Videos by According2HipHop
Family members have officially confirmed that British grime pioneer Dot Rotten died on Monday (Mar 9) at the age of 37.
Hailing from Stockwell, London, Dot Rotten helped shape early grime with his rough-edged production and emotionally raw lyrics. He gained mainstream attention with his 2012 single Overload, a Top 20 hit that sampled Children and addressed his struggles with depression.
He started rapping at just seven years old and broke through with the influential Rotten Riddims mixtape series in 2008, releasing six volumes in a single month. Over the years, he collaborated with artists including Ed Sheeran, D Double E and Chip.
In later years, Ellis shifted his focus to production under the name Zeph Ellis, crafting tracks for acts like AJ Tracey, Kano and Headie One.
Tributes quickly poured in across social media, including from longtime rival Wiley, who shared a photo of the two together with a broken heart emoji.
Fans and peers alike are remembering Dot Rotten as one of grime’s early innovators whose sound helped bridge the gap between underground rap and the mainstream.
