DJ Kay Slay Biography – DJ Kay Slay Wiki
DJ Kay Slay born Keith Grayson was an American disc jockey (DJ) and record executive from New York City. He is referred to by The New York Times as “Hip Hop’s One-Man Ministry of Insults”. He released four studio albums, The Streetsweeper, Vol. 1, The Streetsweeper, Vol. 2, The Champions: North Meets South (with Greg Street), and More Than Just a DJ.
He was originally a prominent graffiti artist, having been featured in the 1983 hip hop documentary, Style Wars. One of his better-known tags was “Dez”. As a youth involved in New York’s flourishing hip-hop scene, the DJ witnessed firsthand the ascent of legendary disc jockeys such as Grandmaster Flash, Grand Wizzard Theodore, and Kool DJ Red Alert, in the late 1970s and into the 1980s. “I didn’t so much set out to be a DJ,” he said. “It was just something to do that was fun and that I enjoyed doing.” With the decline of the graffiti movement in the late 1980s, he started dealing with narcotics and consequently ended up in jail by the late 1980s. He was released from jail in 1990 and claims to have abstained from using drugs ever since. He is from East River Projects located in East Harlem, New York.
His debut album was released on May 20, 2003, and is named The Streetsweeper, Vol. 1. In the summer of 2003, he again released a single, accompanied by a music video, for a song titled “Too Much For Me”. The single, which features a chorus sung by then-up-and-coming singer Amerie, also features verses from American rappers Birdman, Nas, and Foxy Brown. The song peaked at number 53 on the US Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, making it the DJ’s highest-charting single to date. The single’s music video includes cameo appearances by Swizz Beatz, N.O.R.E., Raekwon, WC, and Lloyd Banks. Although the song was not a major success, its music video was aired on MTV Jams, and BET. The “Too Much For Me” video did not feature Nas (because of Nas’ solo projects) or Baby; so Loon was featured instead. This replacement began a feud between Nas and Kay Slay.
On March 30, 2004, his second album The Streetsweeper, Vol. 2, was released. Another single and video were released for “Who Give A…Where You From” with Three 6 Mafia, which peaked at number 89 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs. The late DJ and the song were featured on the 2004 NFL Street video game.
After releasing More Than Just a DJ in 2010, Rhyme or Die was released in 2015. The album’s first two singles “60 Second Assassins” featuring Busta Rhymes, Layzie Bone, Twista, and Jaz-O, and “The Kings of the Streets” featuring DJ Khaled, DJ Drama, DJ Doo Wop, and Fly Nate were released in 2011. In 2013, “About That Life” featuring Fabolous, T-Pain, Rick Ross, Nelly, and French Montana was released as a single from Rhyme or Die. It debuted and peaked at #54 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, making it one of his most successful singles to date. At the beginning of 2014, “Free Again” was released featuring Fat Joe and 50 Cent, which came as a surprise for some seeing as how they had “beef” before, but have since reconciled. In 2021 DJ Kay Slay released the track “Rolling 110 Deep” which featured 110 hip-hop artists with contributing verses from Ice-T, Shaq, Coke La Rock, KRS-One, Kool G Rap, Ghostface Killah, Roy Jones Jr, Omar Epps, and others.
DJ Kay Slay Age
He was born on August 14, 1966, in New York, New York, United States. He died on April 17, 2022, at the age of 55.
DJ Kay Slay Wife
Not much is known about his marital life. According to credible sources reporting to The Cardinal Facts, he married his wife Buffie Carruth, an American model.
DJ Kay Slay Family
Much is not revealed about his family. He is however survived by his mother, Sheila Grayson, along with his best friend and business manager Jarrod Whitaker.
DJ Kay Slay Death
The DJ passed on on April 17, 2022, at the age of 55. In January 2022, the deceased’s brother said he was in the hospital after contracting COVID-19, but was “in a recovery state”.He later died of complications from the disease, on April 17, 2022.
His family confirmed his death through a statement released by New York hip-hop radio station HOT 97. He was 55.
Talent manager Wack 100, who called Kay Slay his “brother, friend, business partner & mentor,” said the two had been friends for 20 years. For months, he updated followers on Kay Slay’s health and progress in the hospital.
In a statement on its website, HOT 97 said it was “shocked and saddened by the loss of our beloved” Kay Slay.
DJ Kay Slay Cause of Death
He died of COVID 19 complications on April 17, 2022, at the age of 55.
