Chynna, the hip-hop artist who first turned heads on the modeling runway and then with her talent as a rapper, died on Wednesday in her native Philadelphia, her manager said. She was 25.
The cause of death was not immediately known, John Miller, the hip-hop artist’s manager, said in an email on Wednesday night.
The rapper, whose full name was Chynna Rogers and who lived in both Manhattan and Philadelphia, was known for her solo recordings and her collaborations with the hip-hop collective ASAP Mob. Death was a recurring theme in Chynna’s music, including in her album, “in case i die first,” which was also the name of one of her tours.
“I think there’s too many soundtracks to our lives,” Chynna said in an Instagram video that she shared on Tuesday, her final post. “I need music to die to.”
Her family said, “Chynna was deeply loved and will be sorely missed,” according to a statement provided by Mr. Miller.
Word of Chynna’s death stunned the hip-hop world, which has grappled with the loss of a number of young rappers, including Juice WRLD, who died in December of an accidental drug overdose at 21, and ASAP Yams, one of Chynna’s mentors, who died at 26 in 2015 of accidental drug intoxication.
“She was an extremely inspirational and unique artist and person,” Mr. Miller said.
At 14, Chynna was discovered by a Ford Models scout during an outing at the amusement park Six Flags Great Adventure in Jackson, N.J. She did catalog work for the agency for three years and appeared in a runway show for DKNY, which featured Chynna in its denim campaign.
When she was 15, Chynna approached the rapper ASAP Yams on Twitter and asked to be his intern. They ultimately became friends. He encouraged her to write her own rhymes and she began releasing singles and performing with ASAP Mob, including at the South by Southwest music festival.
“He probably felt cool that this little high school girl wanted to follow him around,” Chynna told The New York Times in 2015.
Music platforms like SoundCloud and Spotify have streamed Chynna’s songs millions of times. Her viral hits included “Selfie” and “Glen Coco.”
In 2017, Chynna’s mother, Wendy Payne, died at 51. Chynna is survived by her father, Michael Magness; two brothers, Jeremy Payne and Michael Magness; and a sister Nala Magness.
Source: Music - nytimes.com
