Drive-By Shooting in Griffin, Ga., Claims Life of Jerode Paige, AKA Yung Hott, as He Filmed 1st Video

Black-on-black crime continues to rear its ugly head. A rapper known as Yung Hott was killed in Griffin, Ga., Saturday evening while he was making a video, during what is being called a shooting spree. According to the Atlanta Journal Constitution, one accused shooter is still on the loose, police said.

Yung Hott, whose real name is Jerode Paige, died at the scene of the quadruple shooting, in which approximately 20 rounds were fired, Lt. Sam Parks said. Three others, including a five-year old girl playing in her yard were injured, the police said.

Friends said Paige was trying to turn his life around after a past that included prison. Paige was released from Wheeler Correctional Facility in central Georgia in June and was on parole, according to state Department of Corrections online records. He served prison time for a variety of drug offenses as well as possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime. Paige's father was beaten to death at age 28, and Paige was raised by his grandmother in Griffin, his uncle Gary Paige told the AJC. Paige was pursuing his music career with a single-minded purpose.

I don't know what is happening in Atlanta, but the scourge of black-on-black crime permeates the very fabric of the city's life. There isn't a day that goes by when someone isn't shot or a body found on the predominantly black south side of the city. This is on par with Chicago, only on a smaller scale. Why is there so much violence in these communities? There is a culture of violence in the hip-hop world, as many rappers are victims of gun violence or perpetrate the violence themselves.

UPDATE#1:  According to WSB-TB, police have arrested three black males:  22-year-old Bahir Howard, 21-year-old Corderra Walker, 21-year-old Terry Fuller and 23-year-old Terrance Jones, who are being held in the Spalding County Jail on charges including murder, aggravated battery and child cruelty.