Rico Wade of the legendary Organized Noize production team passed away on April 12 at the age of 52. Killer Mike, a fellow member of the Dungeon Family collective, endorses his hometown immortalizing Wade with a sculpture.
“Atlanta should consider a public statue of Rico Wade,” The Atlanta Journal-Constitution‘s senior editor Mike Jordan tweeted. “Maybe specifically in East Point, maybe even the airport. It’s hard to overstate how much he impacted music/culture/ATL. Sure, we can + should do murals but Rico really was a changemaker for this city’s global identity.”
Killer Mike co-signed Mike Jordan’s proposal by quote-tweeting the journalist and adding, “Amen.” The four-time Grammy Award winner previously tweeted, “Love and respect being shown to Rico Wade is beyond beautiful to see. He put Atlanta on it’s own course.”
— Killer Mike (@KillerMike) April 15, 2024
Killer Mike rose to prominence in the early 2000s as part of the Dungeon Family’s Second Generation supergroup known as Purple Ribbon All-Stars. The MC/entrepreneur born Mike Render rapped over Organized Noize-crafted production on songs like “Claremont Lounge” and “We The Ones.”
In addition to Organized Noize’s Rico Wade and Killer Mike, Dungeon Family affiliates include Big Boi and André 3000 of Outkast, Big Gipp, T-Mo, CeeLo Green and Khujo of Goodie Mob, Future, Janelle Monáe, and additional recording artists.