Flava In Ya Ear rapper Craig Mack has died aged 43.
Best known for his nineties hit Flava In Ya Ear, his success helped pave the way for rappers such as The Notorious B.I.G.
Born 10 May 1971 in New Jersey in the United States, Mack was best known in the nineties after finding fame on Puff Daddy’s Bad Boy Entertainment record label.
Bad Boy Records was founded in 1993 by Sean ‘Puff Daddy’ Combs and Flava In Ya Ear was the label’s first release.
Mack’s debut album, Project: Funk Da World, was then released the following year in 1994.
However, this wasn’t Mack’s first single.
His debut track was actually released in 1988 under the name MC EZ but it wasn’t until he joined Puff Daddy’s label that he saw real success.
When Flava In Ya Ear was then remixed, it served as The Notorious B.I.G.’s breakout hit – and Busta Rhymes also featured on the track.
In an interview in 1994, Puff Daddy had declared that Mack was working on a second album – something Mack himself had appeared confused over at the time – but this never came on the Bad Boy Entertainment label.
Instead, The Notorious B.I.G. went on to have greater success that overshadowed Mack’s and his second album didn’t end up being released until 1997. None of the singles from the album charted.
Mack’s producer Alvin Toney confirmed his death on Monday.
The rapper died of heart failure at a hospital close to his home in South Carolina on Monday night.
It is thought he had been ill for quite some time.
‘God bless my friend. He was a good friend of mine,’ said Toney, who produced Mack’s albums Project: Funk Da World and Get Down Remix.
‘He was prepared for whatever comes, to go home to the Lord. He was prepared to do that. He wasn’t scared. He was ready.’
Close friend DJ Scratch paid tribute on Instagram, and revealed they had been discussing a documentary about Mack’s life.
‘I just got a disturbing phone call. I cannot believe this dude is gone. He just reached out a couple of weeks ago for me to speak on his documentary about his life,’ he shared. ‘Because Craig was my roadie on tour. He would set up & break down my turntables every night on tour. Rest In Peace Lil Bro.’
In recent years Mack had given up the fame and music for a life of religious conviction.
‘Nobody got to understand his story,’ said Toney, who was also working with Mack and DJ Scratch on the documentary.
‘I wanted the world to know the talent he had. It was something I wanted people to enjoy, but it was cut short because he was very religious and wanted to go to church.’
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