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Pop Smoke was the American rapper and songwriter who was shot dead after two masked men intruded in his house. Pop Smoke net worth was at its peak when he died, and that too at the age of 20.
But even in the short span of his professional career, he did notable work that was critically acclaimed and celebrated. As we still remember him, to this date, let us find out the reasons that made him so famous.
Who was Pop Smoke?
Bashar Barakah Jackson’s artist name, Pop Smoke, comes from the combination of Poppa, a name his grandmother gave him, and Smocoo Guwop, a nickname his childhood friends gave him, and his old Instagram username.
Pop Smoke was a famous American rapper and songwriter who was considered the face of the regional subgenre of Hip hop, Brooklyn Drill.
He gained fame after his early successful single Welcome to the Party in 2019. Then, he was known for his second mixtape, Meet the Woo 2.
Unfortunately, he died on February 19, 2020, due to a gunshot wound after two intruders broke into his house.
Even though the home invasion was with the intent of robbery, it escalated to homicide after an argument between masked men and Jackson.
| Stage Name | Pop Smoke |
| Birth Name | Bushar Barakah Jackson |
| Date of Birth | July 20, 1999 |
| Date of Death | Feburary 19, 2020 |
| Cause of Death | Murder, due to gunshot wound (home invasion) |
| Age | 20 (at the time of death) |
| Resting Place | Green wood Cemetary, Brooklyn, New York, U.S |
| Gender | Male |
| Professions | Rapper, Songwriter, Singer, Actor |
| Years Active | 2018-2020 |
| Genres | Hip hop, Brooklyn Drill |
| Height | 1.72 m ( 5 ft 8 in) |
| Country of Origin | United States of America |
| Labels | Victor Victor, Republic |
| Instagram Account | @realpopsmoke |
| Twitter Account | @popsmoke10 |
| Net Worth | $2 Million |
Early Life
Bashar Barakah Jackson was born in Brooklyn, New York City, to Audrey Jackson and Greg Jackson.
Jackson, aka Pop Smoke date of birth is July 20, 1999. His father was Panamanian, and his mother was from Jamaica. Jackson had an older brother named Obasi Jackson as well.
While growing up in Canarsie, located in Brooklyn, he had to change nine different schools.
Bashar liked playing African drums in his local church when he was young.
He was expelled in eighth grade because he brought a gun to his school. Jackson has spent two years after that, on house arrest after being charged with possessing a weapon.
Jackson also began playing basketball as a point and shooting guard then. Right after that, he moved to Philadelphia to get admission to Rocktop Academy.
However, he was forced to leave the college after being diagnosed with a heart murmur, eventually leading him to live a street life.
Career
Pop Smoke’s first attempt at rapping was in 2018 when he visited a Brooklyn recording studio with Jay Gwuapo.
Later, in the same year, he started rapping on a beat from 808Melo’s YouTube channel. And during that session, he recorded a track named MPR (Panic Part 3 Remix).
First Breakout Single
He released his first track, Flexin, on January 28, 2019. He acquainted producer Rico Beat, who knew record executive Steven Victor.
After this, all three of them set up an interview that led to Jackson signing with Victor Victor Worldwide and Republic Records in April 2019.
And finally, on April 23, 2019, Pop Smoke released his single titled Welcome to the Party, which blew up and put him on the map.
808Melo was the producer for his hit single. This became one of the most significant successes, building the foundation of Pop Smoke net worth.
Debut Mixtape
After that, he recorded multiple remixes of that song. One of them was released commercially and featured Nicki Minja and other artists like Skepta.
Then, he finally released his debut mixtape titled Meet the Woo on July 26 in, 2019.
Pop Smoke net worth grew exponentially after his first mixtape following multiple single releases.
Pop Smoke released multiple singles, including 100k on a coupe, War, etc., with other artists like Calboy and Lil Tijay, respectively.
First Success on the US Billboard Hot 100
Jackson appeared with the song Gattii on the Cactus Jack Records compilation album JackBoys by Travis Scott.
This one debuted on the US Billboard Hot 100, peaking at 69, making Jackson’s first song to hit the chartbusters.
Jackson released Christopher Walking on January 16, 2020.
Second Mixtape
Just 12 days before his death, i.e., on February 7, 2020, he released his second mixtape titled Meet the Woo 2 featuring A Boogie wit da Hoodie, Quavo, Lil Tijay, and Fivio Foreign.
His second mixtape reached the US Billboard 200, peaking at number seven.
Just after five days of this release, Jackson made guest appearances in the deluxe edition with three new songs featuring guest appearances, including Nav, Gunna, and pnB Rock.
Releases After His Death
Before his death, he shared on social media about his debut in headlining concert tour Meet Woo Tour for the promotion of his mixtapes.
It was all planned to start in March 2020 in the United States and end in April 2020 in the United Kingdom.
Pop Smoke death and murder
On February 19, 2020, Jackson was at his Airbnb rented house in Hollywood, California.
The Airbnb owner, The Real Housewives famed Teddi Mellencamp, and her husband Edwin Arroyave were both at the house as well.
Five unknown hooded men, including those wearing ski masks carrying a handgun, broke into the house around 4:30 am.
One of the intruders held the woman at gunpoint. She shortly heard another man arguing with Jackson, after which they shot Jackson three times.
LAPD arrived at the house after six minutes of Jackson getting shot. He was taken to Cedar-Sinai Medical Center, where he was operated for hours. Unfortunately, he was announced dead after a few hours.
The rapper’s grave rests at Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn, in New York City.
Pop Smoke Murder Investigation
Initially, LAPD suspected Jackson’s death to be a gang-related crime as he was connected to the Crips. However, later, they found his death basically a result of a robbery gone wrong.
In March 2021, the youngest of the four intruders, a 15-year-old, apparently admitted to killing Jackson over a diamond-studded Rolex gold watch.
He stated that Jackson resisted to comply with their demands and tried to fight them, after which they whipped Jackson with a pistol and shot him.
Later, on July 9, 2020, three men with two minors were arrested for the murder of the rapper Pop Smoke.
They were charged with murder and robbery, and the adult men were sent to prison and the minors to juvenile centers.
Pop Smoke Discography
Mixtapes
| Title | Release Date | Label | Format |
|---|---|---|---|
| Meet the Woo | July 26, 2019 | Victor Victor, Republic | digital download, streaming, CD, LP |
| Meet the Woo 2 | Feburary 7, 2020 | Victor Victor, Republic | digital download, streaming, CD, LP |
Pop Smoke as Lead Artist
| Year | Title |
|---|---|
| 2019 | Welcome to the Party |
| MPR | |
| Flexin | |
| Meet the Woo | |
| War | |
| Fire in the Booth Pt.1 | |
| Drive the Boat | |
| 100k on the Coupe | |
| 2020 | Christopher Walking |
| Dior | |
| Shake the Room | |
| Make it Rain | |
| The Woo | |
| Mood Swings | |
| For the Night | |
| What You Know About Love | |
| 2021 | Hello |
| AP | |
| On Me | |
| Mr. Jones | |
| Demeanor | |
| Woo Baby |
Pop Smoke as Featured Artist
| Release Year | Title |
|---|---|
| 2017 | 50k |
| Mary Jane | |
| 2018 | Slide (Remix) |
| Ordinary | |
| Double G | |
| Black Mask | |
| 2022 | Sunshine |
Promotional Singles
| Release Year | Enjoy Yourself |
|---|---|
| 2020 | Iced Out Audemars |
| 2021 | Lane Switcha |
Other Songs
| Title | Release Year |
|---|---|
| Gatti | 2019 |
| Element | 2020 |
| Invincible | |
| Get back | |
| Run It Up | |
| Zoo York | |
| Bad Bitch | |
| Aim for the Moon | |
| Bulldog | |
| Gangsta | |
| Yea Yea | |
| Creature | |
| Snitching | |
| West Coast Shit | |
| Something Special | |
| Diana | |
| Got It On Me | |
| Tunnel Vision (Outro) | |
| Show Out | |
| Burner on Deck | 2021 |
| Clueless | |
| Light it up | |
| More Time | |
| Tell me the Vision | |
| Manslaughter | |
| Bout the Million | |
| Brush Em | |
| Top Shotta | |
| 30 | |
| Beat the Speaker | |
| Coupe | |
| What’s Crackin | |
| Genius | |
| Spoiled | |
| Back Door | |
| Merci Beaucoup | |
| Tell the Vision | |
Personal Life
Pop smoke wasn’t very public about his personal life. He grew up in a Brooklyn family in the Canarsie neighborhood. This area has a lot of West Indian influence.
His father is Panamanian, and his mother is Jamaican, so he grew up in a multi-cultural home with strong Jamaican and Panamanian heritage.
Pop Smoke’s Arrest
On January 17, 2020, Federal authorities arrested Jackson for stealing a Rolls Royce Wraith worth $375,000 at John F Kennedy International Airport. He was returning from Paris Fashion Week.
The owner of the Rolls-Royce Wraith reported it stolen after Jackson apparently borrowed it in California for a music video shoot. He gave him the car on the condition that Jackson would return it the next day.
Authorities recovered the car at Jackson’s mother’s house in the Canarsie section of the neighborhood in Brooklyn.
Upon his arrest, the cops questioned him about the shooting that took place in Brooklyn in June 2019.
Since police claimed to have footage of Jackson driving a car near the crime scene, they took him in for questioning.
The police tried to get information from him about GS9, Crisps, and other street gangs in Brooklyn, but he refused to comply.
Pop Smoke was charged with grand theft auto with a $250,000 bond and an agreement to keep distance from gangs along with submission of a drug test to US pretrial services.
Pop Smoke net worth
The net worth after his death, in 2020, was $2 million. His net worth remains unchanged after three years of his death in 2023.
This American rapper and songwriter was best known for his second mixtape titled Meet the Woo 2.
He also gained popularity for his hit single “Welcome to the Party” in the year 2019.
Pop Smoke’s most hit albums were his only two, i.e, Meet the Woo and Meet the Woo 2, which added majorly to his net worth.
The rapper made numerous appearances and collaborations in various albums over the 3-4 years of his career.
| Year | Net worth |
|---|---|
| Pop Smoke net worth 2023 | $2 Million |
| Pop Smoke net worth 2022 | $2 Million |
| Pop Smoke net worth 2021 | $2 Million |
| Pop Smoke net worth 2020 | $2 Million |
| Pop Smoke net worth 2019 | $1 Million |
Awards
Here’s the list of awards and nominations rapper Pop Smoke received:
- He was nominated for the BET Awards in the Best New Artist category in 2020.
- He was longlisted and nominated for MTV Video Music Awards in the category Push Best New Artist and Song of Summer, respectively, in 2020.
- He won Best New New Hip Hop Artist title for the BET Hip Hop Awards in 2020.
- In 2021, he was nominated seven times for ARIA Music Awards, Grammary Awards, and Billboard music awards in various categories.
- The same year, he won four Billboard Music Awards in the categories Top New Artist, Top Rap Artist, Top Billboard 200 Album, and Top Rap Album.
Final thoughts
Pop Smoke was famously known as the face of Brooklyn drill, a Hip hop regional subgenre of drill music based in Brooklyn.
He gained popularity at a young age with his breakout singles Welcome to the Party and Dior in the year 2019.
With the continuous success of his albums Meet the Woo and Meet the Woo 2, Pop Smoke net worth was at its peak, around $2 million.
The rapper was also involved in legal issues, such as being arrested for stealing and further questioned due to his ties to gang members like Crisps.
Unfortunately, he died due to a gunshot wound after a home invasion at his house. He was only 20 years old at the time of his death.
FAQ
1. What Is Pop smoke real name?
Bashar Barakah Jackson is the real name of the rapper Pop Smoke.
2. What is the pop smoke zodiac sign?
Pop Smoke’s zodiac sign is cancer.
3. Who Were Pop Smoke Parents?
Pop Smoke parents were Audrey Jackson, his Jamaican mother, and Greg Jackson, a Panamanian father.
4. What Was Pop Smoke Net Worth After Death?
Pop Smoke net worth after death was $2 million.
5. When is pop smoke birthday?
Pop Smoke’s birthday was July 20, 1999.
