INGLEWOOD, Calif.–Funeral services will be held today for Cali Swag District rapper M-Bone, known for the song and accompanying dance “Teach Me How to Dougie.”
The rapper, whose real name was Montae Talbert, was shot and killed at about 10:30 p.m. May 15 in the 400 block of North La Brea Avenue. He was sitting in a car outside a liquor store when the shots were fired.
He was taken to Harbor UCLA Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead.
M-Bone was a member of the Inglewood-based group Cali Swag District, which shot to fame with the release of “Teach Me How to Dougie,” which set off a wide-ranging dance craze.
His funeral at Faithful Central Bible Church in Inglewood will be open to fans and the public.
“I can’t explain it. It just hurts,” a tearful C-Smoove, a member of Cali Swag District, told ABC7 days after the shooting. “He was the life of the group, man.”
Fellow band member Jayare told the station he felt “awful.”
“I just want to go sit in a corner,” he said. “I just lost one of my best friends and there’s nothing I can do about it. I been with this dude every day for like two years … and (I’ll) never see him again. It’s killing me. I don’t know how to think right now.”
The band released a statement to TMZ.com, calling M-Bone the “victim of a random act of violence.”
M-Bone “was an inspiration to his family, friends and fans,” according the band’s statement. “He was a hardworking, passionate artist and dancer that will be deeply missed.”
Anyone with information about the shooting was urged to call Inglewood police detectives at (310) 412-5240.
