N.W.A’s former bodyguard Joe Fierro, also known as KJ Mustafa, passed away at the age of 61 in Pleasanton, California this past Sunday (March 1), according to LA Weekly.
The GoFundMe campaign set up to help with the costs of Fierro’s funeral cites congestive heart failure as the cause of his death.
LA Weekly reports that Fierro, a Vietnam veteran, was the Head Of Security for the group’s label, Ruthless Records during the collective’s more heated years. The article continues by saying that prior to N.W.A’s first national tour in 1989, Fierro gave the group firearm training and while on the road, he was in charge of “smoothing things over with local law enforcement, who were furious over N.W.A’s song ‘Fuck tha Police.’”
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According to Fierro, he was shot in the hand following a Seattle show in 1991 when a fan followed N.W.A back to their hotel and started firing.
The publication also reports that Eazy-E was the closest member of the group to Fierro. “You didn’t have to want for anything when you worked with Eazy,” Fierro said during an interview with LA Weekly last year. Taking care of everything from his meals to the birth of his children, Fierro said: “Eazy took care of you, mind, body and soul.”
The publication reports that Fierro fell ill and even became homeless in recent years. The former bodyguard required lengthy dialysis treatments for his diabetes and, as of last year, was homeless and living out of his car in parks.
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A GoFundMe campaign has been set up for anyone willing to donate to help with the funeral costs.
In addition to his common-law wife Marvyne Dixon, Fierro is survived by his four children.
HipHopDX would like to extend its condolences to the family and friends of Joe Fierro.
