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Jimmy Wopo

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Jimmy Wopo
Jimmy Wopo in 2016
Jimmy Wopo in 2016
Background information
Birth nameTravon DaShawn Frank Smart
Born(1997-01-13)January 13, 1997
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Died(2018-06-18)June 18, 2018 (aged 21)
Hill District, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Cause of deathHomicide (gunshot wound)
EducationWoodland Hills High School
GenresHip hop
OccupationsRapper
Years active2016–2018
Labels
  • Taylor Gang / 018 Muney Lane Records

Travon DaShawn Frank Smart (January 13, 1997 – June 18, 2018), better known by his stage name Jimmy Wopo, was an American rapper from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Wopo was an affiliate of fellow Pittsburgh-based rapper Wiz Khalifa and his Taylor Gang imprint. He made his first high-profile appearance with his 2016 breakout single, "Elm Street", produced by Stvii B, which Complex included in the "'Bout to Blow: 10 Dope New Songs You Should Be Hearing Everywhere Soon" list.[1] Following that success, he collaborated with several prominent rappers including Wiz Khalifa, Sonny Digital, 21 Savage and more.[2] After receiving a co-sign from hip hop producer Mike Will Made It, rap duo Rae Sremmurd brought Wopo out to perform during their set at the Pittsburgh stop of their SremmLife 2 Tour.[3] Wopo was murdered in a drive-by shooting on June 18, 2018.

Career

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In January 2015, Wopo began uploading original tracks to his SoundCloud account. Taylor Maglin, the owner of the Pittsburgh-based blog Daily Loud, partnered with him and began to publicize his music. This additional push helped him to accumulate millions of views on his music videos on his YouTube channel.[4] During this time, Wopo had a falling out with a frequent collaborator named The Blade, causing a large scale feud between Lawrenceville and Hill District street gangs. Joining the wave of Wopo's viral success, urban hip hop blog WorldStarHipHop exclusively debuted five of his music videos in 2016.[5] On July 24, 2016, he premiered his debut project, Woponese, on Daily Loud.[6] This 8-track mixtape included the single "Back Door", which features Sonny Digital.[7] In October 2016, Riff Raff tapped Wopo for a feature on the track "Stay Away from You" on his Balloween mixtape.[8] On November 25, 2016, he released a joint album with his fellow Pittsburgh-based rapper Hardo. This nine-track project featured ShadyHigler, 21 Savage and Wiz Khalifa.[9]

As many as fifty completed, unreleased songs will be released posthumously, according to Wopo's manager.[10]

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On February 7, 2016, Wopo was arrested during a traffic stop in Washington County, Pennsylvania. Police arrested Wopo and two others after finding two stamp bags of suspected heroin and a small amount of marijuana. He was arraigned on drug charges and drinking charges and placed in jail with a $25,000 bond. Later, while out, Wopo, landed in jail because of probation violation. Wopo failed to inform officials of his trip to New York State, where he was caught and imprisoned on such charges. While in jail, he wrote an album, Back Against the Wall, which he recorded the first day he got out of jail.[11]

Murder and trial

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At 4:22 PM EDT on June 18, 2018, Smart and a male passenger were shot in Pittsburgh's Hill District neighborhood.[12][13] The passenger survived, but Smart, who was shot in the head, died after being rushed to the UPMC Presbyterian at 5:56 PM.[14] He was 21 years old, and left behind three children.[15] As of 2023, no one has been charged for the murder.

Smart has been posthumously implicated in numerous gang related crimes. Multiple members of his gang were sentenced to prison in 2021.[16][17]

Discography

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  • Woponese (2016)
  • Trapnese (2016) (with Hardo)
  • Jordan Kobe (2017)
  • Back Against the Wall (2017)

References

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  1. ^ "Bout to Blow: 10 Dope New Songs You Should Be Hearing Everywhere Soon". Complex. Retrieved November 27, 2016.
  2. ^ "Hardo-Todays A Good Day Featuring Wiz Khalifa and Jimmy Wopo". Hot New Hip Hop. Retrieved November 27, 2016.
  3. ^ "Mike Will Made It Co-Signs Jimmy Wopo". Twitter. Retrieved November 27, 2016.
  4. ^ "#BangerAlert: Jimmy Wopo Says "Oh My"". Hip Hop DX. August 25, 2016. Retrieved November 27, 2016.
  5. ^ "Jimmy Wopo videos". WorldStarHipHop. Retrieved November 27, 2016.
  6. ^ "Jimmy Wopo Woponese mixtape". Daily Loud. Archived from the original on January 25, 2019. Retrieved November 27, 2016.
  7. ^ "Jimmy Wopo "Woponese" Mixtape". Live Mixtapes. Retrieved November 27, 2016.
  8. ^ "Stream Riff Raff's New 'Balloween' Mixtape". Hypebeast. October 25, 2016. Retrieved November 27, 2016.
  9. ^ "Trapnese by Hardo and Jimmy Wopo". iTunes. Retrieved November 27, 2016.
  10. ^ "Slain Pittsburgh rapper Jimmy Wopo left behind more than 50 unreleased songs". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved June 29, 2018.
  11. ^ Warco, Kathie (February 8, 2016). "Eight arrested on drug charges in Washington County over weekend". Observer-Reporter.
  12. ^ "R.I.P. Jimmy Wopo". The Fader. Retrieved June 21, 2018.
  13. ^ "Rapper Jimmy Wopo shot and killed in Pittsburgh's Hill District". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. June 18, 2018. Archived from the original on August 11, 2020. Retrieved July 11, 2022.
  14. ^ "Rapper Jimmy Wopo shot and killed in Pittsburgh's Hill District". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. June 19, 2018. Archived from the original on July 26, 2018. Retrieved June 18, 2021.
  15. ^ Respers France, Lisa (June 19, 2018). "Rapper Jimmy Wopo gunned down in Pittsburgh". CNN. Retrieved June 19, 2018.
  16. ^ "The Darkside Of Pittsburgh: Jimmy Wopo and His Notorious 11 Hunnit Gang".
  17. ^ "https://allhiphop.com/news/jimmy-wopo-gang-sentenced-to-prison/". {{cite web}}: External link in |title= (help)
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