Is it me, or are rappers passing away younger and younger? His hit song “Walk it Out” was in constant rotation at parties and in clubs in the early 2000’s. Hit rapper DJ Unk, who was behind the dance-crunk hit has passed away. He was only 43 years young.
The musician’s wife Sherkita Long-Platt announced his death Friday morning on Facebook. “I just lost my husband and my kids lost their father,” she wrote. “Our life will never be the same.” DJ Unk, born Anthony Leonard Platt, was described a fun-loving, family man who loved to entertain.
“I LOVE YOU ANTHONY FOREVER,” Long-Platt wrote.
Long-Platt confirmed to TMZ on Sunday that Platt died in his sleep after suffering a heart attack. She also shut down speculation that drugs played a role in the “2 Step” and “Show Out” artist’s death.
The rapper was “my EVERYTHING,” Long-Platt said on Instagram. On Sunday, she shared a video collage, set to Monica’s “Love All Over Me,” that featured photos of Platt performing and spending time with his family.
Platt began spinning records in 1998, and, after meeting DJ Jelly and DJ Montay, joined their DJ entourage, the Southern Style DJs. They performed for high school parties, proms, pep rallies, and other events around the state of Georgia. In 2000, Big Oomp signed Unk to his label, Big Oomp Records. He released the album Beat’n Down Yo Block! in 2006 led by the single “Walk It Out” that reached the top ten in the Billboard Hot 100. In 2008, he released the album 2econd Season, supported by the single “Show Out” to moderate success.
In 2009, he suffered health issues that resulted in a reduced profile. In 2013, he released the single “Have A Toast” followed by “Wait” in 2014, while he continued to tour the college circuit. Some of his work has featured on the 2K Sports NBA 2K9 game.
His Health Issues Started Years Before
This is not the rapper’s first battle with a heart attack. Back in 2009, he was rushed to the hospital in August of that year after suffering a mild heart attack. He was treated and released just a couple of days later.
While he was recovering, he confirmed the heart attack and revealed that he would be leading a healthier lifestyle.
DJ Unk denied reports that drug use was to blame, although he did state that he would be giving up his habit of smoking marijuana.
He brushed off the allegations that he overdosed smoking marijuana and claimed that a poor diet was the reason he suffered a heart attack.
“No more Kush, Purp, Piff, Haze, Sour desiel [types of marijuana] for me! No more drinks! Got to do this for my health! Live healthy! be healthy! Live unhealthy and suffer the concequences! [sic]. Keep god first and haters last! It’s not over till the fat lady sing.”
While he admitted to being at “45 % strength,” DJ Unk remained in good spirits as he prepared for a trip to Germany for an upcoming performance.
“No more hot wings, no fried food, no more seafood ! Dam what must I eat?(air) and (water)?” Unk joked.
The Link Between Young Black Men and Heart Attacks
After declining steadily for more than a decade, new research shows the number of people dying from cardiac arrests is climbing. And the greatest increase is among young Black adults.
According to an American Heart Association study done in 2020, data pulled from 311,065 death certificates for Black and white people in the United States who died from cardiac arrest from 1999-2018 shows a startling story for young Black men.
Researchers found deaths from cardiac arrest, when the heart suddenly stops beating, initially dropped by nearly half. The rate fell from 80.1 deaths per million people in 1999 to 44.3 per million people in 2012.
But then it reversed course, climbing 8.8% overall from 2012 to 2018. The increase was significantly higher – 10.9% – for Black adults compared to 6.9% for white adults. When it came to people under the age of 35, deaths from cardiac arrest among Black people jumped by 35%. But they fell for white people by 11%. Among those 65 and older, deaths increased twice as much for Black adults – 8% compared to 4% for their white peers. The findings are considered preliminary until published in a peer-reviewed journal.
The vast disparity in death rates among younger adults surprised lead investigator Dr. Anas Al Zubaidi, a research fellow in the department of medicine at the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio. He called the data “alarming.”
Sudden cardiac arrest occurs when a person’s heart suddenly stops beating, triggered by an electric malfunction that causes an irregular heartbeat. This is not the same as a heart attack, which occurs when blood flow to the heart is blocked. Cardiac arrest may occur following a heart attack, however, or while a person is recovering from a heart attack.
If treated with an automated external defibrillator or CPR within the first few minutes, cardiac arrest can be reversed. More than 350,000 cardiac arrests occur outside a hospital each year, according to AHA statistics.
Zubaidi pointed to research that shows Black people and people living in predominantly Black neighborhoods are substantially less likely to receive bystander CPR than white people. This is particularly troubling given that Black adults in the United States experience a disproportionate burden of heart disease and its traditional risk factors – such as high blood pressure, diabetes and obesity – and develop these problems at an earlier age than whites. All of that contributes to a disparity in life expectancy.
“Access to care may also play a role,” Zubaidi said. “Several factors may be responsible. This is why we need to conduct more research, with a focus on identifying the causes of these disparities and methods to reduce the gaps.”
Dr. Keith Churchwell, president of Yale-New Haven Hospital and an associate clinical professor of cardiovascular medicine at Yale School of Medicine in Connecticut, said more work is needed to get the message to young African Americans that they are dying from heart disease in disproportionate numbers.
“That’s a message that population needs to hear,” said Churchwell, a former chair of the AHA’s task force on health equity and social determinants of health. “When we’re young, we tend to think that we’ll live forever, that the risk factors for cardiovascular disease won’t become an issue until later in life. But the data show us that’s not the case here.”
He Will Continually Rest In Peace
Dozens of residents gathered at a park in downtown Atlanta on Sunday for a candelight vigil in Platt’s honor. According to videos shared on Facebook, attendees released white and blue balloons into the sky as they voiced their love for the late rapper. Some attendees sang along to DJ Unk’s “Walk It Out” and “2 Step” as others exchanged hugs.
