Chicago rapper Bloodhound Q50, whose real name has been reported as Mikquale Cooper, was fatally shot in an ambush outside a Fuller Park gas station early Sunday, September 13, according to CBS News and the Chicago Police Department. He was 22. More than 50 rounds were reportedly fired at his vehicle by two carloads of gunmen. Chicago Police have not officially confirmed his identity in public statements, though leaked dispatch audio has circulated online naming him.
Bloodhound Q50 had just walked out of a gas station. He never made it far from his car.
What Happened in Fuller Park
According to the Chicago Police Department, a 22-year-old man was fatally shot around 3:58 a.m. Sunday in the 4200 block of South Wentworth Avenue in Fuller Park. Police say two vehicles pulled up alongside his car and opened fire — more than 50 rounds were reportedly fired before the suspects fled.
Surveillance footage reportedly showed a man jogging past Q50 as he walked toward his car shortly before the shooting, someone online users have speculated may have been a lookout for the attack, though that has not been confirmed by police. Once gunfire began, a female friend who was with him in the car reportedly opened the door to escape, and more shots followed. Some online commentators have speculated she may have had some connection to the ambush; there is currently no evidence supporting that theory, and it remains unconfirmed speculation.
Q50 suffered gunshot wounds to the chest and shoulder. Responding officers attempted to treat him before he was pronounced dead at the scene. Police say four of the suspected gunmen were dressed entirely in black, with a fifth in a green hoodie and a sixth in a black hoodie. The suspects allegedly fled in a black Acura sedan and a silver Honda Accord toward the southbound Dan Ryan Expressway. No arrests have been made, and Chicago Police have opened a homicide investigation.
An Identity Not Yet Officially Confirmed
Chicago Police have not publicly confirmed the victim’s identity. However, dispatch audio that surfaced online reportedly captured a responding officer identifying him as “Cooper Mikquale,” with a listed date of birth of August 6, 2004 — matching Q50’s own recently celebrated 22nd birthday.
His Mother Responds
Machetta Dudley, identified as Q50’s mother, addressed the shooting in an emotional Facebook post just hours after it happened, pushing back forcefully against people mocking her son’s death online.
“Let me make this clear… somebody’s momma gonna be crying like me one day. Y’all wanna troll, I’m gonna troll a lot of you. Y’all feared my son, and now you gonna have to fear his mother,” she wrote, in a post that used considerably stronger language in its original form. “He’s not here to tell me don’t do this on social media.”
Tributes From the Hip-Hop Community
News of Q50’s death drew tributes from across the industry. Rolling Loud, the festival he performed at earlier this year, posted condolences online. DJ Vlad, who interviewed Q50 in 2024, remembered him as unusually composed for his age.
“I interviewed him last year. He was the most media-trained rapper I’ve ever spoken to at his young age,” Vlad wrote on X. “My condolences to his family, friends, and fans.”
Who Was Bloodhound Q50
Q50 emerged from Chicago’s drill scene as part of the Bloodhounds collective alongside his cousin, Bloodhound Lil Jeff, who was killed in 2024. He was best known for songs including “Don’t Blink or Stare” and “Splash Bros 2,” and had recently released the project “Get Back or Die Trying” — which featured Lil Jeff — shortly after celebrating his 22nd birthday on August 6.
Q50 had reportedly survived an earlier shooting in St. Louis in August 2025, a brush with violence he later referenced in his own music, rapping, “Notorious like Big Poppa but I ain’t goin’ like Chris Wallace.” His song “Too Stuck” stands as his final released music video.
A Familiar, Painful Conversation
Q50’s death has reignited a wider conversation online about the toll gun violence continues to take on young rappers, particularly within Chicago’s drill scene. One person on X wrote that his music “now hits differently,” describing drill as a genre where artists turn grief and street life into songs, only for the violence they describe to eventually catch up with them.
Attorney Aisha Braveboy, speaking to Afro about the broader pattern, argued the genre’s connection to real violence is often direct rather than symbolic. “When you listen to the lyrics in drill rap music, there is a strong presumption that the songs are being used to incite violence and take credit for violent acts, oftentimes between neighborhood crews,” she said. “That is dangerous. In many instances, it is terrorizing communities. People are losing their lives and individuals engaging in the violence are going to prison.”
BloodHound Q50 was reportedly shot and killed in Chicago early this morning.
On Sunday (Sept. 13), news of the 22-year-old Chicago rapper's death began circulating on social media.
DJ Akademiks and DJ Vlad tweeted R.I.P. messages.
"RIP BloodHound Q50," Ak wrote.
"Rest in… pic.twitter.com/yY1GwUseAc
— XXL Magazine (@XXL) September 13, 2026
