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2 days away from his 36th birthday, O.D.B. (real name Russell Jones) was finishing off his comeback album and apparently complained of chest pains before collapsing in the studio. He was dead by the time the ambulance arrived. At this time the exact cause of death is unknown.
ODB was one of the most colourful members of the rap community and his increasingly 'erratic' (or just damn funny!) behaviour made numerous headlines over the years. These included taking his kids to a welfare office to claim food stamps in front of MTV News, dodging U.S. police authorities for a month... while still performing on-tour with the Wu Tang Clan (who he was a founding member of) and my own personal favourite, gate crashing the 1998 Grammy Awards during a presentation to Shawn Colvin after losing the 'Best Rapper award to Puff Daddy, complaining that he had spent a lot of money on new clothes so he would look good when they announced he had won.
A leader in the field, our thoughts and condolences go out to his friends and relatives.
