Rap Legend Heavy D Dies at 44

Rapper Heavy D died Tuesday, TMZ.com reports. He was 44.

Heavy D, born as Dwight Arrington Myers, was rushed to a Los Angeles hospital around noon, and pronounced dead an hour later, according to the site. A 911 call placed at 11:25 am reported an unconscious male on the walkway of Heavy D's Beverly Hills home. When paramedics arrived, he was reportedly conscious and speaking before being transported to the hospital.  

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The Jamaican American actor and rapper was the leader of Heavy D & the Boyz, best known for singing the opening theme song for In Living Color and MADTV. Heavy D was also popular for performing tracks with both Michael Jackson and Janet Jackson.

As an actor, he appeared on A Different World, Rocand Living Single before going on to star in Boston Publicand the film Life. Most-recently, he guest-starred on Law & Order: SVUas the cousin and business manager of a superstar basketball player.

Heavy D performed at the 2011 BET Hip-Hop Awards in October, as well as the Michael Jackson tribute concert in Wales that same month.