MC Ant was one of those guys who a big part of the Bay Area's then emerging rap scene. He never went on to reach national stardom the way Too Short, Digital Underground and MC Hammer did, but in the Bay he stood right alongside them. His hallmark record was 'On The Dance Floor', which was an infectous song that sampled from Zapp's classic groove of the same title. Ant was one of the first to dip into that musical war chest. Today that track is considered a Bay Area classic.

When the song came out, there was a sea of controversy surrounding MC Ant. His business partener Travis was found shot dead in his Oakland apartment. There was a lot of talk that his killing was drug or gang related and that anyone connected with Ant might have the same fate. No one was found, although the word on the street was Travis's killer was eventually killed.

After 'On The Dance Floor' MC Ant would appear here and there on a few records and he even did a couple of shows. He eventually moved to Reno, Nevada. This past weekend [Jan 31 1999], he was found shot dead in his Reno apartment. He was with a female companion who was also shot and his now struggling for her life. The killer was the girl's ex boyfriend.

No one is not quite sure what lead up to the killing. We don't know if it's jealousy or some sort of street drama playing itself out. The word was that Ant suspected this female companion of setting him up to be robbed at one point. So it might've been some street drama.

In anycase MC Ant was a talented artist who will be surely missed. His demise brings the number of Bay Area artist who have died untimly death to 8 over the past 2 years. We can only hope all this madness stops. Unfortunately, a lot of these guys come from the streets and it's been difficult for everyone to completely shake their past. MC Ant will be missed.