When 33-year-old Nipsey Hussle was fatally shot last year, outside his Marathon clothing store in Crenshaw Boulevard, the city of Los Angeles didn’t just lose one of its best rappers, but also one of its most altruistic community leaders. The shop, just a stone’s throw away from where the artist grew up, was designed to revitalise a downtrodden area, providing jobs for ex-convicts and gang members. It was an extension of Nipsey’s blossoming business empire. The clothing store was situated in a plaza that the rapper owned, and in which he planned to open a barbershop and restaurant. He also owned a co-working space in Crenshaw designed to inspire young black people to enter the world of technology. Advertisement