After a reported drive-by, which led rapper Rick Ross to drive his Bentley into a building the night of his 37th birthday, Miami legend Uncle Luke took to his weekly Miami New Times column, “Luke’s Gospel,” to give Ross some friendly advice.

In the open letter entitled “Rick Ross: Calm Down Before You End Up Like Biggie,” Luke urged the rap star to settle his beefs with the Gangster Disciples and others peacefully. He explained to the MMG boss that if violence continues to follow him, his stock as an artist will quickly drop. “No club or arena is going to risk people getting shot and you can forget about doing any tours or CD signings,” warned Luke. Ross has been pretty quiet since the shooting and has since hired round-the-clock security.

Given that Uncle Luke has survived nearly three decades in the rap game, the Bawse just might want to listen up. Check out an excerpt from the letter below. 

Dear Rick Ross:

I'm going to give you some advice. You need to seriously address the threats and attempts on your life. You have worked hard to become a big name in hip hop. You've paid your dues and you've grown lyrically since the release of your debut album, Port of Miami, in 2006.

 But all this gangster bull***t is jeopardizing your career.

Hip hop has a rich history of college guys who never committed a crime rapping about moving kilos of cocaine and taking out snitches. Every gangster rapper takes on the role of a real hood legend to build up street cred. But I don't want you to fall into the trap of believing you are really a gangster.

Trust me, you don't want to go out like Biggie Smalls or Tupac. It's time you squash your beefs.

To read the full letter, click here.

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(Photo: Larry Busacca/Getty Images)