Virgil Abloh attends the CFDA Fashion Awards on June 4, 2018 in New York City.
Neil Rasmus/BFA/REX/ShutterstockThe tributes are pouring in following the death of fashion designer Virgil Abloh, who passed away Sunday (Nov. 28) at the age of 41.
Musicians like Drake, Justin Timberlake, BTS, Offset, Bruno Mars and many others took to social media to pay their respects to Abloh, who founded the streetwear-focused luxury label Off-White and most recently served as men’s artistic director of Louis Vuitton.
A post on Abloh’s verified Instagram account announced his death, explaining that he battled a rare, aggressive form of cancer, cardiac angiosarcoma, for more than two years.
“My plan is to touch the sky 1000 more times for you…love you eternally brother thank you for everything,” Drake captioned photos on Instagram of himself with Abloh.
In addition to his contributions in fashion, Abloh was a DJ and served as Kanye West’s longtime creative director. He also helped design iconic album covers by West, A$AP Rocky, Lil Uzi Vert and Pop Smoke.
Abloh recently collaborated with Cudi on the Kurt Cobain-inspired floral print dress worn by the rapper during his appearance earlier this year on Saturday Night Live.
“What can you say when a force like @virgilabloh is taken too soon?” Timberlake wrote on Instagram. “You gave the world so much, in so little time. And created with intensity… knowing better than the rest of us that life is short, but anything is possible. I’m honored to have known you. Thank you for sharing your gift with us.”
BTS added on Twitter, “RIP Virgil Abloh, you will be missed. It was an honor to work with you. A true creative genius.”
In another remembrance, Pharrell Williams described Abloh as a “kind, generous, thoughtful creative genius. Your work as a human and your work as a spiritual being will live forever. Sending love and light to your wife, children, family and day ones. You’re with the Master now, shine.”
Abloh is survived by his wife Shannon, his children Lowe and Grey, his sister Edwina and his parents Nee and Eunice.
See more tributes to Abloh below.
NEWS
There is no question that Clipse’s Let God Sort Em Out made a serious impact and continues to hold weight. The project showed that hip hop is not limited by age and proved that a long-awaited return can still land in a major way regardless of the time away.
If you need a reminder, the Virginia duo’s fourth studio album debuted comfortably within the top five of the Hot 200. It secured the number four position and moved an impressive 118,000 units in its first week.
On top of that, it picked up a win at this year’s Grammys, earning Best Rap Performance for “Chains & Whips.” The album also received four additional nominations, including Best Music Video, Rap Album, and Album of the Year.
It is hard to believe the project will officially hit its one year mark this summer on July 11. Even so, Pusha T is making it clear that both supporters and critics should not be overlooking it anytime soon.
While performing at Coachella yesterday, King Push told the crowd that LGSEO still sits at the top, regardless of genre.
He said, “‘Let God Sort Em Out’ is still the album of the motherfckin year. Whole new year, still album of the year,” per Kurrco. “Album of the motherfcking year until we drop again. We don't care who dropping. It don't matter.”
That is a strong statement for obvious reasons, especially considering the recent claims surrounding Push himself.
Over the same weekend, hip hop social media lit up after several alleged reference tracks connected to Quentin Miller and Push began circulating. Three tracks surfaced in total, but one that drew the most attention was an alleged record titled “Real Gon’ Come.” It is said to come from the DAYTONA era, around 2017 to 2018.
The situation gained traction because fans remember the past tension between Drake and Pusha T before Drake’s clash with Kendrick Lamar. During that feud, Pusha accused Drake of using ghostwriters on tracks like “Infrared,” which appears on DAYTONA. On that song, he raps, “The bigger question is how the Russians did it /
It was written like Nas, but it came from Quentin.”
Reactions have been mixed. Some people argue it is not a major issue since Miller’s alleged contributions were limited to hooks. Others point out that the songs were never officially released, so they see no real problem. Meanwhile, critics view it as clear hypocrisy on Pusha T’s part, a perspective that DJ Akademiks has also supported.
