Who killed Young Dolph?

In Sept. 2024, the murder trial of rapper Young Dolph began in Memphis, TN, when two suspects agreed to testify against a third man accused in the case. A fourth man, Jemarcus Johnson, had already pleaded guilty to three counts of accessory after the fact.

In Nov. 2021, Young Dolph, 36, was outside a business in Memphis when two masked gunmen opened fire, killing him. Memphis rapper Yo Gotti’s brother, Anthony “Big Jook” Mims of the CMG record label, had taken out the $100,000 hit on Dolph’s life, according to the prosecution.

Years earlier, Dolph had rejected a CMG deal and struck on his own with the label Paper Route Empire. Dolph had also released diss tracks against CMG. The three men accused of Dolph’s murder — legal name Adolph Thornton Jr. — are Cornelius Smith Jr., Hernandez Govan, and Justin Johnson. Govan, Smith Jr., and Johnson said they agreed to the murder for hire arrangement.

For his part, Jook was shot and killed in Dec. 2024. When Dolph’s murder trial began, Memphis police said there had been no arrests related to Jook’s death, and that his murder was still under investigation. It’s unclear whether Jook’s death had any connection to Dolph’s murder.

Smith and Johnson pulled the trigger

According to Cornelius Smith Jr. in his testimony, Smith and Johnson fired the guns that killed Young Dolph. Hernandez Govan, a CMG music associate, is accused of conspiring to kill Dolph and of planning the murder. Smith Jr., Johnson, and Govan were all reportedly set to stand trial in September. However, Smith Jr. and Govan agreed to testify against Johnson at the last moment. If convicted, Johnson could be sentenced to life in prison.

According to the prosecution, the Dolph-CMG beef can be traced to Yo Gotti, who founded CMG (then Cocaine Muzik Group, now Collective Music Group) in 2012. Big Jook was Yo Gotti’s brother. It’s unclear what role Yo Gotti — legal name Mario Sentell Giden Mims — may have had in Young Dolph’s death. The Dolph-CMG feud worsened in 2016 when Dolph released “The King of Memphis,” seen as a direct challenge to Gotti’s claim for that title.

Dolph came on the scene in 2008 with his debut mixtape Paper Route Campaign, and he went on to collaborate with Megan Thee Stallion, Gucci Mane, and 2 Chainz, among other major hip-hop artists. The Memphis business outside which Dolph was shot became a memorial for the rap star after his death, as the Memphis community grieved his passing. The NBA’s Memphis Grizzlies also paid tribute to Dolph at one of their games.

Referring to Young Dolph’s decision not to sign with CMG, his sister, Carlisa Brown, said, “He didn’t want to be confined and put in a box, like when you get on some of these other labels. It was about having something of his own, something that he built and made, that he could ultimately use to help impact other people.”

Dolph survived two other shooting attempts before his death. In 2017, a car Dolph was in was shot at in North Carolina. The vehicle was bulletproof, and Dolph was uninjured. Blac Youngsta, another Gotti associate, was one of three men who faced charges related to the North Carolina attack, but Youngsta’s charges were eventually dropped.

That same year, Dolph was critically injured by gunfire outside a Los Angeles hotel where Gotti was also staying. Corey McClendon of Memphis, a known Gotti associate, was arrested in connection to the L.A. shooting, but faced no charges.