Posted on 04/11/2006 1:42:37 PM PDT by freepatriot32
DETROIT - Proof, a member of rap group D12 and a close friend of Eminem, was shot to death early Tuesday at a nightclub along Eight Mile, the road made famous by the 2002 film that starred Eminem and in which Proof had a bit part.
The death of Proof _ real name Deshaun Holton _ was confirmed by Dennis Dennehy, the publicist for D12's label, Interscope Records, as well as by Detroit police spokesman James Tate.
"Memorial service arrangements are still being made, and his friends and family would appreciate privacy during this difficult time," Dennehy said in a statement.
Eminem and Proof, 32, seldom were seen in public without each other. Proof was the best man at Eminem's wedding in January, and they have been close friends since before Eminem became a superstar.
The music video for the Eminem song "Like Toy Soldiers" shows Eminem pacing a hospital hallway as doctors try to revive Proof, who has been shot. Later, Eminem attends Proof's funeral as the song's lyrics lament the escalation in violence between rappers.
It was Proof's idea to form D12, a six-member Detroit-based rap group that counts Eminem among its members.
D12 has been around since the mid-1990s, when the members met at Detroit's Hip-Hop Shop, a clothing store by day/hip-hop club by night.
Proof's family members gathered at a home on Detroit's northwest side after hearing the news of his death. The residential street in front of the two-story home was lined with vehicles, and people hugged each other on the sidewalk.
Proof was shot inside a small bar in a strip of businesses along Eight Mile, which is the dividing line between Detroit and its northern suburbs. Tate said two people were shot in the head _ one fatally. He said an argument at the C.C.C. nightclub escalated into gunshots.
The other victim _ a 35-year-old man _ was listed in critical condition, Tate said.
Wende Berry, a spokeswoman for St. John Health System, said Holton was dead on arrival at St. John Conner Creek, an outpatient treatment facility. Berry confirmed that he had a gunshot wound.
Police said shots were fired inside the bar around 4:30 a.m. By the time officers arrived, both of the injured men had been taken from the bar in private vehicles, Tate said.
Evidence technicians and detectives remained inside the bar Tuesday morning. A spot of blood was on the street in front of the tavern, and police marked shell casings in a parking lot across the street.
Patrol officers said the bar is a frequent source of problems on the city's east side. Tate said police have taken 18 incident reports there since 1996. The latest was a vice raid in December in which six tickets were issued, most involving minors possessing or drinking alcohol.
The bar, he said, was legal, but was operating outside of its licensed hours.
Another member of Eminem's inner circle _ rapper Obie Trice _ was shot while driving on a Detroit-area highway in December.
___
Associated Press Writer David Runk in Detroit contributed to this report.
I'll need to see Proof before I believe THIS.
He's now 0% Proof.
The Proof is in...the ground.
I hope he wasn't the fat guy. The fat guy was funny.
No this guy is rail thin
Proof, a member of rap group D12 and a close friend of Eminem, shown March 13, 2003, in Detroit, was shot to death early Tuesday, April 11, 2006, at a nightclub along Eight Mile Road, a publicist said. The death of Proof _ whose real name is Deshaun Holton _ was confirmed by Dennis Dennehy, the publicist for D12's label, Interscope Records. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio)
Life imitating art, I guess.
Another Rapper shot dead. I'm stunned. Who'da expected that?
Gee, another rapper shot to death.
I'm greatly saddened. How many does that leave?
We've lost this generation's Mozart. Whatever shall we do?
This ought to really increase his rep.
Now he has the ultimate street cred. I forsee college classes being taught about his art and wonderful contributions to the African-American community
Exactly what I was thinking!
(Did anyone see The Sopranos last week?)
No big loss - there are plenty of 'Deshauns' where this one came from to take his place.
Ought to really help the sale of his albums.
Seriesly, i think Wagner is a better comparison, musically. /s
What instrument did he play?
Seriously, my English ancestors invented light opera, modern theater, and gave birth to this the greatest of nations...why in the world would anyone of my shade listen to that garbage? And seeing as how the black culture of decades past invented jazz and most of rock and roll, what a horrible gravestone to modern black culture that the most they can come up with to be cool and idolize are a bunch of punk, drug-dealer wannabee, woman-hating morons who are especially talented in that most valuable of society's hard sciences, "talking in rhymes." And on top of that, having established at very least that you are adept at separating pathetic fans from their money and making yourself rich, you repeatedly end up shooting each other! Talk about culling the herd!
It drives me mad that of all of the standard icons of black history (beyond Rosa Parks and MLKJr), if you brought them back to life today, most would be shunned for being "too white." Think of it...George Washington Carver worked like a dog in science labs for most of his life, invented useful and profitable things, and today he would be shunned for being too smart and "uncool". What a sad commentary on how things have come to be.
(And if you want to talk real gangsters, at least my bootlegging ancestors finally figured out that the thing to do is to carve up the territory, get fat and rich, and stop shooting each other!)
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