Takeoff (born Kirsnik Khari Ball), one-third of powerhouse Atlanta rap trio Migos alongside Quavo and Offset, was shot and killed in Houston in the early hours of Tuesday morning, as TMZ first reported and the AP has confirmed via a representative for the artist. Ball was 28 years old.
Houston police responded to reports of a shooting at a bowling alley, 810 Billiards & Bowling, at 2:30 a.m. last night, and discovered one man dead at the scene. Two others were injured in the shooting and taken to hospitals in private vehicles. Security guards in the vicinity heard the shots but did not see the shooter(s), a police spokesperson told the AP.
Ball’s collaborator Quavo was present, but unharmed. No arrests have been made as of this writing.
Takeoff, his uncle Quavo and his cousin Offset grew up together in Gwinnett County, outside Atlanta. They formed their group in 2008, originally calling themselves Polo Club before changing their name to Migos, and released their debut mixtape Jugg Season in 2011. Their 2013 hit “Versace” and mixtape Y.R.N. established their signature sound, which would help shape hip-hop for years to come.
By the mid-2010s, Migos were one of the biggest acts in rap: 2016’s “Bad and Boujee,” featuring Lil Uzi Vert, became the trio’s first #1 song. That year, they appeared as themselves in an episode of Atlanta. Migos released their trio of Culture albums in 2017, 2018 and 2021, respectively, the first two of which topped the Billboard 200 chart.
“We’re the wave,” Takeoff told Paste in 2018.
Takeoff released his debut solo album The Last Rocket in 2018. This year, Migos broke up after Quavo and Takeoff distanced themselves from Offset, releasing a new album as a duo, Only Built For Infinity Links, in October. Just yesterday (Oct. 31), they shared a music video for “Messy.”
Paste has reached out to reps for Migos for more information.