Former Tupac Shakur collaborator 47-year-old Young Noble died by suicide on Friday, July 4, in the morning, as per reports by TMZ. The information was provided to the outlet by sources familiar with the alleged situation. TMZ further shared that sources also claimed that Nobel had gunshot wounds that appeared to be self-inflicted.
The outlet had tried to reach out to law enforcement agencies for further information on the situation. According to HotNewHipHop, Noble did not show any apparent signs of being unwell lately. He reportedly was also spending time playing basketball with his friends. E.D.I. Mean announced Young Noble's demise on Instagram through a post.
The post dated July 4, read:
"Today I got some of the worst and unexpected news imaginable. My brother and partner for over 30 years took his life this morning. Rest in Power Rufus Young Noble Cooper."
Mean further spoke about the necessity of taking care of one's mental health and being more responsive about the same. The post then read:
"I obviously am in no shape to talk about this right now so PLEASE give his family and I some time to process this. Mental illness is a real battle being fought by so many. CHECK ON UR FOLKS!"
The post gained massive traction on the social media platform.
Tupac and Noble had worked together after the latter was added to the rap group Outlawz in early 1996. He reportedly was the last member Tupac himself selected for the group before he passed away in late 1996. No additional details about Young Noble's death could be retrieved as of now.
Exploring the connection between Tupac Shakur and Young Noble, amid reports of the latter's demise
As aforementioned, Young Noble and Tupac Shakur collaborated for a brief period. Noble joined the Outlawz in 1996, months before Tupac was shot to death. TMZ described this association to be Noble's "big break" in the world of hiphop.
He made appearances on four tracks including the popular one named Hail Mary, from Tupac's album The Don Killuminati: The 7 Day Theory. This project was Tupac's fifth studio album and was released in November 1996, months after his demise in September of the same year.
Young Noble had dropped solo albums as well. Some of them included Noble Justice and Son of God. In December 2024, Noble sat with Art of Dialogue to talk about the last days of Tupac in the hospital after the shooting. Noble even made references to the rumors that Tupac faked his death. During the interview, he said:
"I was right there, front and center."
He additionally stated:
"Let them tell it, he's still alive underground like Bin Laden somewhere hiding or in Cuba… Nah, he really died. I really was in the hospital. I really saw him with tubes in his body. I really saw his body full of fluid real big. He wasn't skinny with the six-pack; his body was full. He really f*cking died on us."
According to Young Noble, Tupac's mother was the one who decided to "let her son go." The now late rapper claimed that Tupac's mom did not want her son to suffer anymore and believed that he would be torn down if he lived. Noble described Tupac's mother to be a brave woman to be able to take such a decision at the time.
Everything to know about Young Noble
Born in March 1978, in California, Young Noble made his debut with Tupac Shakur's The Don Killuminati: The 7 Day Theory. The songs that he appeared on were Bomb First (My Second Reply), Hail Mary, Life of an Outlaw, and Just Like Daddy.
While Noble grew up in Pasadena, he shifted to New Jersey, where he met future members from Outlawz, Hussein Fatal, and Yaki Kadafi. Noble's latest studio album titled Outlaw University was released in September 2023. The rapper further collaborated with artists like Layzie Bone, E.D.I., Hussein Fatal, Krayzie Bone, and Dirty Bert.
In 2013, he dropped his last single as a featured artist in What I Stand For. Noble's last music video for the track Hustleholic was dropped in 2013.
According to Variety, several of his associates had expressed condolences after the news about his death was made public. This included a post by Layzie Bone that read:
"RIP to my Thug Brother @young_noble just got the devastating news."
Bone further shared his wishes to the late rapper's family, including his wife and children. This post was made on Instagram from Layzie's official account.
Many netizens offered condolences for the tragic loss of the family and friends of Noble. Many described the news to be quite shocking and unexpected.