Tame One Death – Obituary: Rapper Tame One of Artifacts fame has passed away unexpectedly on November 6, 2022 at the age of 52. However, details regarding his cause of death was not released.
Artifacts, along with fellow Jersey native El Da Sensei, came to fame in the early 90’s, going from freestyles on the Stretch & Bobbito radio show to scoring a hit with “Wrong Side Of The Tracks,” released on Big Beat/Atlantic Records. Besides being skilled on the mic, their reps at graffiti writers also came through in their visuals and lyrics. The group’s debut, Between a Rock and a Hard Place, was released in 1994, followed by That’s Them in 1997.
Mourning his death, popular New Jersey Hip-Hop singer Rah Digga wrote,
“I usually don’t race to the internet to post news like this when I’m in the middle of feeling it…but we gonna give this Jersey legend his muthafuckin flowers!! Hold your head @el_da_sensei ❤️,” wrote Rah Digga as a caption to a photo of Tame. “#RIPTameOne #Artifacts #LegendsNeverDie #BrickCity #JerseyShit #YouHadToBeOutside.”
Rest East Tame One of the mighty Artifacts crew…Had the pleasure of working with him many moons ago. MY deepest of condolences to his closest friends and family🙏
— Dante Ross (@DanteRoss) November 7, 2022
As Brick City graffiti writers, The Artifacts signed to Big Beat/Atlantic Records in the 1990s. Tame was a cousin to Redman, who had supported the group’s early endeavors, with production and features. At Big Beat, they released 1994’s Between A Rock And A Hard Place and 1997’s That’s Them. Even though major label, both albums were influential to the burgeoning Underground Hip-Hop movement. Also known as “Encyclopedia Brown,” Tame is recognized for inventive flows, and accessible subject matter—often dealing with everyman issues. In addition to Red, Busta Rhymes, Lord Finesse, and Lord Jamar were among collaborators.
As a solo artist, Tame partnered with High Times Records and later, DJ Mighty Mi’s Eastern Conference Records for releases in the 2000s that included When Rappers Attack. He would later team with Del The Funky Homosapien and Parallel Thought for 2009’s Parallel Uni-Verses. Tame also joined El-P, Aesop Rock, Cage, Vast Aire, Copywrite, Breeze Brewin, Yak Ballz, and others in The Weathermen. As an E.C. side project, Cage and Tame formed short-lived The Leak Bros in the mid-2000s.
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