Heavy D has never been forgotten by fans of Hip Hop’s golden age, and in that fan club is the current mayor of Mount Vernon, NY.
Though the legendary rapper was born in Jamaica, he moved to the Westchester County hamlet when he was a young boy, and spent his most formative years there. That’s why the “Now That We Found Love” rapper was honored with a sculpture by local New York artist Eto Otitigbe, which was unveiled on Thursday (April 27) by Mayor Shawyn Patterson-Howard.
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According to LoHud, which caters to the area colloquially known as the Lower Hudson Valley in New York, the sculpture was unveiled in front of a new residential building called 40 Broad, and was done in conjunction with ArtsWestchester.
“Mount Vernon has a rich history of arts and culture. With this being the 50th anniversary of Hip Hop, nothing could be more appropriate than to honor this beautiful, beautiful sculpture of Heavy D,” Patterson-Howard said, according to the outlet.
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In addition to noting Heavy D’s contributions to Mount Vernon, including many fundraisers, and also acknowledging Heavy D’s family in attendance, he also made clear that the “Is It Good To You” rapper was a close personal friend.
“Heavy D, for me, wasn’t just an artist. He was my classmate. He was my friend. He was my party partner,” he said.
Heavy D died on December 27, 2011, at the age of 44. The rapper, who suffered from pneumonia shortly before his passing, was ultimately claimed due to a pulmonary embolism caused by deep vein thrombosis.
Despite being gone for more than a decade, his effects on Hip Hop are still being felt.
Pete Rock, who was Heavy D’s cousin, told HipHopDX back in December 2020 that a freak accident during one of his shows ultimately led Rock to craft one of the most recognized Hip Hop beats of all time — “T.R.O.Y. (They Reminisce Over You).”
Released in 1992 on the Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth album Mecca and the Soul Brother, “T.R.O.Y.” was a dedication to Rock’s good friend Troy Dixon who died in 1990 while touring as a backup dancer for Heavy D & the Boyz.
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“The stage was 20 feet high and they were playing with garbage cans, throwing them at each other,” he recalled. “He was playing with one of the guys down with Kid-N-Play and they were just messing around. But when they were throwing the cans at each other, his foot slipped off — he was near the inside of the stage or whatever, and his foot slipped — and he fell 20 feet. It was a total freak accident. He had to have been really young, maybe about 20 something.”
