Artist

Speaker Knockerz

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An up-and-coming rapper and producer who tragically died before he was 20, Speaker Knockerz was born Derek McAllister, Jr.. Derek McAllister, Sr. was a former musician himself, but he landed himself a ten-year stint in jail while the family lived in N.Y.C., so Derek Jr.'s mother decided to move the family away from such an unhealthy environment. They moved to South Carolina, where the young Derek fell in love with hip-hop and creating music with his PC. In 2010, dad came home from jail, helped his son polish his music, and by the end of the year, Speaker Knockerz made his mixtape debut with Flight Delayed. A year later, he sold one of his beats to <a href="spotify:artist:20sxb77xiYeusSH8cVdatc">Meek Mill</a>, then <a href="spotify:artist:13y7CgLHjMVRMDqxdx0Xdo">Gucci Mane</a> bought a Speaker Knockerz beat for his track "Re-Up." Knockerz's work as an MC took off when he uploaded the cut "Weekend" in 2012, and 2013 saw him hit with the track "Lonely" plus his "Rico" trilogy, a gangsta rap story told over three singles. McAllister was fielding offers from record labels and MCs when on March 6, 2014, he was found dead in his garage. The 19-year-old died of natural causes -- a heart attack -- as the Richland County Coroner found no signs of drugs or foul play. ~ David Jeffries, Rovi

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