Digital Underground’s Shock G Dead At 57

Digital Underground’s Shock G has died at 57, according to a post from Digital Underground co-founder Chopmaster J on Instagram. “34 years ago almost to the day we had a wild idea we can be a hip hop band and take on the world through it all,” he wrote. “the dream became a reality and the reality became a nightmare for some. And now he’s awaken from the fame long live shock G Aka Humpty Hump and Rest In Peace my Brotha Greg Jacobs!!!” As TMZ reports, Shock G was found dead in a hotel room in Tampa on Thursday. His cause of death is unclear.

Shock G, real name Gregory Jacobs, started Digital Underground with Chopmaster J after he relocated to the Bay Area in 1987 after growing up on the East Coast, mostly in Florida and New York City. Digital Underground’s early singles, including “Underwater Rimes” and “Doowutchyalike,” were underground hits, built on samples of Parliament-Funkadelic and other ’70s funk songs.

They released their debut album, Sex Packets, in 1990, which featured the group’s first bonafide hit, “The Humpty Dance,” on which Shock G rapped as his alter ego Humpty Hump. “The Humpty Dance” topped Billboard‘s rap singles chart and made it to #11 on the Hot 100. The music video for “Humpty Dance” features a young Tupac Shakur. Tupac would soon have his recording debut on Digital Underground’s 1991 single “Same Song.”

Shock G would go on to co-produce Tupac’s debut album 2Pacalypse Now and his 1993 breakthrough single “I Get Around,” which Shock G was also a featured guest on. Over the years, Shock G also worked with Prince, Dr. Dre, Luniz, Murs, KRS-One, and more. Digital Underground continued putting out albums and touring through the mid-’00s — their final album was 2008’s ..Cuz a D.U. Party Don’t Stop!. Shock G also put out a solo album, Fear Of A Mixed Planet, in 2004.