Hussle had long been associated with the Rollin 60s Neighborhood Crips, one of Los Angeles' largest street gangs, which he publicly acknowledged in a
2010 interview with Complex magazine.
In more recent years, however, Hussle had developed an interest in technology and community development, and he was part of a team of artists and entrepreneurs who developed Destination Crenshaw, an open-air museum devoted to honoring African-American artistic achievement.
"In our culture, there's a narrative that says, 'Follow the athletes, follow the entertainers,'"
he told the Los Angeles Times last year. "And that's cool, but there should be something that says, 'Follow Elon Musk, follow [Mark] Zuckerberg.'
"I think that with me being influential as an artist and young and coming from the inner city, it makes sense for me to be one of the people that's waving that flag," he said.
In an interview last year with Forbes, Hussle said that as a youthm he'd fallen prey to the "ignorance and self-destructiveness in the narrative that was pushed on us through music in our generation."
"I see how damaging that was, for myself included, and we're all subject to the social pressure," he said. "I wasn't above it. Each of us are impacted by what's going on around us. For me, understanding the platform I have and who it speaks to, it's about being strategic. ...
"I wanted to redefine the lifestyle and what we view as important," he said. "When you hear 'buy back the block' as the narrative, that's powerful. That's a step towards redefining the expectation."
He and the actor Lauren London were the parents of a 2½-year-old child; Hussle had other children from previous relationships, as well
