El-P collaborator Camu Tao has died at the age of 30.
The Ohio-based rapper and producer, whose real name was Tero Smith, had been battling lung cancer for nearly two years. He passed away on Sunday (May 25) in his hometown of Columbus.
Tao was signed to the Definitive Jux label. He was a member of the duo S.A. Smash with fellow rapper Metro, performed in the rap group Weathermen, and was part of the Central Services production team with El-P.
In a posting on his blog, El-P wrote:
"We, his friends and family, have truly had our collective hearts broken by (Tao's) passing. Not only because of the loss of our friend, but because of the loss of his contribution to those who never knew what we knew about his talent and his potential.
"He was the secret that no one wanted to keep and we always knew that one day his vision and his heart could change music forever the way he changed all of our lives."
--By our Los Angeles staff.
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