Trinidad Dancehall Artist Brad Bailey Shot Dead After He Allegedly Issued Threat To Gang

Yet another Trinidadian Dancehall artist has fallen victim to gun violence. Rising star, Bradbadlikethat, whose real name was Brad Bailey, was shot and killed in the Santa Cruz area on March 31.

According to police reports, residents of Blackford Street, Cantaro Village, heard gunshots around 10.55 am and saw men running along the street where Bailey lived. He was found a short while after with gunshot wounds.

Bailey was a member of Ztekk owned by Trinibad artist, as Trinidadian Dancehall is called, Prince Swanny.

About a day after his death an Instagram video of him admonishing a gang called Anybody Gets It, ABG, appeared. In the video, he can be heard hurling expletives aimed at the gang. Though, a connection has not been made as yet between that video and his shooting as police are still investigating.

His song Born Bad was his most popular with over two million views on YouTube.

The young man, who was just 18-years-old, is being mourned by his mother Tricia Bailey. She spoke with the TT Newsday about having to deal with the sudden death of her son and denied that her son had any gang affiliations.

“He was my son. He was a normal boy. He didn’t have any criminal record with guns or anything like that. The police didn’t know my son to be involved in any gang thing. He was focused on music and he was a lyrical monster that’s it,” she said.

She added that his killers would have to live with themselves knowing that they took an innocent life. “I feel hurt but at the end of the day whoever killed him have to worry. He is dead and gone but they have to live with it everyday of their lives. They can’t close their eyes just so anymore without seeing Brad’s face,” she continued.

Local artists Prince Swanny, Medz Boss and Plumpy Boss all expressed their sadness at the loss of the young artist on Instagram.

In July 2020, 26-year-old Dancehall artist Rebel Sixx, whose real name Kyle Roberts, was shot several times during a home invasion in Bon Air Gardens. Police reports indicated that two gunmen dressed in black stormed the house and shot him multiple times. They also revealed that they found 17 shells at the scene of that murder.

In January of this year (2021), Prince Swanny had to come out and publicly deny that he was involved in a plot to destabilize the capital city, Port-of-Spain. He made the public condemnation of gangster activities after messages began circulating on WhatsApp warning of an “all out” war brewing amongst gangsters within the capital city which named him as a person of interest. He eventually issued a statement through his legal team, in which he stated that he was a public advocate for peace and that he was deeply troubled to see his name associated with such a claim.