Nipsey Hussle’s funeral to be held at the Staples Center

Nipsey Hussle’s family is searching for a venue large enough to accommodate the massive crowds expected to attend his funeral. Nipsey, 33, was fatally shot by a former gang banger outside the rapper’s clothing store in Los Angeles on Sunday, March 31.

According to TMZ, Nipsey’s relatives hope to hold his funeral at the Staples Center where the LA Lakers play, and where Michael Jackson’s funeral was held in 2009.

The rapper’s relatives passed on smaller venues that hold up to 2,000 people.

Nipsey’s older brother, Samiel Asghedom was the first to reach the mortally wounded rapper seconds after he was shot by former Crips member Eric Holder.

Samiel described to the LA Times how he walked up to his dying brother and starter CPR in hopes of saving him. “1, 2, 3, 4,” he remembered saying, as he pumped his brother’s chest.

That’s when he noticed the gaping gunshot wound at the back of his brother’s head and started praying.

A crowd gathered around them. One woman recorded the scene on her cell phone and uploaded the grisly footage to social media.

Samiel was angry that gun laws prevented his brother’s employees from defending their boss. He told the LA Times that Nipsey employed ex-cons who were not allowed to possess weapons.

Nipsey did not have security with him when he went to his store to meet an ex-con friend to give him free clothes.

“If somebody would’ve been there – if I would’ve been there – I would’ve shot back,” Samiel said.

“Because of that, the man was able to shoot my brother, start running, realize nobody out there had a gun, stop, turn back around, walk up, shoot my brother two more times, start to run… realize nobody was responding, ran back up and shot my brother three more times, shot him in the head and kicked him in the head and then ran off.”

Samiel described Nipsey’s death as “an execution.”

“It doesn’t make sense that somebody from the area, that just snuck up, and just talked to him and shook his hand minutes before,” he said.

After arriving at the hospital, Samiel spoke with one of the paramedics who worked to save his brother.

“I know who he is,” the medic said to him. “I’m a fan. I respect what he was doing in the community.”

The medic then said, “We tried our hardest.”