December 07, 2007 @ 5:57 pm

The Last Days of Pimp C

On Tuesday, December 4, Chad "Pimp C" Butler was found dead in a Hollywood hotel. Three 6 Mafia’s DJ Paul, one of the last people to see him alive, gives VIBE the run-down of his final days.

The only reason he came to L.A. was to record with us [Three 6 Mafia]. We had put out two singles but the label didn’t really get behind the singles. So Pimp actually recorded five songs on our new album and he was like, “Man I’m about to come out there,” and he told us this for two months.

He finally came that Thursday and was like, “Man, I’m ready to work!”

I had went to this Bentley convention, and he told me, “Yeah, I’m going to go!” and I was like, “Man, it’s over now.” So he said, “Let’s go to the studio. I’m going to be here until Sunday or Monday.”


Last time I saw him was Friday. We recorded one of our new singles for the new Three 6 Mafia album. His spirit was high. We worked from like 3 a.m., to 11, 12 in the morning. Matter-of-fact, I fell asleep [in the studio] and he was still in there, and I was like, “Man, you still working?”

Saturday, I heard he went and performed with Too $hort. I didn’t hear from him Sunday. I thought he had went and hung with Too $hort. So my manager Rick Martin — we got the same manager — talked to him on Sunday at 4 or 5 o’clock. Pimp had to go back [home] for his parole and he missed his flight. My manager called [Pimp's] cousin like, “You seen Pimp?”

He called the hotel and was like, “Could you go check on my artist?” And this was Tuesday morning — and they ain’t called him back. So then he got in his car and headed that way. And [the hotel staff] said, “It’s a situation, and we can’t tell you on the phone.”

My manager called me and said, “Man, don’t start no rumors, but I think it might be something wrong with Pimp. . . I think he might be going to jail or he might be dead.” When he pulled up [to the hotel] it was police cars and ambulances and he was like, “Oh, shit.”

He called me and I was in the bed. I found out before anybody. I didn’t believe it at first. He broke the news to Pimp’s mother and Pimp’s wife. He had to ID the body.

Man… we’re going to miss him.  

UGK's name says it all. They’re the Underground Kingz.  They was doing it before us. I use to put their songs on mixtapes, and this was like ’91. Pimp always loved my production. That’s why he asked me to produce “International Players Anthem”. Matter-of-fact I got some beats over here that I recorded for his solo album but he never got a chance to hear it.

DJ Paul as told to Linda Hobbs.

Article tags: DJ Paul, Three 6 Mafia, UGK, Pimp C 

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