Entertainment

Christian rapper TobyMac's 21-year-old son found dead in Nashville home

By Shelby Lin Erdman, Cox Media Group National Content Desk
By Shelby Lin Erdman, Cox Media Group National Content Desk

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Grammy Award-winning Christian rapper TobyMac and his family are mourning the loss of his oldest son, Truett Foster McKeehan, according to news reports.

>> Read more trending news 

McKeehan, 21, was found dead at his Nashville home Wednesday, the Davidson County Medical Examiner's Office confirmed to NBC News.

“Truett Foster Mckeehan had joy that took the room when he entered. He was a magnetic son and brother and friend. If you met him, you knew him, you remembered him,” TobyMac wrote in an Instagram post about his son’s death.

“He had an untamable grand personality and dreams to match,” he wrote.

View this post on Instagram

Truett Foster Mckeehan had joy that took the room when he entered. He was a magnetic son and brother and friend. If you met him, you knew him, you remembered him. His smile, his laugh, the encouragement he offered with words or even without. He had an untamable grand personality and dreams to match. And he hated being put in a box. He expressed himself through the music he made. And by made I mean, written, recorded, produced, mixed, and designed the art. All of it. A true artist. His first show was a week ago, and it was nothing short of electric. Everyone felt it, everyone knew it. He could’ve easily taken the easy route and put music out when he was 12, 14, 16, even 18, but he always said he wanted to live some life and have something to say before he did it. He didn’t want to be a child star, he wanted to be a man with scars and a story to tell. I always admired, respected and encouraged that stand. Truett always had a soft spot for God. The Bible moved him. His heart was warm to the things of his King. He was by no means a cookie cutter Christian but give me a believer who fights to keep believing. Give me a broken man who recognizes his need for a Savior every time. That’s who Truett was and how he should be remembered. My last moment with Truett in person was at his first show this past Thursday at the Factory in Franklin, Tennessee. I had to leave the next morning very early to fly and start our Canadian tour. As I stood in the audience and watched my son bring joy to a room, I was as proud as a “pop” (as tru called me) could be. It was the culminating moment of a dream that he had since he was 12. It couldn’t have been sweeter. Our music, and what we say lyrically couldn’t be more different, but the outcome was much the same… offering a room full of people a few minutes of joy in a crazy world. Our last text exchange is shared above (swipe). My wife and I would want the world to know this... We don’t follow God because we have some sort of under-the-table deal with Him, like, we’ll follow you if you bless us. We follow God because we love Him. It’s our honor. He is the God of the hills and the valleys. And He is beautiful above all things.

A post shared by TobyMac (@tobymac) on

The aspiring musician, who released music under several names, including Truett Foster and truDog, was found by a friend, WZTV reported.

There were no signs of foul play, and police told the news station McKeehan did not die by suicide.

An autopsy is scheduled to determine a cause of death.

TobyMac, whose real name is Toby McKeehan, canceled his concert tour in Canada to return to Nashville to be with family, according to CBN News.

“My last moment with Truett in person was at his first show this past Thursday at the Factory in Franklin, Tennessee. I had to leave the next morning very early to fly and start our Canadian tour. As I stood in the audience and watched my son bring joy to a room, I was as proud as a “pop” (as tru called me) could be,” TobyMac said.

Truett McKeehan was the oldest of TobyMac’s five children.

The rapper said last year that the song "Scars" off his latest album, "Elements," was written for his son, the Digital Journal reported.

The song’s lyrics include the lines, “Life ain’t got no sequel, we all broken people. The only road to found is lost.

View this post on Instagram

Firstborn.

A post shared by TobyMac (@tobymac) on

Cox Media Group

0

Most Read