Julio Foolio has reportedly died.
According to News 4 Jax, the Jacksonville-based rapper, born Charles Jones, was allegedly shot and killed in Tampa, Florida, early Sunday morning.
At the time of his death, he was celebrating his 26th birthday, which the news station notes was on Friday, at an Airbnb. Due to the large number of attendees, police shut down the festivities and the group relocated to a nearby Holiday Inn where he was ambushed.
Tampa Police confirmed to Complex that they responded to a 911 call regarding a shooting at the hotel at 4:40 am. Upon arrival, officers spotted two vehicles that had been shot at in the parking lot.
One person was pronounced dead. Three other people are being treated for their injuries at a hospital and are said to be in stable condition.
“The victim in this morning’s shooting is believed to be Charles Jones,” wrote Tampa Police Public Information Officer Jonee’ Lewis in a press release. “Positive identification is pending confirmation from the Medical Examiner’s Office.”
Law enforcement officials also told Complex that they are actively investigating what led to the shooting and are working to identify those involved.
Foolio grew up in Jacksonville’s notorious Moncrief neighborhood, per a profile from Complex’s Eric Wells in 2021. Inspired by another popular Jacksonville rapper, Lil V, Foolio gained attention with tracks like the Soulja K-assisted “Dirty Sticks” in 2017 when he was still a teenager.
The following year, Foolio released his 6Toven album produced by Zaytoven featuring the single “Crooks” that showcased his hard-edged flow, which he would later perfect with 2019’s “Rough Rider.”
However, Foolio gained national attention over his public feud with Yungeen Ace, now 26, in 2021, which saw the release of diss tracks such as “Beatbox Remix” and “When I See You.” The songs brought him significant exposure but also criticism.
Foolio often rapped about the murder of his friends and his resulting mental health struggles, including depression, which he said he coped with by taking Percocets.
“The fans ask me why I pop all these Percocets all the time, and it’s not because I want to feel the high,” Foolio told Complex’s Eric Wells in 2021. “It’s because I don’t want to feel the shit I’m going through.”
At the time, he also mentioned using music as therapy that inspired his lyrics.
“I love music because I can hear a beat sometimes and I feel like it’s talking to me. When I heard the beat for ‘Bibby Story,’ I already knew what I was going to say,” said Foolio.
Although Foolio typically freestyled, he wrote extensively during a stint in county jail.
“They revoked my bond so I wrote so many raps and they were some of my best raps because I was going through real shit,” he told Complex. “I’m a punch-in rapper. I like to come off the top of my head.”
Per reports online, Foolio was invovled in several non-fatal shootings in the past, including an incident last October where he was hospitalized after reportedly being shot in the foot.
