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The day before Thanksgiving, while most of us prepared to unite with friends and loved ones for a much-anticipated hefty holiday meal, a New Orleans rap star named James Tapp a.k.a. Soulja Slim was shot multiple times in the face and body in front of his mother's house less than two weeks later Garelle Smith, 22, was arrested for Tapp's murder in an alleged $10,000 hit. This almost sounds like the story line in a rap song, doesn't it? The truth is, many of you probably aren't familiar with who Soulja Slim, Southern rap fans from the Dirty Dirty up to the Mason-Dixon line if they knew of the former No Limit soldier, a majority would say something along the lines of, Slim was the man. The New Orleans native from the Magnolia projects was known for his gangsta yet true-to-life lyrics, bouncy slow-twangy flow and occasional erratic, illegal behavior a lifestyle which left him to survive two other shootings and spending more than half of his decade-long career behind bars which probably held Slim back from more mainstream success. He blessed fans with four albums, most notably 1998's riveting Give It 2 'Em Raw, and a slew of collabos (many still unreleased) with popular rappers from the South and the West. He currently appears on Juvenile's Juve The Great's final song, Slow Motion, and just before his death, Slim and another former Hot Boy, B.G., completed the recording of their much-adored joint LP Never Seen It Comin. It is a sad fact that Slim died by the gun at such a young age. But it's also sad that we, the hip-hop community, do not seem too affected or concerned with the brutal slaying of a true underground star who was locally revered and really did live this rap shit.
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