Mister Cee‘s cause of death has reportedly been revealed by his family, after the Hip Hop legend passed away at the age of 57 on April 10.
In an exclusive on AllHipHop from Monday (April 15), the pioneering DJ’s family shared: “The Medical Examiner of New York City determined that his cause of death was Diabetes related coronary artery/kidney disease. ”
“On behalf of the Lebrun, Wilson, Calixte families we want to thank everyone for the outpouring of love and support for our brother, uncle, nephew Calvin ‘DJ Mister Cee’ Lebrun in the wake of his untimely passing. It’s a huge loss for our entire family, the borough of Brooklyn, and the entire Hip-Hop Community,” the family said in a statement issued to AllHipHop.
Born Calvin LeBrun in the Bedford-Stuyvesant district of Brooklyn in 1966, Mister Cee became famous as the DJ for Juice Crew member Big Daddy Kane‘s explosive 1988 debut album Long Live the Kane as well as an executive producer for the Notorious B.I.G‘s 1994 debut album, Ready to Die. In fact, Cee was the first to co-sign the Biggie before he appeared in The Source‘s Unsigned Hype section, thus kicking off his career.
During his time on the radio — specifically with Hot 97 — the veteran earned the nickname “The Finisher.”
Just one day before his passing, Mister Cee took to Instagram himself to announce a new show on Rock The Bells Radio and wrote: “2NITE!!! THE SET IT OFF SHOW WIT @djmistercee AIRING MON-THURS 10PM-12MID(EAST COAST) 7PM-9PM(WEST COAST) ON LL COOL J @llcoolj ROCK THE BELLS RADIO @rockthebells ON SIRIUS XM CHANNEL 43!!! @siriusxm PLAYING CLASSIC/TIMELESS HIP HOP FROM THE 80’s 90’s & 2000’S!!!”
50 Cent, Grandmaster Flash and several more Hip Hop luminaries took to their social media pages to pay tribute to the late artist.
Among the many people who honored the late turntablist was 50 Cent, who once threatened to replace longtime collaborator DJ Whoo Kid with Mister Cee because the latter was more talented according to the G-Unit boss.
He was among the first to pay tribute to the pioneer, taking to Instagram and writing “R.I.P to the legend MR. Cee God bless him, to all his family and friends I send my condolences.”
Grandmaster Flash, a fellow Hip Hop pioneer, recorded an emotional video explaining what the legend meant to him, both personally and professionally.
“It’s just really strange to hear that DJ Mister Cee has passed away,” he said. “Really good dude, man. Really nice guy. And I simply want to say, DJ Mister Cee, you will be missed.”
