Jason Mizell

Infobox musical artist
Name = Jam-Master Jay
Background = non_performing_personnel


Img_capt =
Birth_name = Jason William Mizell
Alias = Jam-Master Jay, DJ Jazzy Jase
Origin = Brooklyn, New York
United States
Born = birth date|1965|1|21|mf=y
Died = death date|2002|10|30 (aged 37)
Genre = East Coast Rap, Hip hop, Rapcore
Occupation = Disc jockey
Years_active = 1983–2002
Label = Jam Master Jay, Profile
Associated_acts = Run-D.M.C.
Chuck D
Onyx
URL =

Jason William Mizell (January 21 1965 – October 30 2002), also known as Jam-Master Jay and Jay Gambulos, was a founder and the DJ of hip hop group Run-D.M.C..

Biography

Mizell was born in Brooklyn, New York and moved to Queens at the age of 10 with his family. He played bass and drums in several garage bands prior to joining Run-D.M.C.; on all of their albums from "Raising Hell" on, he played keyboards, bass, and live drums in addition to his turntable work. Mizell remained in his childhood neighborhood his entire life. He founded the 'Scratch DJ Academy' in Manhattan for children interested in DJing.

In 1989, Mizell established the label Jam Master Jay Records, which scored a strong success in 1993 with the band Onyx. He also connected Chuck D with Def Jam co-founder Rick Rubin. (Def Jam's other founder, Russell Simmons, is the brother of DJ Run.) After achieving relative prominence, Jason was known to use the alias Jay Gambulos so as to avoid unwanted attention from the public. Jason is also related to the Mizell Brothers, a popular production team for Gary Bartz, Johnny "Hammond" Smith, and others.

In the 1990s, Mizell survived a bad car accident and a gunshot wound.

Death

On October 30 2002, he was shot and killed in a Merrick Boulevard recording studio in Queens, New York. The other person in the room, twenty-three-year-old Urieco Rincon, was shot in the ankle and survived. [ [http://www.villagevoice.com/news/0245,allen,39677,1.html village voice > news > Harry Allen remembers Jason Mizell, a/k/a Jam-Master Jay, Run-D.M.C.'s inimitable musical mastermind. by Harry Allen ] ]

The "New York Daily News" reported that authorities have investigated whether Kenneth "Supreme" McGriff, a convicted drug dealer and longtime friend of Murder Inc. heads Irv Gotti and Chris Gotti, targeted Mizell because the DJ defied an industry blacklist of rapper 50 Cent that was imposed because of "Ghetto Qur'an", a song 50 Cent wrote about McGriff's drug history. A 2003 affidavit says: "Law enforcement agents are investigating the possibility that [Jason] Mizell was murdered for defying the blacklist of 50 Cent."

In April 2007, federal prosecutors named Ronald "Tenad" Washington as an accomplice in the murder of Mizell. Washington also is a suspect in the fatal shooting of Randy Walker in 1995, a close associate of the late rapper Tupac Shakur. For his part, Washington “pointed his gun at those present in the studio, ordered them to get on the ground and provided cover for his associate to shoot and kill Jason Mizell,” prosecutors said in court papers.

Mizell is survived by his wife Terri and three children. He is buried at the Ferncliff Cemetery in Hartsdale, New York. His favorite long brown leather trench coat was given to his best friends, Rev Run and DMC. Jam Master Jay was 37 when he died.

References

External links

* [http://www.salon.com/ent/music/feature/2002/11/01/jay_obit/ Jam-Master Jay, 1965-2002] , "Salon", November 1 2002
* [http://www.sohh.com/thewire/read.php?contentID=4056 Jam-Master Jay Killed in Shooting] , SOHH: The Wire, October 31 2002
* [http://www.cnn.com/2002/SHOWBIZ/Music/10/31/obit.jam.master.jay/ Run-DMC star, 37, was hip-hop pioneer] , CNN, October 31 2002
* [http://www.cnn.com/2002/SHOWBIZ/Music/10/31/jmj.rappers.react/ 'Terrible loss': Hip-hop reacts to Jam-Master Jay slaying] , CNN, October 31 2002
* [http://www.cnn.com/2002/US/Northeast/10/31/run.dmc.killing/index.html Run-DMC DJ slain in recording studio] , CNN, October 31 2002
* [http://www.daveyd.com/FullArticles%5CarticleN1311.asp Remembering Jam Master Jay in the Midst of Chaos] , Davey D's Hip-Hop Corner, October 31 2002
* [http://www.djtimes.com/original/djmag/jun00/JamMasterJay.htm Interview with "DJ Times", 2000]
* [http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18159877/ Suspect named in Jam-Master Jay's death] , MSNBC, April 17 2007. Retrieved May 28 2007.
* [http://www.usatoday.com/life/people/2007-04-17-jam-master-jay_N.htm Suspect named in 2002 slaying of Jam-Master Jay] , "USA Today", April 18 2007. Retrieved May 28 2007.
* [http://www.hiphoplead.com/?p=644 Jam-Master Jay, Witness Identifies Killer's Tattoo] , HHL: News, November 5 2007
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Persondata
NAME=Mizell, Jason William
ALTERNATIVE NAMES=Jam-Master Jay (stage name)
SHORT DESCRIPTION=Hip-hop musician
DATE OF BIRTH=January 21 1965
PLACE OF BIRTH=Brooklyn, New York, United States
DATE OF DEATH=October 30,2002
PLACE OF DEATH=Jamaica, Queens, New York, United States