ONE OF THE BEST YET – GURU R.I.P

Yesterday was a very sad day for hip-hop and the world of music altogether. Keith Elam aka Guru lost his battle with cancer at the age of 47. He was originally taken to hospital on 28th Feb 2010 after he suffered a heart attack. He underwent surgery and has been in a coma ever since. Or that’s what has been widely reported but very little concrete information is actually available. One thing is for sure though is that this hip-hop icon is no longer with us. You may have read various reports about a letter supposedly “written” by Guru (despite being in a coma!?) A letter which mentions his partner in crime Solar more than he talks about himself and carries on to diss DJ Premier. It’s a real shame this is overshadowing the death of a genuine hip-hop legend so that’s all we’re gonna say about it.

Guru will always be best known for being half of Gang Starr. A rare gift to the world of hip-hop, an act that stayed consistent for the entirety of it’s lifetime, creating an incredible back-catalogue and a legacy that could be matched by very few. Guru was an MC that had it all. Like the man said ‘It’s mostly the voice’ – But it was so much more than that. Conscious, intelligent story-telling lyrics, lyrical dexterity, rhyme skills and of course the golden voice. Combine that with Primo beats and you couldn’t fail.

Of course he was also responsible for four volumes of Jazmatazz – Guest heavy experimental albums fusing hip-hop and jazz. Although not as consistent as Gang Starr’s output they were always original and always interesting and plenty of dope tunes thrown in there for good measure.

Anyway, when all the gossip and all the bullshit has died down, the records will still be there, which is what we are really going to remember him for. Hip-hop has lost one of it’s true innovators. – Rest in Peace. Gifted Unlimited Rhymes Universal.

Filed under: Rap by P.A.

One Response to “ONE OF THE BEST YET – GURU R.I.P”

D.K., on April 22nd, 2010 at 10:04 am Said:

Over the last 2 days i’ve recieved two letters from Guru’s family and DJ Premier via an American PR agency, Tre-Media, that seriously question the validity of ‘that’ letter. Here they are;

OFFICIAL FAMILY STATEMENT
ON THE PASSING OF KEITH ELAM AKA GURU

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 21, 2010

The Elam family wishes to thank the fans of our son/brother/father uncle/nephew/cousin Keith aka GURU for the outpouring of love, concern and support.

Our hearts are broken by the loss of someone we loved so much. GURU was devoted to his young son, who will most keenly feel his absence.

GURU suffered from multiple myeloma for over a year. Accrued complications from this illness led to respiratory failure and cardiac arrest. As a result, GURU was in a coma from mid February until his death and never regained consciousness. Early on the morning of April 19th, he became hypertensive due to low blood pressure. He again went into cardiac arrest and slipped away from us.

GURU died far too young but he was, and we are, proud of all his many legendary musical contributions.

The family is not aware of any foundations established by GURU. We know and understand that countless fans want to express their condolences and love and, to that end, we are planning a memorial event in the near future that will be all-inclusive. Please look for further details from the family as they become available.

And..

OFFICIAL STATEMENT FROM DJ PREMIER
ON THE PASSING OF KEITH ELAM AKA GURU

IT WAS A SAD DAY FOR ME TO GET CONFIRMATION ON THE DEATH OF A MAN WHO I WILL CONTINUE TO CALL MY BROTHER, KEITH ELAM, BETTER KNOWN AS GURU OF THE LEGENDARY GANG STARR.

FROM 1988-2004, WE EXPERIENCED SO MUCH SUCCESS TOGETHER THAT WE WERE ABLE TO EXPAND OUR BUSINESSES INDEPENDENTLY AND GIVE EACH OTHER WHAT GURU CALLED “CREATIVE SPACE,” BEFORE PLANNING TO REUNITE FOR OUR 7TH LP WHEN THE TIME WAS RIGHT. TRAGICALLY, WE WILL NEVER REACH THAT DAY.

I’VE BEEN ASKED TO COMMENT ON A LETTER SPEAKING ILL OF ME WHICH WAS SUPPOSEDLY WRITTEN BY GURU IN HIS DYING DAYS. ALL I WILL SAY ABOUT IT IS THAT OUR TIME TOGETHER WAS BEAUTIFUL, WE BUILT A HIP HOP LEGACY TOGETHER, AND NO ONE CAN RE-WRITE HISTORY OR TAKE AWAY MY LOVE FOR HIM. ONE THING I WOULD NEVER DO IS PLAY AROUND WITH THE TRUTH ABOUT HIS LIFE.

I WILL CELEBRATE GURU’S LIFE… I WILL HONOR HIS MEMORY… I WILL GRIEVE WITH THE ELAM FAMILY OVER HIS UNTIMELY DEATH… I WILL REMEMBER THE GANG STARR FOUNDATION AND ALL OF THE ORIGINAL MEMBERS OF GANG STARR WHO CAME BEFORE ME – WE ALL KNOW EACH OTHER…. MOSTLY, I WILL CHERISH EVERYTHING WE CREATED TOGETHER AS GANG STARR, FOREVER. I’M GONNA MISS HEARING HIS SIGNATURE MONOTONE VOICE WHEN HE WALKS IN THE ROOM, BUT THE SONGS WILL ALWAYS BRING IT BACK TO ME….HIS RHYME FLOWS WERE INSANE, AND I WILL NEVER REMOVE HIM FROM MY HEART AND SOUL…….REST IN PEACE TO THE MAN WHO FELT “SATISFACTION FROM THE STREET CROWD REACTION” … I LOVE YOU GOO…….DJ PREMIER