Tommy Hill Dead: Philly Rapper Killed in Apparent Robbery

Philadelphia rapper Tommy Hill, aka Tommy Butta, died Sunday morning (Dec. 4) after being shot two days earlier in an apparent robbery. He was 36.

According to the Philadelphia Inquirer, the veteran MC was approached by three masked men early Friday morning after leaving a bar in the city's Uptown section. Police said Hill was shot in the chest and lower body, and that the attack led to an exchange of bullets between the assailants and the bar's manager, who'd followed Hill outside to collect an unpaid tab.

"He was in a bar having a good time and afterwards they shot him and robbed him," an unnamed source told AllHipHop.com. "The dudes he was with shot back, security came out and it was hectic situation."

While the source cites robbery as the motive, others speculate the killing had something to do with Hill's criminal background -- he did time for selling crack -- and cooperation with authorities in a case involving local drug dealers.

"Because of the nature of the testimony he gave ... he was going to have a target on his back for a very long time," the rapper's lawyer, Bernie Resnick, told the Inquirer. "Of course, Tommy had trouble doing anything in the background."

Born John Wilson, the rapper released several albums as a member of the group RAM Squad, including 'Random Access Money,' which came out in 2001 on Universal. Following his prison stay, he changed his name to Tommy Butta, but his troubles didn't stop there. Earlier this year, AllHipHop.com reports, he was arrested in Atlanta for attacking a woman at a Wal-Mart.