NEW YORK (CelebrityAccess) — Keith Grayson, better known as the pioneering hip hop DJ, recording artist, and record executive Kay Slay, who the New York Times called “Hip Hop’s One-Man Ministry of Insults” has died. He was 55.
His passing was confirmed by a statement from his family published by radio station Hot97.
An official statement from The Grayson Family on the passing of Keith Grayson aka DJ Kay Slay: pic.twitter.com/nUZn55k3yh
— HOT 97 (@HOT97) April 18, 2022
A native of New York City, Grayson first made a name for himself as a graffiti artist, frequently working under the tag Dez before breaking into the early rise of hip-hop in the region, inspired by artists such as Grandmaster Flash, Grand Wizzard Theodore and Kool DJ Red Alert.
Like many underground hip-hop artists, Grayson focused on mixtapes in his early years, releasing more than 500 between 1994 and 2004 and helping to raise his profile outside of the New York underground scene.
However, after an arrest for drugs, Grayson did a short stint in prison in the late 1980s.
He released his debut album The Streetsweeper, Vol. 1 in 2003 led by the single “Too Much For Me” which featured guest appearances from Amerie, Birdman, Nas and Foxy Brown. The track peaked at #53 on the Billboard hip hop charts, becoming Grayson’s highest charting hit.
In total, he released 6 studio albums, three of which charted and the third only cracking the top 200 on the U.S. album charts.
In addition, Grayson hosted “The Drama Hour” on HOT 97 where he interview numerous hip hop icons with a focus on beefs between rappers.
According to CNN, Flay was hospitalized with COVID-19 in January.
