, released his debut studio album King of Memphis in 2016.

The album peaked at number 49 on the Billboard 200 chart. He followed up this with second album Rich Slave, which featured the single “RNB” with Megan Thee Stallion, in August 2020.

Dolph was crowned ‘The King of Memphis’ and went on to release collaborations with Gucci Mane and Migos; his feature on “Cut It” by O.T. Genasis was a global hit.

He also made minor headlines for the release of his mixtape Bulletproof, which was created in response to reports of his SUV being shot at 100 times in Charlotte, North Carolina in 2017.

Rapper opened up about being a target in 2018

Wednesday 17 November 2021 21:22 , Elizabeth Aubrey

Young Dolph spoke to The Guardian in 2018 about being a target for a shooting, just one year after he was shot outside a store.

“I’ve been targeted since I was 17, 18, 19,” he told the publication at the time. “I just knew that I was good.”

You can read that interview in full here.

Rapper opened up about being a target in 2018

Wednesday 17 November 2021 21:22 , Elizabeth Aubrey

Young Dolph spoke to The Guardian in 2018 about being a target for a shooting, just one year after he was shot outside a store.

“I’ve been targeted since I was 17, 18, 19,” he told the publication at the time. “I just knew that I was good.”

You can read that interview in full here.

Young Dolph’s cousin was Juice WRLD

Wednesday 17 November 2021 21:38 , Elizabeth Aubrey

Young Dolph’s cousin was Juice WRLD, who died of a drug overdose at the age of 21 on 8 December 8 2019.

You can read The Independent’s full obituary to Juice WRLD here.

Juice WRLD: Rising rap star whose heartfelt lyrics conquered the US charts

Here’s everything we know so far

Wednesday 17 November 2021 21:52 , Elizabeth Aubrey

Here’s everything we know so far about the incident today in Memphis, where rapper Young Dolph has reportedly been shot and killed.

Rapper Young Dolph shot and killed, reports say

Watch our video report here

Wednesday 17 November 2021 22:07 , Elizabeth Aubrey

You can also see a video report of everything we know so far about the rapper’s reported death here:

Memphis Police department issue statement

Wednesday 17 November 2021 23:11 , Elizabeth Aubrey

Memphis Police Department have now issued a statement saying the information obtained so far points to Young Dolph being the victim of the shooting earlier today in Memphis.

In a statement, Memphis Police Department chief CJ Davis said: “The preliminary information indicates that the victim is Adolph Robert Thornton, Jr. However, this information will be confirmed once the identification process has been completed.

“This shooting is another example of the senseless gun violence we are experiencing locally and nationwide. Our hearts go out to the Thornton family and all who are affected by this horrific act of violence.”

You can see the statement in full here:

Tributes to Young Dolph pour in on social media

Wednesday 17 November 2021 23:32 , Elizabeth Aubrey

With Memphis Police Department now saying that “the preliminary information indicates that the victim is Adolph Robert Thornton, Jr.”, tributes have started to pour in for Young Dolph from fans and fellow rappers alike.

You can see some of the many tributes to the rapper here, led by Megan Thee Stallion and Chance the Rapper:

Here’s a recap of everything we know so far

Wednesday 17 November 2021 23:47 , Elizabeth Aubrey

Here’s a recap of everything we know so far about the shooting in Memphis today, where Young Dolph is believed to have been shot and killed while visiting a cookie store.

Memphis Police Department issued a statement saying their “preliminary information indicates that the victim is Adolph Robert Thornton, Jr.”, but that “this information will be confirmed once the identification process has been completed.”

A full report of the day’s happenings can be read here:

Rapper Young Dolph shot and killed, reports say