Chris "Mac Daddy" Kelly of 90's kid rap group Kris Kross, famous for the hits "Jump," "Alright," and "Tonight's The Night," was pronounced dead at an Atlanta hospital after being found unresponsive at his home in Atlanta on the evening of May 1st. He was 34. DJ Greg Street of Atlanta radio station V103 broke the story on the station's website:
Around 7:45 I received a phone call from his cousin saying they had found Kelly at the house just 20 minutes earlier and he was unresponsive.I just received confirmation that he has passed.
Kelly and his Kris Kross partner, Chris "Daddy Mac" Smith, reunited for a performance at So So Def Records' 20th anniversary event in February 2013.
UPDATE: According to CBS Atlanta, the Fulton County Police Department believes that Kelly died of a drug overdose.
Jermaine Dupri, who brought Kris Kross to the attention of the world, issued a "Letter To The Fans" via Global14:
To the world chris was MacDaddy but to me, he was a son I never had, as much as you may think I taught him, he taught me,god has blessed me to be in the presence of so many naturally talented people, and chris was one.his understanding of what we set out to do,from day one was always on point.his passion for the music,his love for doing shows,his want to better than everyone else, was always turnt up.when I think about it I spent more time with chris and chris than damn near anybody in my whole life, so you can imagine how bad this hurts.I will always love you chris, and I will never let the world forget you,may god bless your soul
Kelly's mother, Donna Kelly Pratte, and So So Def Records released the below statement:
“It is with deep sadness that we announce that our beloved Chris Kelly has passed away on May 1. To millions of fans worldwide, he was the trendsetting, backwards pants-wearing one-half of Kris Kross who loved making music. But to us, he was just Chris – the kind, generous and fun-loving life of the party. Though he was only with us a short time, we feel blessed to have been able to share some incredible moments with him. His legacy will live on through his music, and we will forever love him.”
