Jordan Peele, Ice Cube, Q-Tip & More Respond to the Death of John Singleton

Culture - 4 years ago

Dimas Sanfiorenzo Dimas Sanfiorenzo is the Managing Editor for Okayplayer. He specializes…

 

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A post shared by JOHN SINGLETON (@johnsingleton) on Mar 6, 2019 at 1:07pm PST

“You changed a culture with your art… and impacted the world with your vision.”

Legendary filmmaker John Singleton died on Monday (April 29th.) On April 17th, Singleton had a stroke, which led to the director being in a coma for 12 days.

Singleton’s health wasn’t getting better; his family decided to take him off of life support.

READ: Legendary Filmmaker John Singleton Has Died at the Age of 51

Singleton was a legend. At 23, he wrote and directed Boyz N the Hood one of the greatest movies of all time. Singleton would get a Best Director and Best Original Screenplay Academy Award nomination, becoming the youngest person to ever get an Oscar nomination.

He would go on to have a versatile career, directing cult favorites like Poetic Justice and Higher Learning, as well as big box office hits, like The Fast and the Furious and Four Brothers. In modern days, he’s best known for being the showrunner on FX’ Snowfall. (He also directed Michael Jackson’s “Remember the Times” video.)

READ: John Singleton Recalls Telling Tupac to Quit Rap and Pivot to Acting

As soon as the news was confirmed, the entertainment community came out in full force to honor the director. Scroll down to see how Chris Rock, Chance The Rapper, Nas, and more responded to the death of John Singleton.

Larry Wilmore

This is really sad news. Rest in peace John Singleton https://t.co/RVZEzn6tEX

— Larry Wilmore (@larrywilmore) April 29, 2019

Janelle Monáe

JOHN SINGLETON . A GENIUS .
Thank you for capturing US like no other . 😭🙏🏽🖤

— Janelle Monáe, Cindi (@JanelleMonae) April 29, 2019

Spike Lee

 

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I Will Forever Miss My Brother John Singleton. We Met While He Was A Film Student At USC. Over Many Years People Have Told Me “I’m Going To Be A Filmmaker”, When John Said That To Me The 1st Time We Met, I Believed Him Right Away. It Was No Surprise. With His Passion, His Heart, The Way He Talked About His Love For Cinema And Black Folks I Could See John Would Make It Happen, And He Did. From Day One, We Have Remained Close Over The Decades, Cheering Each Other On In This Industry That Is Not Set Up For Us To Win. John Singleton’s Films Will Live On Forever. Blessings And Prayers For His Family. May John Rest In Power. Amen.

A post shared by Spike Lee (@officialspikelee) on Apr 29, 2019 at 12:50pm PDT

Nas

 

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John Singleton put a very powerful camera lens on real life. What a good dude. I just think of chillin on the boat with ya that time. This pic reminds of that day. Rest In Power my Brother. Sail on.

A post shared by Nasir Jones (@nas) on Apr 29, 2019 at 12:01pm PDT

Lena Waithe

This one cuts deep. You’ll never be forgotten. Cause your work will live on. pic.twitter.com/bqCV8RTyc8

— Lena Waithe (@LenaWaithe) April 29, 2019

Chance The Rapper

Rest up John Singleton. We never met, but Remember The Time literally changed my life. Thank you so much. God Bless you

— Chance The Rapper Owbum 📅 (@chancetherapper) April 29, 2019

Wu-Tang Clan

Sending out Love To John Singleton and his Family. We Pray with you in the Struggle for our Brother. Peace

— Wu Tang Clan (@WuTangClan) April 29, 2019

Michael Rapaport

Cuba Gooding
Ice Cube
Regina King
Morris Chestnut
Taraji
Lawrence Fishburne
And so on.#JohnSingleton helped launch so many actors careers, not to mention crew members & Producers.

— MichaelRapaport (@MichaelRapaport) April 29, 2019

Flying Lotus

JOHN SINGLETON!

— FLYLO (@flyinglotus) April 29, 2019

Larry Wilmore

This is really sad news. Rest in peace John Singleton https://t.co/RVZEzn6tEX

— Larry Wilmore (@larrywilmore) April 29, 2019

Taraji P. Henson

 

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Visited you today. Me and @tyrese prayed so hard over you. You heard my voice and jumped up. I HAVE HOPE AND FAITH BECAUSE I KNOW THAT #GODIS. Keep praying EVERYBODY for our beloved @johnsingleton 🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾💋💋💋

A post shared by taraji p henson (@tarajiphenson) on Apr 27, 2019 at 5:50pm PDT

Pete Rock

 

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You requested me to be on the soundtrack to one of your prolific movies that i still watch today “Poetic Justice” never 4get it. Then seeing you before this dilema and chopping up with you and flickin pics,and you spoke on me working on something new for you and i got so excited 😃 praying hard for you my brotha! 🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾💯 #johnsingleton ♥️♥️♥️

A post shared by @ realpeterock on Apr 29, 2019 at 11:47am PDT

Warren G

 

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I wanna send my prayers out to @johnsingleton and his family my prayers are with you all. This man gave me my first opportunity as a Artist and Producer without knowing me he put a song from a young kid off the rough streets of Long Beach California and made my song Indo Smoke his first single on Poetic Justice Soundtrack which gave me my first gold record and opened the door for @defjam to sign me which changed my life. I just wanna thank you man for all that you’ve did for me and hip hop and the world of film . Stay strong and pull through this you always been a soldier in every situation and we need you here with us as a role model and mentor.🙏🏾

A post shared by Warren G (@warreng) on Apr 29, 2019 at 8:38am PDT

Juicy J

This is me & john Singleton on text in 2017 talking about doing a three six mafia biopic If this would had happened we would have won another Oscar for Best Picture John Singleton is a genius he knew the culture he helped us all I love you bro pic.twitter.com/yYo62kOSdv

— juicy j (@therealjuicyj) April 29, 2019

Jordan Peele

RIP John Singleton. So sad to hear. John was a brave artist and a true inspiration. His vision changed everything.

— Jordan Peele (@JordanPeele) April 29, 2019

Robert Townsend

My prayers go out today to John Singleton and his family. May God bless the young cinematic king who gave us images that will stay with us forever.🙏🏽 pic.twitter.com/tohsQTUPbj

— Robert Townsend (@Robert_Townsend) April 29, 2019

Will Packer

 

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Thank you for being fearless in an industry that can make that trait feel like a weakness. Thank you for being uncompromising when it came to your vision and sense of self. And most of all thank you for always being kind and supportive to a young brother who continues to follow the trail that you blazed with a blinding light of leadership and ferocious sense of purpose. Thank you my brother. Rest in Power. 🙏🏾 #JohnSingleton #ATrueLegend

A post shared by Will Packer (@willpowerpacker) on Apr 29, 2019 at 1:19pm PDT

Chris Rock

 

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So sad to hear about John. I met him way before he did “ Boys in the Hood “ . He had more drive then anybody I’ve ever met. The first time I met him in 1998 he told me everything he was gonna do in his career including the Oscar nomination and every movie after that and it all came true. It’s sad to see him go cause he was such a cool dude and he had a few more things on his list.

A post shared by Chris Rock (@chrisrock) on Apr 29, 2019 at 1:17pm PDT

Jamie Foxx

 

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God blessings… you changed a culture with your art… and impacted the world with your vision… my prayers are still up… hoping for a miracle… @johnsingleton #prayers

A post shared by Jamie Foxx (@iamjamiefoxx) on Apr 29, 2019 at 11:42am PDT

Martin Lawrence

 

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My heart and prayers go out to the amazing filmmaker, father, and human being John Singleton. His legacy that has been filled with so much positivity and creativity will surely stand the test of time. 🙏🏾

A post shared by Martin Lawrence (@martinlawrence) on Apr 29, 2019 at 12:55pm PDT

Janet Jackson

 

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You gave me my first movie role, my first Oscar nomination and so much more. Thank you for all you have given to the world through your work and all you have done for Black culture, women and young filmmakers. I will miss you John. Keeping your family in my prayers. 💜

A post shared by Janet Jackson (@janetjackson) on Apr 29, 2019 at 4:15pm PDT

Q-Tip

 

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Deeply saddened by this news… a great friend to me… he pushed me into acting and gave me my first role… always was in my corner… i cant express how much this hurts #ripjohnsingleton #blackexcellence #bigbro gonna miss u john🙏🏽🙏🏽🙏🏽

A post shared by Q-Tip The Abstract (@qtiptheabstract) on Apr 29, 2019 at 1:58pm PDT

Busta Rhymes

John Singleton was one of my big brothers in this fraternity of the entertainment industry. Gave me guidance, believed in me, and when it came to film he saw greater potential in me that… https://t.co/oX6bWtlNg1

— Busta Rhymes (@BustaRhymes) April 30, 2019

Common

Not only did John make movies for us and our culture, he made one of the most iconic videos ever! It showed the world what Egyptians really looked like! Again I say, THANK YOU! May God bless the soul of John Singleton. pic.twitter.com/RAEm61vw0a

— COMMON (@common) April 29, 2019

Chris Tucker

Sad to hear of the loss of John Singleton. One of the great directors of our time. RIP John..🙏🏽🙏🏽🙏🏽🙏🏽Prayers for your family

— Chris Tucker (@christuckerreal) April 30, 2019

Ice Cube

I was discovered by a master filmmaker by the name of John Singleton. He not only made me a movie star but made me a filmmaker. There are no words to express how sad I am to lose my brother, friend & mentor. He loved bring the black experience to the world. ..Us at Cannes ‘90 pic.twitter.com/CaRKjZtjgB

— Ice Cube (@icecube) April 29, 2019

Ava DuVernay

There aren’t many of us out here doing this. It’s a small tribe in the grand scheme of things. He was a giant among us. Kind. Committed. And immensely talented. His films broke ground. His films mattered. He will be missed. And long remembered. Thank you, John. #RunIntoHisArms pic.twitter.com/wKfOaCGFuA

— Ava DuVernay (@ava) April 29, 2019