Rapper Ol' Dirty Bastard was one of the founding members of Wu-Tang Clan and had a memorable solo career in the 1990s. Born and raised in Brooklyn, New York, Russell Tyrone Jones took on his rap moniker because he said there was no "father" to his unique rap style. But at the age of 35, tragedy struck and he died on Nov. 13, 2004.
After Wu-Tang Clan's successful debut album, Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers), in 1993, ODB went on to release his first solo effort, Return to the 36 Chambers: The Dirty Version, in March 1995. The album featured his notable songs "Brooklyn Zoo" and "Shimmy Shimmy Ya." His follow-up album, 1999's N---a Please, featured his top 40 hit "Got Your Money."

Although successful in music, ODB had a long series of run-ins with the law and drugs, which tainted his rise to fame. In 2004, he collapsed in the lounge at a recording studio in New York City after experiencing chest pains and difficulty of breathing.
He was rushed to the hospital where he was pronounced dead. An autopsy revealed his cause of death was an accident from a combination of cocaine and a prescription pain killer.
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(Photo: Al Pereira/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)