The Cook County Medical Examiner’s office has ruled DJ Rashad’s death in April 2014 an accident.
Toxicological tests found that Rashad died of heroin, cocaine and alprazolam intoxication. The famed and highly prolific Chicago footwork/juke DJ/producer born Rashad Harden, 35, was found unresponsive by a friend about 1:30 p.m. on April 26 in an apartment in the 2100 block of West 21st Street, authorities said. He was pronounced dead at the scene, at 1:50 p.m., according to the Cook County Medical Examiner’s office.
Rashad’s death sparked an outpouring of love on social media from music fans and peers from around the world.
In an exclusive interview with Big Shot, DJ Godfather, who had released a great deal of Rashad’s work before he aligned with Hyperdub and was supposed to DJ with him on the night of his death, praised Rashad’s artistry. “He was definitely a monster who could crank out a lot of shit.”