Magnolia carried the distinction of being the first female artist to be signed to Cash Money.
According to media reports, Magnolia, born Renetta Lowe, was shot an astounding 26 times on NOLA’s east side. Apparently just after noon, an assailant or assailants emptied their clips into Magnolia and a male companion while their vehicle was still in motion in the 6300 block of Bridgehampton Drive. Their blood-splattered bodies were discovered after the vehicle crashed into the gates of an apartment complex.
Magnolia and her companion were pronounced dead at the scene.
Their deaths were confirmed by DJ Wild Wayne, an on-air personality on the hip-hop and R&B station Q93.3-FM in New Orleans. The fact that Magnolia was riddled with so many rounds of bullets led natives to speculate whether the murder was the by-product of a feud or illicit activity.
According to allhiphop, Magnolia was bestowed her hip-hop moniker by Magnolia Slim, who also hailed from the notorious Magnolia housing projects. Magnolia Shorty got her break in the game when she was discovered by Cash Money’s Bryan “Birdman” Williams.
Magnolia released her first record on the label in 1995. Most recently, she had a pair of local club hits with last year’s “Smoking Gun,” a remix of the Jadakiss song, and this year’s “My Boy,” a collaboration with Kourtney Heart.
Just months before her death, Magnolia Shorty was a featured artist at the SXSW Festival in Austin, Texas.
“I wanted to be a rapper. I’ve been rapping since I was 12 years old,” Magnolia Shorty told Spinner.com. “I was working on mixtapes and my verse[s] while rapping at block parties. I eventually got introduced to Cash Money Records and we just went from there.” –terry shropshire
