Xzibit In Mourning As ‘Brother’ Rapper Saafir Dies At 54

Beloved ’90s rapper Saafir has sadly passed away… And his “brother” Xzibit is completely devastated.

You may remember Saafir from songs like Light Sleeper, Crawl Before You Ball, and his role in hit music groups the Digital Underground and the Golden State Project. Saafir, born Reggie Gibson, has died at just 54 years old.

Fellow GSP rapper Xzibit announced the shocking news on Instagram on Tuesday in a heart-wrenching post:

“I can’t believe I’m writing this right now, but don’t know what else to do at the moment. Approximately at 8:45am this morning, my brother Reggie known to the world as Saafir passed away. We have so much history I can’t even explain what I’m feeling right now. We surrounded him and let him know how much we loved him. He can rest now.”

So, so sad. The Pimp My Ride alum continued:

“Friends, Family, everyone that rocked with us from the Hip Hop community, if you could be so solid and reach out for @chopblack his younger brother, and @lilsaafir his son, the family really needs to be supported during this time. That’s all I have right now. My soul is crushed. We love you Bro. REST IN POWER Saafir The Saucee Nomad.”

See his full post (below):

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by XZIBIT (@xzibit)

How devastating. It’s not immediately clear what caused Saafir’s death, but TMZ reported he passed away in his hometown of Oakland. The outlet also reported he’d been struggling with numerous health issues for years — once having a cancerous tumor removed from his spine and ultimately being bound to a wheelchair.

Our hearts are with all of Saafir’s loved ones during this unimaginably difficult time. Rest in peace.

[Images via HipHopDX/YouTube]