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Atlanta rapper Young Scooter has tragically passed away on his 39th birthday.
The artist, whose real name was Kenneth Edward Bailey, died at Grady Marcus Trauma Center in Atlanta on Friday, March 28.
He had sustained a severe leg injury while attempting to evade police by jumping fences, officials confirmed.
Atlanta Police Department officers had been responding to a domestic disturbance call at a residence in the southeast part of the city. Reports indicated gunshots had been fired, and a woman was seen being dragged back inside the home as she tried to flee, according to Lt. Andrew Smith.
Upon arrival, officers knocked on the door, but a man briefly opened it before immediately slamming it shut, The New York Post reported.
Two men then attempted to escape through the back of the home. One ultimately returned, but the second—identified in multiple reports as Bailey—tried to flee by jumping two fences.
“When officers located him on the other side of the fence, he appeared to have suffered an injury to his leg,” Lt. Smith said during a press conference Friday night.
Emergency medical services transported Bailey to the trauma center, where he later died, according to the Fulton County Medical Examiner’s Office, via TMZ.
The exact cause and manner of his death remain under investigation by the Atlanta Medical Examiner’s Office, which has confirmed that Bailey was not shot by police.
“Just to be very clear, the injury that was sustained was not via the officers on scene. It was when the male was fleeing,” Smith clarified.
TMZ was the first to report Bailey’s death. The investigation into the circumstances surrounding the incident and his passing remains ongoing.
Bailey was born in South Carolina and moved to Atlanta with his family at the age of nine. He broke into the music scene in 2012 with his regional hit Colombia and quickly gained traction after signing with fellow Atlanta rapper Future’s Freebandz label.
Known for his gritty style and streetwise lyricism, Bailey collaborated with some of hip-hop’s biggest names, including Future, Gucci Mane, Young Thug, Juicy J, Quavo, and Offset.
In 2013, he teamed up with Gucci Mane for the mixtape Free Bricks 2 and went on to release several other collaborative projects. His 2016 feature on Young Thug’s Guwop—alongside Migos members Quavo and Offset—further cemented his presence in the rap scene.
Bailey’s biggest commercial success came in 2018 with Jet Lag, featuring Future and the late Juice WRLD. The track entered the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at No. 72.
A longtime fixture in Atlanta’s rap community, he continued performing live, most recently taking the stage in January 2023 during Future’s One Big Party Tour at State Farm Arena.
Following the news of his death, tributes poured in from fans and fellow artists.
Playboi Carti shared a photo on Instagram Stories with the caption “SMFH,” while Migos rapper Quavo posted two heartbroken emojis, writing, “ion understand.”
“RIP Young Scooter, man. I remember when I used to play that Trippple Cross album nonstop,” one fan wrote on X.
