Acclaimed photographer Chi Modu, known for his famous hip-hop photos, has passed away at age 54.
Chi Modu is renowned for his photos documenting rap music’s icons such as Tupac Shakur, The Notorious B.I.G., LL Cool J, Ice Cube, Snoop Dogg, Dr. Dre, and others.
The sad announcement was made on his official Instagram page on Saturday: “Our hearts are broken… We continue the fight.”
The post didn’t share his cause of death or what they meant by “We continue the fight.”
Nigerian-born and raised in New Jersey, Chi Modu’s best known photographs include an iconic black-and-white image of a shirtless Tupac Shakur with his hands raised to his head while holding a lit cigarette.
He also photographed Mobb Deep stars Prodigy and Havoc for the cover of their 1995 album, The Infamous.
As director of photography for rap magazine The Source, Chi shot more than 30 covers and numerous photo layouts.
His work also appeared in Rolling Stone magazine and The New York Times.
He published his book of never-before-seen photos, uncategorized, in 2016.