Drake pays tribute to Jamal Edwards after his sudden death at 31
DRAKE has paid tribute to Jamal Edwards after the music entrepreneur's tragic death from a sudden illness.
Jamal's SBTV channel was the first UK outlet to interview Drake as he transitioned from acting into the world of music.
The Grammy-winning superstar, who is one of the biggest rappers in the world, shared a throwback of the pair a day after the tragic news.
He wrote: "Sending condolences and love to the friends and family of Jamal Edwards."
This Morning Jamal's mum Brenda released a statement expressing her “deepest heartache”.
Brenda, 52, said: “It is with the deepest heartache that I confirm that my beautiful son Jamal Edwards passed away yesterday morning after a sudden illness. Myself, his sister Tanisha and the rest of his family and friends are completely devastated.
“He was the centre of our world. As we come to terms with his passing we ask for privacy to grieve this unimaginable loss.
“I would like to thank everyone for their messages of love and support. Jamal was an inspiration to myself and so many.
“Our love for him lives on, his legacy lives on. Long live Jamal Edwards MBE, MBA, PHD."
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The entrepreneur found fame setting up the new music platform, which helped to launch a string of UK music careers including Dave and Jessie J.
He was an ambassador for the Prince's Trust, a charity headed by the Prince of Wales, and in 2014 he was awarded an MBE for his services to music.
Tributes
Tributes to Jamal have flooded social media with many expressing their condolences to his mum Brenda, who finished fourth in the second series of the X Factor in 2005.
Loose Women's Denise Welch said: "My heart aches for my friend Brenda. I can't bear it. Jamal Edwards was a wonderful son and brother."
The official Youtube Twitter account said the industry had "lost a legend", adding: "Jamal Edwards was an inspiration to so many, supporting artists and shaping culture through @SBTVonline. Sending our condolences to Jamal's family & community."
Incredible career
Jamal was a teenager when he launched the youth broadcasting and production film channel SBTV to upload clips he had recorded of his friends performing on the estate where he lived in Acton, west London.
By 2014, he had amassed an estimated fortune of around £8 million and worked with the likes of Jessie J, Emeli Sande and Ed Sheeran.
Speaking to PA after being made an MBE, he said he started SBTV to give his friends a platform.
He added: "It was a frustration of going to school and everyone talking about 'how do we get our videos on MTV'.
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"YouTube was like a year old. I was like 'I've got a camera for Christmas, I'm going to start filming people and uploading it'.
"Everyone was looking at me like 'what are you doing, like you can compete with these major corporations', but I think I was early enough to believe that I could make a change."
