Silentó, the American rapper who skyrocketed to global fame with the 2015 viral hit Watch Me (Whip/Nae Nae), has been sentenced to 30 years in prison for the murder of his cousin, Frederick Rooks III. The final sentencing, handed down on June 12, follows the rapper’s admission of guilt and acknowledges a history of mental health issues that preceded the crime.
The incident occurred in January 2021 when police discovered Rooks’ body with multiple gunshot wounds in DeKalb County, Georgia. Surveillance footage showed a white BMW SUV, later identified as belonging to Silentó (real name Ricky Lamar Hawk), fleeing the scene shortly after gunfire was heard. Upon arrest, Silentó confessed to the killing, and ballistic evidence matched his firearm to the shell casings found near the body.
Despite his once-glowing image as a teen sensation, Silentó’s life unraveled rapidly in the years following his viral fame. By 2019, he publicly disclosed struggling with severe depression rooted in a violent upbringing. In 2020 alone, he faced multiple arrests for domestic violence and assault with a deadly weapon, including an incident where he entered a stranger’s home wielding an axe. He also attempted suicide during this tumultuous period.
In court, it was acknowledged that Silentó’s mental health struggles played a role in the crime, but the judge ultimately handed down a 30-year sentence. This decision was met with disapproval from Rooks’ family, who argue that the rapper deserved a harsher punishment for his cousin’s “brutal” killing.
Silentó, born in 1998, achieved meteoric fame at just 17 with Watch Me, which peaked at No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 and has since amassed over 1.9 billion views on YouTube. However, he failed to replicate that success and gradually faded from the music scene—culminating in a tragic fall from grace now etched in legal history.
