Quelida Alexandre
On February 19, 2019 my Grandma turned 95. We were all getting together to celebrate and I found out one of my favorite rappers got shot and killed. We were at my cousin’s house, and I thought it was a joke. Then everyone is like why you so worried while we are here celebrating Grandma’s birthday? Why you in a rush? I ignore them and go on social media and saw Pop Smoke was gunned down. It was so sad because I normally don’t listen to rap, but it was his sense of style, his lyrics, his beats, you know, that made me like his music and I feel like I can’t get this person out of my head. This person, I feel a connection to his music and when a shooting happens once again I don’t know how to feel? Should I focus on Grandma’s birthday or the fact that one of my favorite artists just died? I am all over the place with my feelings then just like I was all over the place on my birthday now.
I don’t know how to feel. It’s this tragedy that keeps happening. Pop Smoke was only 20, like, recently just turned 20. He’s really young. He has sisters. He has a mother, a father. He has family! He has fans! Jesus! To get ripped away or have him ripped away from us!!! It’s just really, really sad, so now I really don’t know if I should still listen to his music. Nobody is the same. It’s annoying not knowing. No new albums coming out.
In my head this can happen to anybody. To my cousins. To my family. My close friends. You think to yourself what is the point of having guns for protection? Really? It really breaks my heart to see my generation go through such heartache, such headaches over reasons that are so preventable. Really?